Managing to beat the Steelers despite missing their top four defensive ends, the Cowboys also received word the most recent of those injuries — to rookie Marshawn Kneeland — is not as severe as initial fears indicated.
Carted off early in Dallas’ Sunday-night win, Kneeland did not sustain an ACL tear. The second-round pick is expected to return later this season, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets. Kneeland will miss time, however, as he suffered a partially torn lateral meniscus. A surgery is on tap, but this damage will not re-route the promising player on the level an ACL tear would have.
Kneeland is not undergoing a full meniscus repair, Rapoport adds, as that would sideline the Western Michigan alum for the season’s remainder. Rather, this is a meniscus trim. An IR move may still be in the cards, but it would be of the IR-return variety.IR probably will be the course the Cowboys take, as ESPN.com’s Todd Archer notes this procedure will lead to a four- to six-week recovery timetable.
The Cowboys have DeMarcus Lawrence on IR, though he is expected back while Sam Williams is out for the season due to the ACL tear he sustained this summer. Micah Parsons is week to week with his high ankle sprain, creating significant issues for Mike Zimmer‘s unit.
Down Parsons and Lawrence for the Pittsburgh matchup, Dallas opted for a low-key reinforcement strategy. The team added K.J. Henry off the Bengals’ practice squad. Chauncey Golston started opposite Kneeland, while Tyrus Wheat and Carl Lawson played regularly following Kneeland’s injury. Parsons has not been ruled out for Week 6, but with Dallas’ bye coming in Week 7, the team opting for caution regarding its best player would make sense.
Expected to mix in behind Parsons, Lawrence and Williams, Kneeland came to Dallas after meeting with roughly half the NFL on “30” visits. Tallying low sack totals at Western Michigan (fewer than five in each of his four seasons at the MAC program), Kneeland nevertheless impressed on the pre-draft circuit. He tallied 26 tackles for loss from 2021-23 and became a more prominent Cowboys piece following Williams’ injury.
It will be interesting to see how the Cowboys go about replacing their latest injured D-end cog, but Kneeland and Lawrence’s return windows are comparable. A Lisfranc injury will sideline Lawrence between four and eight weeks. It is possible Parsons will have both his sidekicks back at some point in November. Absent a Parsons return in Week 6, the Cowboys will need to get by — absent a higher-profile acquisition — with a skeleton crew against the Lions.
Low key strategy? Just where do you go to find defensive help in season? Amazon…..
Don’t worry, we’ll have another article soon letting us know that the Cowboys won’t be looking to acquire anybody.