Gunter fans who only caught fragments of the Cowboys-Saints joint practice story can follow the verified sequence below. As planoweekly.news reported, the path from a Tuesday joint practice to Thursday's matching $500,000 NFL fines for the Cowboys and Saints is documented by the Associated Press and NFL.com.
Fox 4 also covered the matching fines in local television reporting that aligned with the AP and NFL.com accounts. Joint practices sit outside a full broadcast truck setup, which is why the league's video request, as AP described it, mattered to the review.
The practice that went sideways
On Tuesday, Aug. 18, Dallas and New Orleans practiced together at the Cowboys' Oxnard camp. AP described multiple fights, punches thrown, Saints tight end Brock Rechsteiner body-slamming Cowboys safety Jalen Thompson, Saints center Erik McCoy throwing a Cowboys helmet, and Cowboys linebacker Donovan Ezeiruaku's ejection after trading punches with McCoy — Ezeiruaku's second ejection of camp.
Schottenheimer and Moore talked about ending early; Schottenheimer later called the day chippy and said the discipline element slipped. "There's a discipline element to playing this football game," he said, per AP.
Video requested, fines issued
AP reported the NFL requested video of the workout before announcing penalties. On Thursday, Aug. 20, the league confirmed each organization was fined $500,000. NFL.com quoted the statement tying the action to the Competition Committee's sportsmanship focus and a pre-camp memo. NFL.com also noted ESPN's earlier reporting on a July memo about professionalism during joint practices.
