Cowboys’ McCarthy: Jayron Kearse has ‘good chance’ to return to lineup vs Seattle

From @ToddBrock24f7: Jayron Kearse sat out last Thursday’s game with back tightness, but was expected to be up to “a majority” of reps by Monday’s practice.

Despite rolling to a dominant 45-10 final, the Cowboys gave up an uncharacteristically high amount of passing yards in their Week 12 win. The team’s pass defense is currently ranked second in the NFL, allowing an average of 167.2 yards through the air per game. But on Thursday, the Commanders’ Sam Howell became the first opposing quarterback to log a 300-yard performance against Dallas this season.

The Cowboys will look to get back on track in that department this week when the Seahawks pay a visit to AT&T Stadium. And they look forward to a key piece of their secondary being back in action.

Safety Jayron Kearse, who sat out the Thanksgiving Day contest with back tightness, is trending toward a return to the lineup this week, according to head coach Mike McCarthy.

“I think JK looks good,” McCarthy told reporters before a jogthrough on Sunday, expecting him to take “probably half the reps.”

“I anticipate him having a good chance of playing this week,” the coach added.

By Monday’s practice, Kearse’s expected workload had been upped to “the majority” of reps.

Prior to missing the annual Thanksgiving outing, Kearse had played at least 57% of the defensive snaps in each of the team’s first 10 games. Even with the one-game absence, he ranks fourth on the team in total tackles. He’s also recorded 1.5 sacks and has one of the team’s 12 interceptions.

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Cowboys second-year safety Junayeh Thomas saw an increase in snaps on Thursday with Kearse out and played well, earning a team-best 81.8 grade from PFF.

Seattle quarterback Geno Smith comes in averaging 234.9 passing yards per game this season.

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