OXNARD, Calif. — Before he worked out for the Dallas Cowboys last week, veteran lineman La’el Collins was talking to Dak Prescott‘s daughter, MJ.
“I’m going to protect your daddy,” Collins said. “Nobody’s going to get him.”
Collins is back with the Cowboys for a third time, and it’s not a given that he will land a spot on the final roster. From 2015 to 2021, Collins was a mainstay on the Cowboys’ offensive line. In 2023, he came back for a brief stint on the practice squad. When injuries hit the line early in this year’s camp, the Cowboys called on Collins.
“MJ ain’t got to worry. Her dad will be protected,” Collins said. “That’s my baby niece. I got two nieces now. So I’m just excited to be the favorite uncle. And I’m just excited to get a chance to be in front of [Prescott] again and protect him, keep people away from him.”
Collins started 71 of 74 games with the Cowboys. He left for the Cincinnati Bengals as a free agent in 2022 and started 15 games, but he suffered a torn ACL and MCL in his left knee. He has not played in a regular-season game since, spending camp last year with the Buffalo Bills.
Collins, 32, admitted there were times he thought the NFL might be done with him, even if he still wanted to play.
“Anytime you’re fighting to get healthy, especially with the injury I had late in 2022, a lot of people don’t even get a chance to even think about coming back,” Collins said. “But I just had faith, man. I had faith and I trusted the process. I knew if I did my part in staying prepared that an opportunity would come along.
“I mean obviously the best-case scenario was to go back where it all started and that’s to be here. I mean it’s nowhere [else] I’d rather be, that’s 100% a fact. Even when I left, it was nothing like home. So this is what I know. This is where my heart is, so I want to continue to finish off strong here.”
Collins said he weighs 300 pounds for the first time since high school. He said the knee is healthy. He will play right tackle for the Cowboys but can move inside if necessary. He is currently wearing No. 72 but has eyes on his customary No. 71, worn presently by Nate Thomas, if he makes the roster.
He attended the retirement ceremonies for his two offensive line contemporaries, Zack Martin and Tyron Smith, at The Star in the spring.
“I told them coming into it, like, ‘Hey, I’m coming to you guys’ retirement, but don’t let none of that stuff rub off on me because I’m not done yet,'” Collins said. “It was definitely amazing to go and support your guys as they move on to the next phase of their life. So I’m going to let them lay the foundation for that and I’m going to keep chopping wood on this end. And we’ll meet again.”
Phone a family friend
Before heading to training camp, Kaiir Elam made a phone call to a family friend, Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells, who coached the Cowboys from 2003 to 2006. Elam, a first-round pick by the Buffalo Bills in 2022, wanted to tap into the former Dallas coach’s expertise after Elam was traded to the Cowboys in March.
“With that much experience and that much level of success, a lot of people don’t really fall into that,” Elam said. “I appreciate that and I just try to continue to keep learning from him.”
Parcells coached Elam’s father, Abram, helping him start a seven-year NFL career as a safety with four teams. Kaiir was 5 when he first met Parcells. He called Parcells’ mentorship “a blessing.”
Parcells is “a guy who I could pick up the phone and call if need be,” Elam said. “He told me about the process of the NFL and his experience and things I could do to keep getting better.”
Unsocial media
Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer did not go full Bill Belichick and talk about his social media expertise with “SnapFace,” but the coach did say he is not a social media guy.
“I’ve got a couple of 20-year-old kids, so they send me things,” he said. “I try to open them. Sometimes I can’t open them because I’m not on Instagram or some of those things, this TikTok. I’m like, ‘Hey, I can’t open it. What is it?’ and they’re like, ‘Ah, never mind.’ And I just move on to the next thing.”
