Bears G Teven Jenkins reportedly has calf strains in both legs

ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting Jenkins suffered injuries in both his legs last week.

The injury news surrounding Chicago Bears guard Teven Jenkins is getting more bizarre by the day. On Sunday evening, Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune reported Jenkins could be sidelined up to six weeks with a leg injury. Now it seems that injury is in both of his legs.

Appearing on ESPN’s NFL Live on Monday afternoon, Adam Schefter reported Jenkins has a calf strain in not one, but both of his legs. In a clip shared by Matt Clapp of Awful Announcing, Schefter indicates the injury (or injuries) occurred last week. “I’ve never heard of that before but that’s what was told to me,” Schefter said while giving his report.

Jenkins participated in joint practices with the Indianapolis Colts last week and spoke to the media following Thursday’s session. There was no indication that there was any injury going on with him. The third-year offensive lineman sat out of Saturday’s 24-17 preseason loss along with the rest of the starting offense.

Injuries are nothing new for Jenkins, unfortunately. After former general manager Ryan Pace traded up in the 2021 NFL Draft to select him in the second round as the team’s future left tackle, Jenkins missed 11 games his rookie year with a back injury. In 2022 after moving to right guard, he was in and out of the lineup with various ailments. He missed time late in the season after he suffered a scary neck injury. In total, Jenkins has played in 19 of a possible 34 games to start his career.

With Jenkins likely missing time, Ja’Tyre Carter or Alex Leatherwood would see increased reps in his absence. They could also opt to bring in a veteran free agent or see who becomes available on the waiver wire when rosters are trimmed in a couple weeks. Regardless, they will need to hone in on a backup plan to start the season.

Head coach Matt Eberflus is expected to meet the media on Tuesday and will likely have an update regarding Jenkins’ status.

Cowboys expect WR Michael Gallup to play vs Atlanta: ‘He’s going to do some awesome things’

Sidelined for seven games, the Cowboys’ WR is expected to provide a deep-ball threat against the Falcons and a boost for the offense. | From @ToddBrock24f7

If this were a comic-book movie, the group of superheroes have just gotten an unexpectedly thorough and embarrassing beatdown at the hands of a surprisingly robust bunch of bad guys. It happened right on the city streets with everyone watching, and now they’re limping and bloody in their tattered spandex suits, and they’re nursing their wounds amid the rubble as the stunned crowd looks on to see how they’ll rally for the next attack, due in very short order.

This would be the moment- as the audience starts to question the faith they had put into these suddenly-fallible figures, just when things look bleakest- that the camera pans. And there, emerging from the background as the music swells, is the hero that had been separated from the group earlier in the film. In fact, he’d almost been forgotten about. But now he’s back and ready for battle and represents a renewed sense of hope and optimism for the fight to come.

Only this hero doesn’t wear a cape. He wears No. 13.

Cowboys wide receiver Michael Gallup has missed the past seven games with a calf injury. But when executive vice president Stephen Jones said on Dallas radio Monday that the team would “get Michael Gallup back more than likely this week,” it buoyed a fanbase that was still stinging from a dismal showing from their offense, the kind that Cowboys Nation hoped had been left behind in the bizarro alternative-reality dimension known as 2020.

But the fans aren’t the only ones who have missed the fourth-year wideout from Colorado State. His offensive teammates are eager to have him back in the huddle as well.

“We’ll be really, really excited to get Michael,” offensive coordinator Kellen Moore said this week. “Obviously, huge aspirations for him as the season went on; he’s dealt with the injury as it went. We’re excited to have him back.”

Gallup’s injury in the season opener derailed what was to be a massive prove-it year for the 25-year-old. Set to become a free agent in 2022, Gallup had hoped to build off an 1,100-yard effort in 2019 and then a follow-up season in which he finished tied for the team lead in receiving touchdowns. A monster 2021 would translate to a lucrative new contract, either from Dallas or a new employer. But after just four catches in Week 1, Gallup was effectively shut down.

