Dallas, TX
Cooper Beebe candid about his transition to Cowboys’ center: ‘It’s become second nature’
OXNARD, Calif. — Nothing is being handed to Cooper Beebe, but that’s not stopping him from working his ass off to try and take it. Despite getting the nod as one of the Dallas Cowboys’ two third-round picks from the 2024 NFL Draft, he’s being forced to earn his way into the role of starting center after being converted to the position from guard, where he dominated at Kansas State.
Three words: trust the process.
“I think I’m doing pretty well,” said Beebe following the second scrimmage against the Rams, where he earned first-team reps at center for the first time. ” … Going against their best guys helps and continues to prepare me for those looks versus those top guys — it’s invaluable.”
Having drawn a mountain of praise from head coach Mike McCarthy and players alike for how quickly he’s come along, Beebe is acing the eye test and without a No. 2 pencil.
That exam included his first-ever preseason matchup in the NFL, where he put a lot of good on film against the Rams. With the butterflies of his first official game out of the way, the rest of his cocoon can now begin shedding, and has.
“When I went out there for my first preseason game, it was surreal,” he said. “… Getting that experience under my belt was a dream come true.”
He settled in nicely on Aug. 11, including with his declarations at the line of scrimmage, and it’s not as if seeing Cowboys’ legend and former center Travis Frederick patrolling practice in Oxnard added any pressure.
OK, of course it did, but it served as added motivation and, if early film is any indication, it worked.
“Obviously, once you get in a game it’s easier,” Beebe said. “The playbook shortens down and it gets easier, but I think I’ve been doing well. There are some weird looks here and there that I’ve got to continue working on but, overall, I think I’m doing pretty well.”
To achieve the mission against a worthy teammate in Brock Hoffman, which is still incomplete heading into their second preseason game, this time against the Las Vegas Raiders, Beebe truly needed to perfect his ability to snap the ball before he could be viewed as a viable starting center in the NFL — something he struggled with at the start of training camp in Oxnard, consistency-wise.
But with a combination of offseason relentlessness that included snapping in the yard to his mom and family and the added work he’s put in outside of practice in South California, he’s already so far along in the process that he looks comfortable; and he’s not overthinking anymore.
Again, objectively speaking, he’s worked his ass off.
“It’s become second nature,” said the former Unanimous All-American. “I just know that unless they say something to me, it was a good snap. I really don’t worry about it anymore.”
Learning from a future first ballot Hall of Famer in Zack Martin doesn’t hurt, nor does the fact Martin mans the post directly next to Beebe — allowing for real-time advice and adjustments from one of the best to ever play the game.
The relationship between the two is off to a great start, and Beebe credits the nine-time All-Pro as being a key reason for not only his progress, but also with how swiftly it’s occurring.
“The biggest thing is [he shows me] how to be a pro, how to take care of your body, how to study film and the things he looks for,” said Beebe. “It’s that kind of stuff, and just little stuff people don’t think about that makes the biggest difference. I think, for me, it’s how consistent he is with his sets and how he carries his hands.
“With him, every rep is the same and that’s the reason he’s great — consistency.”
And that has, thus far, been what McCarthy and the Cowboys have been waiting to see from Beebe before awarding him first-team reps in training camp and in preseason games.
He’s not taken their faith in him lightly. His work ethic has been blue collar, and it’s creating a very bright silver lining to his early camp hiccups.
And that’s perfect, considering blue and silver are … well … you get it.
“At the end of the day, I control how things go,” Beebe explained, standing firmly in his self-confidence. “I have to continue to work and continue to get better. It’s my hands how things go. … [During the preseason opener] I was a little nervous but you get through that first play, you realize it’s just football.
“It’s something I’ve been doing my entire life and that’s why it’s comfortable for me.”
It’s definitely made easier by the fact he played defensive line in high school, not unlike how Trevon Diggs parlayed his days as wide receiver into becoming a record-setting NFL cornerback.
“It helps a lot,” said Beebe. “You figure out what defenders are trying to do and how they’re trying to attack you, and those different things. I definitely see some of their techniques that I used when I played defensive tackle that I look out for now that I’m an offensive lineman.”
There’s a very real chance that Beebe will join fellow rookie and first-round pick Tyler Guyton as Day 1 starters when the Cowboys travel to face the Cleveland Browns on Sept. 8 and, if so, it’ll mark one of the rare occasions in which Dallas will feature two rookies (and a Hall of Famer) on the same offensive line to begin a season.
It’s a good thing Beebe’s chemistry doesn’t simply flow to his right to Martin, but also to and through Tyler Smith to his left and outwardly toward Guyton; and both Guyton and Beebe have been training this offseason with offensive line guru Duke Manyweather of OL Masterminds.
The bond is there, and it’s real.
“Oh, that’s my guy!” he said excitedly of Guyton. “We met up in college. Obviously, he played at [Oklahoma] and I was at [Kansas State] so we’ve known each other for a while, and to get drafted to the same place? We were clicking right away.”
There is no shortage of pressure on Beebe to get up to speed, and while it’s not nearly as much as the amount that rests on the shoulders of Guyton, Beebe doesn’t view it that way. To him, he has the same level of responsibility as does Guyton, regardless of draft status.
Plenty of work remains for Beebe and it will honestly never stop, just ask Martin, but he’s opening plenty of eyes to begin his professional career with the Cowboys.
The bottom line is Beebe is getting it out of the dirt, while putting more and more defenders in it.
The search for the next general manager or president of basketball operations of the Dallas Mavericks has begun. They terminated Nico Harrison in November, which was about nine months too late, and gave any available candidates clear notice that they were open for business.
The plan was always to wait until after the season to start the search. While names popped up as the season reached an end, they didn’t begin turning over the staff until the Monday after the season ended. However, Dallas Mavericks fans are not going to like how the team is going about the search.
