The NFL playoffs are here and the Dallas Cowboys are set to host the San Francisco 49ers in the wild card round on Sunday. They got two key additions added back to their roster on Wednesday when linebacker Micah Parsons and left tackle Tyron Smith were activated off of the Reserve/COVID list.
Jayron Kearse tested positive for COVID last week and missed the Cowboys’ season finale against the Philadelphia Eagles. However, much like Parsons and Smith, Kearse is vaccinated as was expected to be back for the playoffs.
That’s exactly what happened on Thursday when Kearse was activated from the COVID list.
Cowboys have activated safety Jayron Kearse from the COVID-19 reserve list. And no new additions to the list this morning
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) January 13, 2022
Kearse was looked at as just a depth piece and special teams contributor when he was signed last March, but he changed that narrative very quickly. He had a fantastic season by leading the Cowboys and setting a career-high with 101 tackles (nine tackles for loss) and also set career highs in interceptions (2) and passes defended (10).
The former seventh-round pick has gained so much trust with the Cowboys’ coaching staff that he was given the green dot to take over play-calling duties for the aforementioned Parsons against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 8. It worked as the Cowboys picked up the win by limiting the Vikings to 16 points and converting just one of their 13 third-down attempts.
Cowboys’ head coach Mike McCarthy praised Kearse for how he handled the responsibility.
“There’s some game-planning components to it. We made the change. Micah was still a part of the rotation. But I thought Jayron did an excellent job with the communication,” McCarthy said. “He’s an excellent communicator. It was probably as clean as a performance as we’ve had.”
The safety position for the Cowboys has been a struggle to get correct in previous years. Kearse has brought stability to the position and has made himself a top priority free agent for Dallas in the offseason.