Finally cleared to practice again back on October 25, Gallup has been working with the Cowboys training staff to gradually get himself fully back to game speed. He was nearly ready for the Denver tilt, according to team owner Jerry Jones.

“Frankly, it was close,” Jones said Tuesday on 105.3 The Fan. “On hindsight you say, ‘Well, Michael does a great job of catching those long balls,’ which we really needed; some execution in our long passing game. And he does a great job. On hindsight, maybe you would have liked to see him out there, but that’s certainly hindsight. And that did not make the difference, the way we played. But it’s going to be good to have him back. We need him. He’s a really, really outstanding receiver.”

Head coach Mike McCarthy has confirmed that Gallup will practice in full on Wednesday. His return is tantalizingly close, hopefully coming Sunday.

“He’s going to do some awesome things for us; we’re excited,” Moore continued. “He’ll bring some juice, bring some energy. He’s going to go make some plays when he gets the opportunity and add to that room, make that room even more competitive, because we’ve got a lot of talent in that room that are excited. If they get an opportunity, they’re going to go take advantage of it.”

This week’s opponent, the Atlanta Falcons, will present a stiff challenge for Gallup and the Cowboys receiving corps. Their secondary is allowing just 10.5 yards per reception, tied for the sixth-best mark in the NFL. They’ve given up 300 fewer receiving yards than Dallas through eight games, and they’re the only defense in the league who has not allowed a pass play of over 40 yards all season.

Of course, the deep ball just happens to be Gallup’s superpower, with seven of his 13 career touchdowns coming from 20 yards or beyond. That quick-strike capability sure would have come in handy against Denver, when the Cowboys struggled so mightily to get anything on track and found themselves in a deep hole.

But perhaps the Atlanta native finally getting his comeback moment against his hometown Falcons is perfect storybook karma.

“I think it’s frustrating for everyone,” Moore said of how long it’s taken Gallup to mend from his stubborn injury. “Every player, you always want an opportunity to play. I think Michael’s just at that point now, obviously, where he’s getting closer and closer and ready to roll. He’s going to be real excited.”

In other words, get ready for a blockbuster second act from the superhero wearing No. 13.

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Cowboys QB Dak Prescott loses grandmother, also questionable with calf

Dak Prescott was close with the woman he called Mammy, who stepped in when his mother died. The news comes as he rehabs a calf injury. | From @ToddBrock24f7

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, already dealing with the uncertainty of a calf strain that may keep him out of Sunday night’s Week 8 matchup with the Minnesota Vikings, has now suffered another heartbreaking loss in his personal life.

The Cowboys signal-caller was officially listed as “questionable” for Sunday’s game in Minnesota, but that pales in comparison to the other news that has touched the entire Prescott family.

Prescott’s maternal grandmother, Margaret Ebarb, has passed away. The quarterback shared several photos and messages about her Friday on his Instagram page.

“I promise to Make you Proud!” read one, in part. “I’ll forever be Thankful 4 You,” read another.

Ebarb was instrumental in helping Dak and his siblings after their mother (and Ebarb’s daughter), Peggy, lost her battle with colon cancer in 2013.

Prescott made headlines during the 2016 season when, rather than take advantage of a late-night TV appearance and several marketing deals that were being offered to the rookie passer in his coming-out season, he went back home to Louisiana during the Cowboys’ bye week specifically to spend time with his grandmother, whom he called “Mammy.”

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Cowboys’ Dak Prescott leaves door open to sitting Sunday: ‘I don’t want this to linger’

Dak Prescott says if this Sunday’s game were a playoff tilt, there “would be no question” about his status. But it’s not. So there is. | From @ToddBrock24f7

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott practiced again on Thursday, telling reporters that he pushed his strained calf even harder than the previous day, in an attempt to simulate the demands of a game as best he could.

And while he came out of the day’s work seemingly fine, he went on record as saying that a final decision on whether he plays Sunday night will likely not come until Saturday, the day the team is scheduled to depart for Minnesota.

