After an oversized and long-lasting skirmish brought a recent joint practice between the Washington Redskins and Houston Texans to a halt, St. Louis Rams coach Jeff Fisher and Dallas Cowboys coach Jason Garrett made it a point to prevent a similar brawl from breaking out when their teams got together this week in Oxnard, California.
Even before the Rams landed in California last Thursday, Fisher emphasized the need to control tempers when practicing against a different opponent. He reiterated that on Monday before his team practiced with the Cowboys and Garrett did the same with his charges.
"Jason and I both talked to our teams about getting things done, respecting each other, because tempers have a tendency to fly when you compete against other people," Fisher said. "We had a couple of push and shove things but other than that, I thought they worked really well together.”
Indeed, the two sides made it through the first day without anything getting out of control. At one point, Rams cornerback Trumaine Johnson and Cowboys receiver Devin Street got into it when Street took exception to Johnson's hit on running back Joseph Randle. That was quickly defused, though.
Otherwise, the most movement on the fighting front came from the mouth of Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant. The loquacious Bryant, who is not practicing this week as he recovers from a hamstring strain, spent a good chunk of the practice jawing at Rams defenders. The Rams, of course, have their share of players unafraid to respond in kind.
But for the most part, cooler heads prevailed.
"Yeah, I mean it wasn't anything big," tight end Jared Cook said. "It was just things get heated. Tensions get high. They run high, but it was no big deal. It was good quality work against those guys."
