OXNARD, Calif. – Don’t call it harassment.
It’s not that. It’s more of a tradition.
That’s why Cooper Beebe was smiling as he tried to figure out how many of his offensive teammates’ helmets he could lug into the locker room after a recent practice. Fellow rookie Tyler Guyton, who, let’s be honest, has longer arms than Beebe, took a lot of punishment before him.
Were there any other rookie initiatives that the Cowboys’ third-round pick came across?
“Not really, except that I went to Target on a day off and bought them a bunch of snacks,” Beebe said. “Stuff like that.”
“They were really good to us.”
What is the favorite snack in the attacking area? More on that later. First, there is a game to play.
The Cowboys travel to Las Vegas on Saturday night to face the Raiders in their second of three preseason games, kicking off at 9 a.m.
Brock Hoffman was the center in the opening game against the Los Angeles Rams. Beebe is expected to start at center in this game, along with Guyton at left tackle, as the Cowboys’ offensive line restructuring continues.
Beebe grew up in a soccer family. Ever since he could crawl, he had a ball in his hand.
But he rarely caught it.
Beebe was the Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year in his final two seasons at Kansas State. He was primarily a guard during those two years, but also played occasional left and right tackle.
The term “center” did not appear in his resume.
“Honestly, when I saw him on film, I saw a center,” Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy said. “So some of these guys, there’s different evaluations of these players from team to team. Maybe not everyone thought he was a center. Maybe some people thought he was a guard. Maybe some people thought he was a right tackle.”
“I don’t know. But when I saw him play, knew his personality and the background information our scouts had on him, I just thought he was a natural center.”
Physique. That’s what caught McCarthy’s eye. He’s had smaller, faster centers throughout his coaching career. But he always preferred the physique of someone like Travis Frederick, who was the center of Dallas’ offensive line before McCarthy arrived.
Beebe has a similar body type.
“When evaluating the center position, I always looked at whether they can hit the 1-technique,” McCarthy said. “That’s an important feature of their job. That changes and adjusts things.”
“And boom, now you get into our division and the defensive tackles in our division. That’s why I think Travis Frederick is what you’re looking for. He’s such a big, strong anchor there and could get to the 1-technique and do all those things and had great control.
“You have to look at all these things.”
Stepping into a new position was a challenge. But Beebe is not one to make excuses. He has been diligent in preparing for this training camp. Clips of him talking to his mother before training camp have been making the rounds on social media.
That hasn’t been a problem this camp or in the season opener, as Beebe split his 55 snaps between center and guard. He’s quick to point to his biggest improvement since being drafted in April.
“I would say technically it’s all about balance,” Beebe said. “When I first started, I noticed that I was a little top-heavy at times.”
“I’ve been working with coach (Mike) Solari and he’s really helped me improve contact balance and things like that. I think the biggest improvement in my game is keeping my base under me.”
And the biggest challenge?
“Call the attack,” Beebe said. “You have to take control. That’s something I never did in college. Like snapping.”
“I had to accept it.”
Dak Prescott was able to rely on Frederick to run the offense and get everyone ready during the quarterback’s rookie season. Now the roles are reversed. It’s up to Prescott to help Beebe the way Frederick did him.
“One of the things I told Beebe was to go up there and call ID with confidence and go for it,” the quarterback said. “If it’s not right, I’ll make it right.”
After Saturday night’s game against the Raiders, there are a few things that need to be sorted out. That’s what preseason training is all about.
But Beebe is making strong progress.
“There were definitely some bumps and bruises along the way,” Beebe said. “I started out doing a little bit of snapping in college, but I mostly focused on the guard position.”
“It was definitely an adjustment. OTAs were a pretty good learning experience for me. But now that I’m continuing to get reps, I feel comfortable.
“This is my job. This is the position they expect me to be in and I will continue to improve at it.”
Now back to the offensive linemen’s favorite snack…
“Beef jerky,” Beebe said. “Any kind of beef jerky. Chomps Beef Sticks is the best choice. It’s very popular in the O-line room.”
“I’m just fulfilling my duties as a rookie. Whatever they ask of me, I’ll do it.
“It’s a rite of passage.”
See David Moore with The Musers every Monday through Friday at 9:35am and on the Hardline every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 4:35pm on The Ticket (KTCK-AM 1310 and 96.7 FM) during training camp.
Twitter: @DavidMooreDMN
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