* Calvin Watkins' practice report

OXNARD, Calif. -- The Cowboys conducted their last practice before Monday night's preseason opener at Oakland.

Some thoughts.

* This is how bad the kick return game was last season for the Cowboys: It was the first time since 1973 the Cowboys didn't have a single returner reach double-digits in returns. Last year, injuries and ineffective play were the problems. This is a new year. [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.], [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.], [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.], [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.], [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] and [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] could field kicks at Oakland. Returning kicks involves many things, including reading the holes, something Smith didn't do, which raised the ire of special teams coordinator Joe DeCamillis.

* It looks like [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] is going to start at left guard at Oakland. He's doing a nice job of getting a push along the line of scrimmage and using his hands with the first team.

* This second version, no matter how limited, of [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] is better than the first one. When we first saw Claiborne, he was getting beat deep by a variety of receivers. Not now so much. He's attacking the ball, as evident by his breakup of a pass to [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] in the end zone.

* Double coverage for Cole Bealsey? Say it ain't so. Yep, after Beasley beat a jam by [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.], safety [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] picked him up quickly inside the red zone to prevent any throws coming his way.

* Guard [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] is a big man and uses his frame well. At 6-foot-4 and 320 pounds, he used his size to clear out linebacker [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] (6-2, 245 pounds) on a dump off. Bernadeau displayed good foot work in pushing Lee out the way.

* [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] is a noted special teams leader, but he wants to be known as a defensive safety. He recorded an interception off a [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] pass and deflected a pass intended for Dwayne Harris on the next play. Harris, however, should have caught the pass, but McCray did a good job in finishing the play.

* [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] has responded well at outside linebacker with [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] out with his injury. Butler read a screen play headed to Felix Jones and picked up a tackle for loss. Butler has done a nice job on the pass rush against tackle [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]. Butler will try swim moves, spins, and bull rushes against Smith. These battles are not as epic as [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] vs. Smith, but Butler is holding his own at times.

* Rookie linebacker [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] had a sack and a tackle for loss Saturday afternoon. There have been plenty of discussions about how well defensive end [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] has looked. Wilber is also earning snaps with second teamers.

* Before practice, wide receiver [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] was getting stretched by Mike Woicik, the strength and conditioning coach, for about five minutes. Then as practices went on, Bryant was pulled and talked to the trainers. The Cowboys are doing the right there here after [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.].

* Toward the end of practice, the Cowboys were running some [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] plays with [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] at quarterback.

* The last play of the day resulted in a touchdown when [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] caught a Hail Mary pass in the end zone from Orton.