What coaches, players said about Downs at minicamp
Cowboys defensive coordinator Christian Parker says there has been no surprise with Downs. He is exactly “as advertised,” the Cowboys defensive play-caller said.
Parker was also happy to report that Downs is “doing great” in his first offseason with the Cowboys and the work ethic, willingness to learn and attention to detail we heard so much about during the pre-draft process have shined through.
“But he’s been doing great. He’s a worker. He looks for coaching. He craves that. He wants to be corrected,” Parker said. “He wants more information. And he works as hard as he can with the extras and everything else. So it’s been good. He’s been good to work with, and I think that he’s trying to advance at the right rate.”
As you’d expect, expectations for Downs have been through the roof. Parker says the important thing is just sticking to the usual process of developing a rookie.
“I think that we try to lessen those expectations in terms of what goes on outside of these walls. There’s a certain process to take as a rookie in general in the National Football League, and we try to abide by that process,” Parker said.
Cowboys veteran defensive lineman Quinnen Williams echoed a lot of what Parker said, and his view of Downs seems to be the overwhelming consensus among the rookie’s teammates.
“He’s a DB first, so I kind of don’t really see him too much on the field,” Williams said. “But getting a chance to talk to him, getting a chance to be around him, see how hard he works, he’s a Bama guy at heart, so he’s the real deal to me. So I’m super happy to have him here. He’s a phenomenal guy, man. Listens, learns, eager to do the right thing and extremely humble, extremely hard-working. So he is as advertised.”