It wouldn't surprise anyone if George Ikola emerged from the offseason as the Dallas Cowboys' starting strong safety. As the veteran defensive back tells it, though, he still has some steps to take before getting fully comfortable playing with his new team.

“The next step for me is taking it from thinking to just now reacting and playing my game using my strengths and things like that. That’s the next step for me in my evolution,” Iloka said, per Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “It’s just a process from where I was at from Day One. I feel like I’m a lot further than I was then. Obviously, I’ve got to keep progressing and taking those steps to where I want to get to in mid-preseason.

“It’s a process,” he continued. “I like where I am in the process and I know where I want to get in the process.”

Iloka signed a one-year deal with the Cowboys as a free agent back in March. He's currently second on Dallas' depth chart behind incumbent starter Jeff Heath, who ranked one of the worst open-field tacklers in football last season.

The 29-year-old Iloka spent the 2018 season with the Minnesota Vikings, starting three games while appearing mostly on special teams en route to 16 tackles, the lowest mark since his rookie campaign. He'd previously been a stalwart in the Cincinnati Bengals’ defensive backfield since his sophomore season, when he first became a full-time starter. Iloka started every game in which he appeared from 2013 to 2017 before being released by Cincinnati during last year's training camp.