Tyler Booker, the first player chosen in the Brian Schottenheimer era as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, is expected to embody the harmony between impact player and man-leader, and the former Alabama offensive lineman is aware of the demands that will be placed on him in the future.
Booker talked about the latter of those two qualities as rookie minicamp came and went swiftly and OTAs (organized team activities) were approaching. He is also making it plain that he want to contribute to shaping the locker room culture moving forward under Schottenheimer.
“To be the leader of this [rookie] group, I take a lot of pride in that,” Booker stated. “I’m just a natural born leader so, with my fellow rookies, I’m excited to continue to learn and grow with them.”
Booker is joining a Cowboys franchise that is going through a major coaching change, which may or may not be coincidental, depending on your point of view. This comes after he recently encountered a similar circumstance in Tuscaloosa.
Booker was forced to reconsider his future in the program after Nick Saban announced his retirement in the days after the 2023 season ended. In 2024, would he follow some of his Roll Tide teammates and go through the transfer portal to join a program with a more established and stable coaching staff, or would he choose to stay put and weather the storm while possibly assisting Kalen DeBoer, the new head coach, in leading the team?
In the end, he would decide to stay, and his justification for doing so strengthens his perspective on what it means to be a leader. He is now able to apply the skills he gained from that transition to assist Schottenheimer in one of his own.
According to Booker, “this last year helped me a lot,” “As a man as well as a football player. I was the same person every day going into [last] year, experiencing a lot of uncertainty, trying to weather the storm, and then simply not having the success I desired. I remained the same person even when we were losing games that we shouldn’t have lost. Every day I was the same Tyler Booker.
“I learned how to be even more resilient than I was before that. This past year at Alabama, in my opinion, further shaped who I am as a guy.
Given the obvious parallels between the two, Booker will aim to use what he learned at Alabama to get started right away for the Cowboys. His work ethic has even kept him from fully settling into Dallas.
His scheme? Later, move. Now study.
“I’ve really just been focused on getting into the playbook,” he stated. “I haven’t been able to concentrate on anything else. Just being here makes me very happy. I’m excited to contribute to the season and happy to be a Cowboy.
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