OXNARD, Calif. — It's finally time.
"I think this is clearly the day that everybody's waiting for," head coach Mike McCarthy said Monday morning. "This is as close as we can get to preparation for a game."
The pads have come on, and the real work begins for the Dallas Cowboys.
"This is exactly when real football starts," Cowboys safety Jayron Kearse said. "You get to put the pads on, you get bang a little bit. It's not two-hand touch anymore."
But, nobody was more excited today than first round pick Mazi Smith.
"I don't even like football," Smith said. "I like hitting people."
Everyone laughed. Smith didn't.
So, how did today's practice feel to him?
"Good. Good," he said. "Felt like home."
I think Cowboys fans are going to enjoy Mazi Smith.
Meanwhile, inevitably, the added intensity of practice led to some chirping, too.
"Those guys want to win, we want to win," Kearse said. "When I win, I talk my trash. When we win on defense, we talk trash for the unit. When they win, they do the same thing."
But, ultimately, the most important part of all of this is the actual work -- perfecting technique when you're able to go full speed.
"Emphasis is on physicality," Smith said. "Because you can get off as fast as you want to, hard as you want to. But if when you get there you ain't striking the block, you're in trouble. You know? So I'm trying to make sure I get off with the same intention to strike and destroy blocks."
Like I said - you're gonna enjoy Mazi. Just another piece of a defense that has sky-high potential.
"You know, I don't know where we are right now until we go against somebody else," Kearse said, "but I definitely think we have the pieces in place to go out there and be an elite defense."
And now they get to really show it, with the pads on and the hitting underway.