Prescott told media members after the Thursday session that he believes the calf injury, which occurred on the final play of overtime in the Cowboys’ Week 6 overtime win in New England, is related to the ankle dislocation and compound fracture he sustained in the same leg last October.

While Prescott wore a protective boot for his postgame press conference in Foxborough, he dismissed the injury at the time, saying he could have played on had the game not ended when it did on a touchdown pass to wide receiver CeeDee Lamb.

On Thursday, he took a similar tack, stating that if Sunday’s game were a playoff matchup, his status “would be no question,” and he would “100 percent” be playing, as per ProFootballTalk’s Charean Williams.

Prescott got an MRI the day after the injury, and while the results were deemed “optimistic,” the injury appears to be causing more concern in Dallas than originally revealed. Prescott spent the bye week rehabbing in a pool and wasn’t a full participant in practice either Wednesday or Thursday.

“I’m doing everything I can to make sure I give myself the best chance,” he was quoted as saying by the team website.

Head coach Mike McCarthy has said that the team plans to prepare both Prescott and backup quarterback Cooper Rush as if each is going to play.

The team’s 5-1 record and healthy lead in the NFC East have caused many to suggest that Prescott should sit out the Week 8 game as a precaution, if only to further ensure that the calf is fully healed and that he won’t exacerbate the injury, possibly taking himself out for an even longer stretch of games as the Cowboys try to keep themselves in contention for a top seeding in the postseason.

McCarthy has allowed for the possibility by prepping Rush, and Cowboys players- while saying their leader looks good- have, to a man, expressed belief that the offense would be in good hands if Rush gets the call against the Vikings.

While Prescott no doubt wants to play and sounds as if he could play, he understands that it may ultimately be in the best interest of the season that he doesn’t play.

“It’s not fully my decision,” Prescott said Thursday, via Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News, “because there is a bigger picture. It’s more than just one game… I don’t want this to linger past this week.”

That’s a far cry from owner Jerry Jones telling fans- as recently as Tuesday- that his starting quarterback’s calf strain was “not even in my thought process of things to worry about.”

It sounds like it’s not a worry, long-term, for anyone in the Dallas camp.

But it also sounds like they’re suddenly talking themselves into Plan B for the short-term.

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Dak Prescott practices Wednesday, Cowboys’ McCarthy also prepping Cooper Rush for Week 8

Mike McCarthy will work both QBs until a decision is made on Dak Prescott’s calf injury, though reports from his first practice were good. | From @ToddBrock24f7

Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy opened his Wednesday press conference by telling assembled reporters that quarterback Dak Prescott’s right calf “has improved every day” since he strained it on the final play of the team’s overtime win in Week 6 versus New England.

He outlined the plan for working Prescott back into practice starting with Wednesday’s session, talked about the mutual trust that Prescott and Cowboys associate athletic trainer and director of rehabilitation Britt Brown share in progressing through adversity, and even told a story about how Aaron Rodgers played through a similar calf injury in 2014 during McCarthy’s time with the Packers.

And then he casually dropped the nugget that the team is simultaneously getting backup Cooper Rush ready to, possibly, make his first NFL start in Minnesota on Sunday night.

DakWatch: The 2021 Calf Edition has officially begun.

Prescott did take the practice field at The Ford Center on Wednesday, starting off with a long stretching and light-movement warmup period, with McCarthy and Cowboys vice president of player personnel Will McClay watching.

“He’s so driven. He’s always going to push through,” McCarthy said of Prescott. “There’s a tremendous history there that you have to tie in. Britt and Dak have a tremendous history and relationship, so I feel like we’ll be on the same page with how he progresses through this. He’s going to do everything he can to play on Sunday. That’s a given.”

Brown’s voice will be a key factor in determining Prescott’s readiness for the Week 8 contest. As McCarthy had alluded to, he has a close relationship with Prescott and was instrumental in getting the quarterback healthy after last year’s ankle dislocation. He also played a large role in rehabbing Prescott throwing shoulder after he strained it in the offseason.

“We don’t want this to be a week-to-week situation,” McCarthy said. “We’re going to trust Britt and Dak and the whole process and make the right decision.”

