Publication date: August 19, 2026
By Hannah Vore, Journalism Intern, Sports Media Inc.
Several fights broke out during the New Orleans Saints and Dallas Cowboys joint practice Tuesday in Oxnard, California.
“Right now, I’m in charge of fight club,” Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said in response to the incident.
The fights involved pushing and shoving, punches, flying helmets and even a player being slammed to the ground.
Players Involved
According to MLive, Saints tight end Brock Rechsteiner, the son of WWE Hall of Famer Scott Steiner, picked up Cowboys safety Jalen Thompson and slammed him to the ground.
According to Fox News, Saints center Erik McCoy threw a Cowboys player’s helmet into the air. Cowboys linebacker Donovan Ezeiruaku then ripped McCoy’s helmet off, threw it and swung at him. Ezeiruaku was removed from practice for the second time this offseason after throwing punches.
Video captured by The Dallas Morning News appears to show Cowboys cornerback Caelen Carson throwing a punch.
Other players involved in the fights included Cowboys linebacker Sam Williams, safety Cobie Durant and cornerback Derion Kendrick, as well as Saints tight end Moliki Matavao and receiver Ronnie Bell.
Coaches’ Response
Schottenheimer and Saints coach Kellen Moore discussed whether to end the practice.
“We kind of had agreed that if a couple of other things happened, we would cancel it, but they worked through it,” Schottenheimer said.
Schottenheimer criticized the way his players handled the situation.
“A little chippy. Not the way we like to do business,” Schottenheimer said, according to ESPN. “Got to be better, but I got to look at the film. We’re certainly not going to take s— from anybody, but again, it was chippy on both sides.”
ESPN analyst and former safety Louis Riddick criticized the players’ actions during Wednesday’s episode of “Get Up.”
“Look, players need to take accountability and some responsibility for acting like idiots,” Riddick said. “That’s not what you’re out there for.”