{"id":173963,"date":"2026-04-07T07:51:05","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T07:51:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173963"},"modified":"2026-04-07T07:51:05","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T07:51:05","slug":"%f0%9f%9a%a8-breaking-in-dallas-brian-schottenheimer-drops-2-word-reaction-after-e-j-smith-workout-and-its-turning-heads-%f0%9f%91%87-a-message-in-two-words-cowboys-coach-reacts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173963","title":{"rendered":"\ud83d\udea8 BREAKING IN DALLAS: Brian Schottenheimer Drops 2-Word Reaction After E.J. Smith Workout \u2014 And It\u2019s Turning Heads \ud83d\udc47 A Message in Two Words: Cowboys Coach Reacts to Smith\u2019s Performance \u2014 What He Said Is Raising Big Expectations."},"content":{"rendered":"
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The\u00a0Dallas Cowboys\u00a0may go into their storied past to help shore up their running game.<\/p>\n

Cowboys\u00a0brass met with Emmitt Smith Jr., the Texas A&M running back who is of course the son of the Hall of Fame running back, as part of their invite-only Dallas Day in Frisco, Texas.<\/p>\n

Emmitt Sr., of course, was a 17th overall pick of the 1990\u00a0NFL\u00a0Draft, and he spent his first 13 seasons with the Cowboys. He set the all-time NFL rushing record as a member of the Cowboys and finished with a still-record 18,355 yards over 15 seasons with the Cowboys and\u00a0Arizona Cardinals.<\/p>\n

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Dallas will have nine picks over the three-day 2026 NFL Draft, which will take place in Pittsburgh from April 23-25.<\/p>\n

Brian Schottenheimer Called Meeting E.J. Smith \u2018Very Cool\u2019<\/h2>\n

The Cowboys have started hosting players with Dallas-area ties to their facility \u201cThe Star,\u201d ahead of the draft to see those prospects.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe\u2019re like top 45, top 48, whatever it is,\u201d Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said of the number of prospects they see. \u201cIt\u2019s because of the fact that we\u2019ve got that location, and our scouting staff does a great job.\u201d<\/p>\n

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E.J. Smith, a 5-11, 215-pound back who played parts of four seasons at Stanford before transferring to Texas A&M for his final two collegiate years, is following in his dad\u2019s footsteps as a draft-eligible running back. The Dallas native was eligible to participate at the annual DFW-area event.<\/p>\n

\u201cVery cool,\u201d Schottenheimer said of meeting E.J. Smith and watching him run, according to Todd Archer of ESPN. \u201cYou know me, man, I\u2019m family. I\u2019m all family.<\/p>\n

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\u201cJust watching him move, seeing him in person, the type of young man he is, it\u2019s cool.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Smith is bigger than his dad but was far less accomplished over his six college seasons, since Emmitt Sr. had nearly 4,000 yards for Florida over his three years in Gainesville.<\/p>\n

E.J. rushed for 208 yards and scored four touchdowns in 2025, serving mainly as a goal-line back for Mike Elko\u2019s Aggies. He finished his college career with nine scores on 207 carries.<\/p>\n

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\u201cYou watch his film, and he was an incredible short-yardage runner, powerful,\u201d Schottenheimer said.<\/p>\n

E.J. Smith\u2019s Stock is not High<\/h2>\n

E.J. Smith may have worked out with the Cowboys, but they may not have to spend draft capital to have him in training camp in Oxnard, California.<\/p>\n

Smith is projected as an undrafted free agent or late third-day selection in the upcoming draft. Smith\u2019s raw skills were OK, since he ran a 4.59 40-yard dash, bench pressed 225 pounds for 20 reps and broad jumped 10 feet at Texas A&M\u2019s pro day in College Station last month.<\/p>\n

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But he is only working out for two teams, the Cowboys and\u00a0Houston Texans, due to the fact he rushed for only 969 yards in five college seasons and never surpassed 218 yards in any season.<\/p>\n

So for as cool as it was for Schottenheimer to see Smith, and potentially coach him, it is considered a long shot for Emmitt\u2019s son to don the star on his helmet in a regular-season game at any point.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The\u00a0Dallas Cowboys\u00a0may go into their storied past to help shore up their running game. Cowboys\u00a0brass met with Emmitt Smith Jr., the Texas A&M running back who is… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":173968,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-173963","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl"],"yoast_head":"\n\ud83d\udea8 BREAKING IN DALLAS: Brian Schottenheimer Drops 2-Word Reaction After E.J. 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