Patrick Dumont Leading Search for General Manager
NBA insider Jake Fischer reported that the Mavericks are not hiring a search firm in their hunt for a new lead executive. Instead, team governor Patrick Dumont is “acting as his own point person.”
This is an… interesting decision, to say the least. Dumont is not a basketball person whatsoever, and most organizations usually hire a search firm. The Chicago Bulls hired one as they look for their replacement for Arturas Karnisovas. Just because a firm is hired doesn’t mean a team will listen, though.
The Mavericks hired a firm in their last search for a GM. They let Donnie Nelson go in 2021 after a long tenure with the Mavs. Instead of listening to the firm, though, Mark Cuban ignored it to hire Nico Harrison, who had no previous NBA front office experience. Harrison had been an executive with Nike, which gave him connections with players like Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, and plenty of others.
For a while, that seemed to be working out okay. While he still had some questionable transactions, such as trading for Christian Wood and letting Jalen Brunson walk in free agency, they were still able to make a run to the NBA Finals in 2024. Then, he blew it all up, trading away Luka Doncic for an older and injured Anthony Davis, and the team hasn’t been the same since.
It’s imperative that the Mavericks get this hire correct. The interim Co-GM setup with Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley has performed admirably, but the 2026 NBA Draft is important for the Mavs to get right. It’s their best chance to pair Cooper Flagg with another young star, as they don’t own their first-round pick again until 2031 after this.
Hiring the right GM could help bring in more draft capital by bringing in bad contracts or flipping veterans into picks.
Dumont was able to convince Rick Welts, a Hall of Famer, to come out of retirement to be the CEO and lead the charge for a new arena. Maybe Dumont pulls another rabbit out of his hat for the GM.
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For a moment, it looked like FC Dallas was on its way to another statement win at home tonight.
Petar Musa scored two first half goals, to extend his Golden Boot leading tally to nine goals. But after Dallas grabbed control, the Galaxy found a way back before halftime with goals from Lucas Sanabria and Joseph Paintsil.
The second half brought more chances and more frustration for Dallas, which finished the night with 13 shots to LA’s nine. In the end, the point stretched Dallas’ unbeaten run to five games, though just like last week, it felt like another match where Dallas left points on the table.
Key Moments
7’ – GOAL! After a poor pass back by a LA defender, Petar Musa was free to go one-on-one with the LA goalkeeper. After a touch to get ahead of a defender, Musa slotted home his eighth goal of the season from outside the penalty box.
21’ – Offside! Joaquin Valiente sent a floating ball over the Galaxy defense, where Musa was able to get behind the defense and make an easy play for what appeared to be his second goal of the night. The play was called offside despite a fairly lengthy review period.
38’ – GOAL! This one counts! Musa gets his second of the night off a great ball from Chris Cappis. Logan Farrington picked off the ball in the midfield. He then played Cappis wide to the left of the penalty area. Cappis immediately played a ball back across the goal for Musa to slide in and finish for his ninth of the season.
43’ – Goal LA. Lucas Sanabria got the ball near the top of the penalty area. He took a couple of touches to get outside the penalty box before firing a shot that beat Michael Collodi at the near post.
45+4’ – Goal LA. Gabriel Pec got the ball near the top of the penalty area. He pulled the ball back a bit, which caught a pair of Dallas defenders. This allowed Joseph Painstil to get free behind the Dallas defense as Pec played him through inside the penalty area. Pec immediately smashed home a shot above Collodi to tie the game.
75’ – Another offside goal. This time on a corner kick for Dallas, after a scrum in the penalty box, Kaick hammered home what looked to be the go-ahead goal. But after a few seconds the flag was raised due to a deflection on Osaze Urhoghide, who was in an offside position.
Instant Reaction
Yeah, this is another disappointing result for this team. In a real way, it felt like the first half against Houston from last month. Dallas grabbed the lead, looked in control, but some defensive miscues opened the game up for the visitors to climb back.
With a double-game week coming up, this will certainly be another game where Dallas will wonder ‘what if’ more than anything else…especially when you factor in the two goals called off for offside.
About the Subs
Eric Quill went to his bench for the first time in the 66th minute, as he brought on Santiago Moreno for Logan Farrington. Quill went to his bench again 81st minute with Ran Binyamin and Nolan Norris coming on for Sebastien Ibeagha and Deedson. The final sub came during stoppage time with Herman Johansson and Joaquin Valiente coming off for Sam Sarver and rookie Nick Simmonds, who made his MLS debut.
Man of the Match
No question about it tonight, it has to be Musa.
Where does this fit into the season
As of this writing, the draw puts Dallas into a three-way tie for 5th place with Real Salt Lake and Seattle. Both are in action right now and look firmly in control of their games. I’d expect Dallas to be in 7th place by the end of the night.
What’s next for FC Dallas
Dallas wraps up a three-game homestand next Wednesday night as they host Minnesota United.
Dallas, TX
Akheem Mesidor selected by Cowboys by Blogging The Boys in SB Nation’s community mock draft
Akheem Mesidor, Edge, Miami
Pass rush has been an issue since the Micah Parsons trade. The Rashan Gary trade helped, but Dallas still needs an injection of talent. Akheem Mesidor fits here because his body size allows for some versatility inside and out, something DC Christian Parker utilizes. Mesidor is also a high-motor player with a deep bag of pass rush moves.
His last season at Miami was full of disruption in the offensive backfield and he shows an all-around game, not just a bend-around-the-edge pass rusher. Yes, he’s a little older than you’d like in a rookie (25), but his motor, pass rush toolbox, and ability to play the run matches up with a need and makes him a quality pick at number 20.
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