Cowboys Camp Kicker Competition: Vet Pulls Ahead of Rookie Jonathan Garibay
OXNARD, Calif. - We were rather amused the other day when, a couple of days into training camp here in Oxnard, a media outlet proclaimed rookie Jonathan Garibay the "locked-in'' leader in the race to be the Dallas Cowboys kicker in 2022.
"Amused'' because not until Saturday did Garibay even kick at camp.
Oh, and not so "amusing''? The UDFA rookie from Texas Tech didn't kick it very well.
Saturday marked the beginning of the countdown toward a decision being made between the rookie and CFL star Lirim Hajrullahu, the latter taking an early lead in the competition.
Hajrullahu was allowed to try eight field goals ... and he went 7-of-8.
Garibay got the same number of chances ... and he missed half of his kicks, including attempts from 44 and 47 yards.
Dallas, opening this camp with Super Bowl hopes, has turned the page from Greg Zuerlein, but even now a team source suggests to us there is fear of a "revolving door'' at the position for 2022. Maybe Garibay's big leg will establish itself as also being capable of doing the little things right, or maybe Hajrullahu - who had a couple of cups of coffee with Dallas under special-teams boss Bones Fassel last year will continue to run away with this thing. But it's worth nothing: While the native Euro has more experience, he's never entered an NFL season as his team's starting kicker.
And also worth noting: While this was "just one day,'' this Cowboys preseason features just three games. So "just one day'' is significant in the race to truly determine a winner - and maybe avoid a "revolving door.''
