Garrett: Dustin Vaughan “a Different Player” in 2015

Dallas Cowboys backup quarterback Dustin Vaughan is a different player than he was at this time last year. At least, that’s what head coach Jason Garrett believes, and as a former NFL quarterback himself, we’re inclined to believe him.

Vaughan came to the Cowboys last year as an undrafted free agent out of West Texas A&M and he didn’t see the field in the regular season. But after going 22 of 43 passing for 212 yards, a touchdown and no interceptions in four preseason games, he did make the team, which is a victory in itself.

Since then, Vaughan has continued to make strides.

“I think he’s gotten a lot better," Garrett said, per the Dallas Morning News. "I don’t think there’s any question about that. It’s a huge jump for anybody. I told our team the other day, you could be a four-time All-American, a four-time All-SEC and walk in here and it’s a huge jump. It’s a huge transition for a rookie to come into the National Football League. And then you kind of go even further when you’re talking about guys going from smaller-school situations and then particularly at that position. So, a long way to go for him right at the outset but he’s worked very hard. It’s important to him. He wants to be a great player.

"He needs to play. He needs to play at practice and play in preseason games. That’s going to make his biggest growth. But he’s certainly a different player than he was a year ago."