For players who are currently injured, but are expected to be available at some point during the season, teams are required to name them to their initial 53-man rosters before placing them on injured reserve. A team announcement confirmed on Wednesday that the Cowboys have done just that with left tackle Tyron Smith and wideout James Washington. 
Neither move comes as a surprise, of course. Smith suffered a hamstring tear in practice last week, and faces a long road to recovery. The required surgery is expected to keep him sidelined until at least December, an absence which will be widely felt in Dallas’ offense. The 2010s All-Decade member has been a mainstay on the Cowboys’ o-line since 2011, and internal replacement options are highly lacking in experience.
That list includes first-round rookie Tyler Smith – though the team’s intention was to bring him along slowly, and at guard to begin his NFL career. Remarks from coach Mike McCarthy confirm that, out of necessity, that plan has changed (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Jon Machota). Swing tackle Josh Ball could also fill in as a blindside protector, but the Cowboys have widely been reported as being active in search of outside options. That most recently included an attempt to trade for former Jet Chuma Edoga, but the deal fell through.
Washington, meanwhile, is partway through the recovery process from surgery to repair a foot fracture suffered at the beginning of the month. The timeline (ranging from six to 10 weeks) made him a logical IR candidate to begin the regular season. His absence will compound that of Michael Gallup, who is recovering from an ACL tear. Washington’s production fell off in Pittsburgh, but the lack of established options aside from Gallup (when healthy) and CeeDee Lamb should leave him with a path to significant snaps.
At some point, both Smith and Washington should return, which would inevitably give the Cowboys’ offense a boost. With the roster spots made open by the move, Dallas brought back long snapper Jake McQuaide and defensive back C.J. Goodwin after their temporary releases yesterday.