In Jason Garrett’s first training camp as head coach, fans can expect the intensity to ratcheted up a bit from where it was with Wade Phillips’ earlier years, and even in his later attempts to toughen things up--which he really did, to some degree--and depart from lax approach that led to the pejorative nickname “Camp Cupcake.”
Garrett said in his introduction as head coach on Thursday that he planned on running a highly physical camp, one that perhaps will look more like the hellish preseason practices of Jimmy Johnson than the camps of Wade Phillips--or, to be pejorative and catchy, the workouts will not be anything that may be referred to as Camp Cupcake.
“I believe you have to earn it in training camp,” Garrett said, ESPN Dallas. “I was fortunate to be around teams that earned it in training camp. You go to work and you lay the foundation of your football team in training camp. It’ll be a physical camp, a demanding camp. We’re going to practice and we’re going to practice hard, and when we come out of it we’re going to feel like we’re ready to embark on the challenge of a 16-game season.
“Our players will understand that and they’ll feel good about it.”
When Garrett took over for Phillips in early November, the team had their first full-pads practice since the summer--a practice that continued through the year--and the new, more physical approach seemed to yield some sunny results. Dallas finished 5-3 under Garrett, after starting 1-7 under Phillips.
“You have to practice being physical in order to be physical on Sunday afternoons,” Garrett said, “so we’ll practice that way and continue to do that.”
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