The Cowboys gamble pays off and their starting quarterback should be ready for next week.
The Cowboys took a calculated risk by not playing Prescott against the Vikings in hopes that the calf injury, which he suffered on Oct. 17 in an overtime win against the New England Patriots, would not be a lingering issue with a second week off after coming off the bye.
Prescott did not practice last week, taking part only in the walk-throughs, as he focused mostly on his rehab. While Prescott wanted to play, his backup, Cooper Rush, threw for 325 yards and two touchdowns — including the game winner to Amari Cooper with 51 seconds remaining — in the first start of his career.
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McCarthy had not spoken to Prescott on Monday, but he had a conversation with director of rehabilitation Britt Brown.
“He said they had a really good day today. That’s the feedback he gave me,” McCarthy said.
Last Thursday, Prescott pushed his rehab and felt sore the next day. He thought he had pushed it to 80-85%, while Brown countered with 70%. According to the GPS trackers, the percentage was 77.5%, according to McCarthy.
The team also addressed Tyron Smith’s ankle issue that kept him out the entire second half. Smith will be listed as a day-to-day and there could be some changes to the practice schedule for Wednesday. It could be Thursday before we see the left tackle able to practice. But on Monday, it seemed too early in the week to speculate on Smith’s status for the next game.
· When asked if La’el Collins will get any work at left tackle, McCarthy said the subject was discussed by the staff on Monday. He didn’t bring much clarity to the situation but said it will be a game-plan decision. When Smith went out, veteran Ty Nsekhe entered the game at left tackle with Terence Steele on the right side.
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· Where we did see Collins was in the newly-introduced “Hulk” package that saw Collins and guard Connor McGovern line up as fullbacks and serve as lead blockers. McCarthy said “It’s the biggest inverted (wish)bone formation I’ve ever seen in my life. We’re trying to break records here.”
· Asked about DeMarcus Lawrence returning soon, McCarthy said he’s “getting close, getting better. Got a good report on him today.” D-Law has been out since Week 1 with a broken foot.
· And “getting close” was also the answer for Michael Gallup, who has been out since the Week 1 game with a calf strain. McCarthy said Gallup did well with the limited number of practice reps he got last week and the plan is to increase that number this week.
Dallas would be wise to look north to Pittsburgh where the Steelers are still comfortably behind the Bengals and Ravens despite a win Sunday. Melvin Ingram signed a one-year deal with the Steelers entering the season. Now the veteran pass-rusher wants out.
With T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith healthy, the veteran saw a significant decrease in playing time. Ingram would be a smart addition for a Dallas team that consistently shuffles their defensive lineman in and out of the game. He has shown the ability to play in multiple fronts during his career and could help for a Cowboys stretch-run.
Tough blow for Cox and for the Cowboys special teams.
The injury bug has bitten the Cowboys repeatedly over the team’s first seven games, though most of the cases have been relatively minor, with the affected players missing just sporadic or limited time.
But now a promising young playmaker has been lost for the season.
The injury occurred during the third quarter of the Week 8 win; Cox was injured on punt coverage. Unable to put pressure on his right leg after the play was over, he was helped to the sideline medical tent and then carted from to the locker room.
He left the Vikings’ stadium on crutches and received an MRI on Monday, confirming the tear.
Another pass rusher for a potential playoff contender.
But what do we make of the Rams with Von Miller now? Los Angeles was a force to be reckoned with before the Miller trade and adding him to their pass rush obviously makes them even better. How should we feel as Cowboys fans?
It also makes sense for Cowboys fans to now root for the Arizona Cardinals to win the NFC West. Arizona is obviously a very good team, but it stands to reason that most people are generally more fearful of the Rams as a whole. With only one loss on their record to this point. the Rams could be in contention for the top overall seed and first round bye if they surpass the Cardinals in the division.
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It is going to be an interesting rest of the regular season.
Gotta love the desire to make plays by these Cowboys receivers.
As Cooper told it, backup quarterback Cooper Rush called the play as “double left,” meaning Rush would target Cooper on the potential go-ahead throw. Second-year receiver CeeDee Lamb, however, lobbied hard to get the ball, even asking Cooper if they could trade places.
Cooper’s response: “Hell, nah.”
And so, on first-and-goal from the Vikings’ 5 — with only 51 seconds remaining in the game — Rush connected with Cooper on what ultimately proved to be the game-winner in a 20-16 victory.
“If you go out there and you play okay, some people will be okay with that,” Parsons said. “‘I had an okay game; we won.’ But I don’t think Michael Jordan would ever be okay with dropping 15 points and be like, ‘We won.’”
“You ever seen the video with the center and he had a great first quarter — he had 12 points — but that’s all he had the rest of the game? [Jordan] was like, ‘You need to do that the whole game.’ So I think no one should be okay with just playing okay. I should have a higher expectation for myself and I think the coaches have the same expectations. I think that was weighing in on me.”
In the video Parsons describes, Jordan tells the story of a game against the Utah Jazz in 1998. Center Luc Longley got off to a hot start for the Bulls, earning a compliment from Jordan. But after his hot start, Longley cooled off, and the Bulls wound up losing the game.
From his telling, it’s clear that it’s a moment Jordan has had in his head for some time.
Rather than let his play pass as good enough, Parsons is trying to keep his standards as high as Jordan’s were. Good enough is not good enough.
While he’s only seven games into his NFL career, so far, Parsons is succeeding.
This was a huge weight off the Cowboys shoulders following their win this week.
1) Cowboys check another box: The transformation is now complete in Dallas. The questions about the way Dak Prescott would play coming off the severe ankle injury that prematurely ended his 2020 season were answered weeks ago. The doubts about whether the defense was legit have long since vanished. What was left was that lingering suspicion that focused on the notion that this team might implode because that’s what we’ve been used to seeing from past Cowboys teams. That’s out the window, as well. For all the exciting elements the Cowboys have revealed this season — from a dynamic, diversified offense to an aggressive, play-making defense — what they did in their 20-16 win over Minnesota said more about them than anything. It told us this team really does have heart, that it’s not going to recoil when the pressure intensifies and it’s wading through adversity. This is the second straight game where Dallas won a contest it would’ve lost in previous years, following a comeback overtime win in New England in Week 6. This latest victory was even more special, precisely because the Cowboys earned it with their starting quarterback, who is dealing with a calf injury, watching from the sidelines and Cooper Rush under center.
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