The Dallas Cowboys and New Orleans Saints were supposed to use Tuesday’s joint practice to sharpen each other before the regular season, but Louis Riddick thought too many players treated it like an audition for a different sport.
The former NFL player and front-office executive ripped the repeated joint practice fights that hijacked the session in Oxnard, Calif. His message was especially blunt for players fighting for roster spots: prove you belong with football, not punches.
Louis Riddick Says Fringe Players Should Lose Jobs Over Fights
“Players need to take accountability and some responsibility for acting like idiots,” Riddick said on ESPN’s “Get Up.” “You’re squaring off like it’s UFC. Like, what the hell are you doing?”
Riddick, who previously served as director of pro personnel in Washington and Philadelphia, said his response as an executive would depend on how valuable the player was.
“If it was a player, honestly, for me, I didn’t think was going to be a meaningful contributor to my football team, I’d be cutting people left and right,” Riddick added.
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He argued the fights prove nothing, particularly in an era when offseason and practice workloads have been reduced. Riddick recalled joint practices from his own NFL career and said the kind of repeated chaos seen Tuesday did not need to become normal.
Riddick concluded by saying, “This kind of stuff, you know what?… No one was doing this kind of BS, man. I don’t know why this has become something that’s so commonplace now with players, but they need to knock this off.”
Louis Riddick Calls Out The Saints And Cowboys In A Massive Rant About The NFL:
“Players need to take accountability and some responsibility for acting like idiots. That’s not what you’re out there for. Like, dude, look at this. You’re squaring off like it’s UFC. Like, what the… https://t.co/3e2jGqgUWj pic.twitter.com/O5sGhoAexz
— SM Highlights (@SMHighlights1) August 19, 2026
The scene gave him plenty of material. ESPN reported that punches were thrown and helmets were tossed during several altercations. Saints wideout Brock Rechsteiner body-slammed a Cowboys player after cornerback Caelen Carson punched him, while Saints center Erik McCoy and Cowboys linebacker Donovan Ezeiruaku later exchanged punches.
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Cowboys, Saints Coaches Also Wanted Better Discipline
Ezeiruaku was removed from practice after throwing a punch, his second ejection for fighting during training camp. Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said he was “disappointed” with the session and stressed that players have to compete without crossing the line.
The lack of useful work matters for both teams. Dallas is trying to rebuild a defense that finished last in PFN’s 2025 Defense Impact Rankings with a 53.4 impact score. New Orleans finished 10th with a 78.6 impact score, but its roster is also dealing with several injuries and cannot afford unnecessary losses in August.
Saints coach Kellen Moore and Schottenheimer even discussed ending practice if the situation continued. The teams eventually settled down enough to complete later periods.
There can now be financial consequences, too. ESPN reported that players can be fined for fights during joint practices under current collective bargaining agreement rules.
Riddick has seen roster decisions from both sides. He played seven NFL seasons before spending more than a decade in personnel departments with Washington and Philadelphia.
That background explains why his warning went beyond the usual lecture about keeping cool. For established stars, a camp fight might lead to a fine or an angry coach. For somebody battling for one of the final roster spots, Riddick believes it can become a much more permanent mistake.
