Day 3 of Cowboys training camp belonged to the rookies, and no one made a louder early statement than Jaishawn Barham.
Barham has been drawing steady praise since camp opened, and Saturday only strengthened that buzz. Brian Schottenheimer had already been handing out compliments, and before practice he made it clear the rookie linebacker had earned them.
“Jaishawn [Barham] has been outstanding," Schottenheimer said before the Cowboys took the practice field.
That reputation held up on the field. Barham was at his best in coverage, breaking up a pass to CeeDee Lamb in the red zone and later stuffing a run rep. He also shut down Malik Davis on a wheel route, another flash of the coverage ability that has turned heads early.
Joseph Hoyt of the Dallas Morning News called Barham “the clear standout” of the session and noted that he was “getting a lot of work with the starters today.”
The Michigan product has put together about as strong a rookie start as he could have asked for.
Barham wasn’t the only young player making noise. Caleb Downs and Malachi Lawrence teamed up to blow up a play, with Lawrence applying pressure and Downs getting a hand on the ball for a pass breakup that nearly became an interception. Michael Trigg, Camden Brown and Anthony Smith also had their moments.
Smith didn’t stay in bounds on the play, but Hoyt said he showed “great movement off the ball to get open and then bent back to the corner where he made a spiral catch,” while Trigg caught his first pass of camp and turned it into a touchdown. Brown added a strong end-zone grab, prompting Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram to say the UDFA receiver is “making a strong early impression.”
George Pickens continued to look like a player who is already in midseason mode. Patrik Walker of DallasCowboys.com wrote:
“No other way for me to say this other than to say it: genuinely, through three practices, George Pickens is locked in every single rep - whether he gets the ball or not (decoy routes, blocking) and, when he does get the ball, you’d think he’s playing in a game TODAY,”
There was also a notable sign of progress from the defense. Hoyt pointed out how well the Cowboys were communicating before the snap, a sharp contrast to last season’s issues.
“Communication was such a problem for the Cowboys last year. Here’s a little ASMR of the Cowboys defense communicating pre snap. Spoiler: it’s a lot different than last year. pic.twitter.com/IKvUjwjF6N”
Saturday also brought a few injury updates. Schottenheimer said Jalen Thompson is dealing with a hip flexor and Zion Childress has a hamstring issue.
P.J. Locke remained out with a hyperextended knee, while Jake Ferguson missed practice for a personal reason.
There was one rough spot for the offense. The Cowboys have been intrigued by Jaydon Blue’s receiving ability out of the backfield, but he couldn’t haul in a pass over the middle, and the play ended with an interception - Dak Prescott’s first of camp. Malik Hooker got the pick.
It was a minor setback in August, but if Blue wants third-down work in 2026, the drops can’t start becoming a habit.
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