Between Friday, May 13 and Sunday, May 15, the Cowboys will hold their rookie minicamp. There, the 29 players from the Draft (9 selected and 20 undrafted) will begin to prove their worth to the Dallas coaching staff. But they will not be the only ones.
In previous days it was reported that some players from the Dallas practice squad would also be part of this minicamp. Now, this Thursday afternoon, it was confirmed that six more players were invited to participate, this on a trial basis. The players in question are:
- Alex Akingbulu (tackle ofensivo, Fresno State)
- Antonio Ortiz (long snapper, TCU)
- Nakeie Montgomery (corredor, Duke)
- Nick Starkel (marshal, San Jose St.)
- Simon Mathiesen (pateador, Northwest Missouri State)
- Terry Wilson (mariscal, New Mexico)
Former Duke RB Nakeie Montgomery, Fresno State OT Alex Akingbulu, San Jose St. QB Nick Starkel, New Mexico QB Terry Wilson and TCU long snapper Antonio Ortiz are also attending the Cowboys’ rookie minicamp on a tryout basis, per team. https://t.co/zX8Oe0u5xe
— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) May 12, 2022
Of this lot, the presence of Simon Mathiesen is striking. The Danish-born kicker has already been looking for his place in the NFL for a few years after his time in college football. Now, he’ll have a chance to prove himself at a minicamp that already has two young kickers in attendance.
Let’s remember that Dallas currently has Chris Naggar (signed a few weeks ago) and Jonathan Garibay (undrafted rookie from Texas Tech). On paper, the two would be the main contenders for the starting kicker job. However, there is talk that the Cowboys should add someone with experience to the competition. In fact, Michael Badgley (Colts) sounded like a tentative candidate in that category.
Now, it’s true that there aren’t many viable options other than Badgley that generate a lot of confidence. So the Cowboys might want to try Mathiesen. Logically, we will have to wait for the reports after the minicamp to know if the native of Denmark would join the competition for the title.
Either way, one thing to anticipate is that the battle for that kicking spot will be quite close in the coming months. This is how Mike McCarthy, head coach of the Cowboys, let it be seen during his statements to the press this Friday.
Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy on how competitive the kicker-job battle will be in months ahead: “Super. It’s wide open.” pic.twitter.com/XzymKb8S0Y
— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) May 13, 2022
The NFL combine kicked off last week with regional competitions. I covered the one here at #RedskinsPark for #nfl #kickers #simonmathiesen pic.twitter.com/gcTUFHXdMi
— Joe Dominguez (@joethetvguy) March 4, 2017
As for the rest of the minicamp invitees, these are players who remain without a team after the 2022 Draft. However, unlike Mathiesen, these are meant to be add-on pieces for certain positions during practices. In fact, that’s specifically the case for quarterbacks Nick Starkel and Terry Wilson, as other than them there are no players at that position scheduled to participate in minicamp.
Sure, there’s the remote chance that one of them will stand out enough to become a potential candidate to compete for a spot on the roster at backup quarterback. But with Cooper Rush, Will Grier and Ben DiNucci ahead, the chances are too remote.
Aside from these tryout guests, it’s worth remembering that the Cowboys’ minicamp will also feature some veterans who are part of the practice squad:
- Isaac Alarcon (offensive lineman)
- Tyler Coyle (bottom)
- Austin Faoliu (defensive wing)
- Brandon Jones (center)
- Chris Naggar (Pateador)
- J. Vasher (receptor)
- Brandon Smith (receptor)
With no official games with Dallas thus far, these players will have a chance to start proving themselves at rookie minicamp. With this, they will seek to increase their chances of getting a place on the cowboy team at the end of the summer.
There is no doubt that the Cowboys’ coaching staff will have a large work group this weekend at the team’s facility in Frisco. With this rookie minicamp, we will also be able to have the first impressions of this new group of players. Of course, with an eye on the nine selected by Dallas in the 2022 Draft rounds.
