Tyler Shough Stays Hot, Saints-Cowboys Joint Practice Erupts into Chaos

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The New Orleans Saints held a joint practice with the Dallas Cowboys in Oxnard, California, ahead of their upcoming preseason matchup on Tuesday.

The practice gave both teams a chance to evaluate their rosters in a competitive setting, especially with most starters expected to see limited action during the preseason.

New Orleans traveled to the Los Angeles area for training camp ahead of its preseason game against the Los Angeles Rams. Before turning its attention to the Rams, the Saints met with the Cowboys at River Ridge Playing Fields, where Dallas is holding training camp.

The Saints are scheduled to hold a joint practice with the Rams on Thursday before the teams meet in a preseason game Saturday.

New Orleans and Dallas will face each other again in Week 3 of the preseason at 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 28.

Here are some takeaways from the joint practice.

Shough Chuckin' It

Aug 15, 2026; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) greets fans before a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Tyler Shough was on fire again, throwing multiple touchdown passes to wide receiver Chris Olave and tight end Noah Fant, with just one interception off of Cowboys safety Jalen Thompson.

NewOrleans.Football's Nick Underhill said Shough completed 81.8% of his passes, including two throws that traveled more than 20 yards downfield. Olave was difficult to cover throughout.

Back-to-back touchdowns for Tyler Shough and the #Saints offense.

Noah Fant in the back corner for six. https://t.co/CfnZZ23jUN pic.twitter.com/1kox54Rkd1
— NOF (@nofnetwork) August 18, 2026

Shough also threw multiple touchdown passes last week in the Saints’ joint practice with the Jacksonville Jaguars. It seems like he is finding a groove at the right time.

Saints D Makes a Statement

Dak Prescott was not at his best, throwing to the wrong colored jersey today.

Dak picked off pic.twitter.com/9DFOItoQia
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) August 18, 2026

Multiple Fights Break Out

While the Cowboys and Saints have more storied rivalries, they remain competitors, and both fan bases want to see their teams get the better of each other. Maybe not literally, though some fans might enjoy that, too.

They got their wish, as multiple fights broke out and quickly spread across social media.

Appeared to be a punch thrown at Javonte Williams… leading to a little scuffling pic.twitter.com/f3Pst36l05
— Jeff Kolb (@JeffKolbFOX4) August 18, 2026

Things are getting way out of hand at Cowboys-Saints pic.twitter.com/6dz65OnRG9
— Nick Harris (@NickHarrisFWST) August 18, 2026

It was perfectly summed up by a tweet from Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football:

"Another fight. This is absolutely out of control.”

However, the one that has made the rounds was when Saints wide receiver Brock Rechsteiner performed a German Suplex on Cowboys safety Jalen Thompson.

BAH GAWD THAT'S BROCK RECHSTEINER'S MUSIC!#Saints and #Cowboys in another huge fight.

Wait for the slam at 0:17: pic.twitter.com/hDt71jfnbC
— NOF (@nofnetwork) August 18, 2026

It should come naturally for Rechsteiner as he is the son of pro wrestling legend Scott Steiner.

Injury Report

Several players left practice early, most notably running back Alvin Kamara and cornerback Quincy Riley. Moore later said Kamara was dealing with a knee issue and Riley had a groin issue. The severity of the injuries is unknown.

Wide receiver Ronnie Bell was carted off the practice field because of a heat-related issue.

Olave was checked by trainers after taking a hit while making a catch, but he stayed on the sideline for the remainder of practice. He returned late in the session for the final team-drill sequence, which took place in the red zone.

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