Prescott went on to participate in most of the QB drills on Wednesday, appearing to jog without any visible limp. He didn’t seem to favor one leg over the other or appear to be compromised while throwing in the portion of practice that was open to the media.

Michael Gallup, himself returning from a calf strain, was one of Prescott’s targets Wednesday, as was CeeDee Lamb.

Lamb said after practice, “We’re planning for [Dak] to be out there Sunday. And even if he’s not, we’re prepared for whoever’s up next. But I’m just about 90% sure that he’s going to be out there.”

That sliver of doubt, though, means Rush will be getting extra work this week, in case he has to come on in relief.

“I just think it’s a matter of trying to make sure Cooper is ready,” McCarthy explained, “and to make sure Dak is getting what he needs until, really, Dak clears the threshold of the rehab component with Britt. We won’t make that determination on if he’s a full go until we get to that point. So we’ve got to make sure we’re getting Cooper ready, too.”

McCarthy failed to elaborate on what exactly “the threshold” is. While he acknowledged that a quarterback can theoretically play through a calf strain more easily than, say, a running back or wide receiver, the coach also intimated that the club wouldn’t be taking any unnecessary chances in Week 8 of a 17-game season.

“I went through something similar back in 2014 with Aaron Rodgers,” McCarthy recalled. “He actually hurt it later in the year and we were dealing with this in the playoffs, so obviously a different time of year.”

Rodgers played that January day in Seattle, going 19-of-34 passing and even ripping off a 12-yard run in Green Bay’s overtime loss to the Seahawks. But the passer limped noticeably throughout the game and was clearly not at full-strength.

McCarthy continued, “It was difficult. The weather was different, two outdoor games, then played up in Seattle there in the NFC Championship Game, so yeah, that was a challenge. But it was January. It was a different time of year and had some different circumstances.”

This Halloween night’s matchup between the Cowboys and Vikings carries nowhere near that kind of significance, but expect the Dallas fanbase and the national media to breathlessly turn Prescott’s latest rehab effort into a week-long game of will-he-or-won’t-he anyway, as the world waits for a dramatic decision that could- the story will undoubtedly go- have serious implications on the Cowboys’ promising 5-1 start to the season.

Or just take NFL insider Jane Slater, who knows Prescott and the Cowboys as well as nearly any reporter working today, at her word:

“I would be shocked,” she said Wednesday on NFL Network, if Prescott didn’t play Sunday.

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Cowboys’ Jerry Jones says Prescott’s calf ‘not even in my thought process of things to worry about’

The Cowboys owner is “much less” concerned about his QB’s current calf strain than he was the shoulder strain suffered during camp. | From @ToddBrock24f7

To be clear, Jerry Jones does not have a medical license. But as the owner of the most valuable sports franchise on the planet, one can be reasonably sure that the 79-year-old billionaire keeps a close eye on his biggest investments. If an oil well has run dry, he knows about it. If a company he has a controlling interest in is foundering, he knows about it. If a blue-chip stock is no longer paying dividends, he knows about it.

Jones can’t talk about quarterback Dak Prescott’s right calf in the kind of detail that a doctor or a physical therapist or a member of the Cowboys medical staff might. But it’s highly probable that if there were a significant chance of the team’s $160 million man not being ready for a primetime meeting with the Minnesota Vikings in five days, Jones would absolutely know about that, too.

But speaking Tuesday with Dallas radio station 105.3 The Fan, Jones didn’t sound like a man who’s worried about his quarterback situation.

“Based on what you saw yesterday, that was very encouraging,” Jones began. He was referring to the team’s Monday return to The Star, when Prescott showed up without his protective boot, joked briefly with reporters, and apparently did some throwing in a closed session.

“But those things have to be monitored,” the owner continued. “We’ve got a solid week, which is great to monitor that. I thought [right guard Zack] Martin had a good description of it when he had the calf tear last year. He said some days it feels great, and then it feels like you got run over by a bulldozer the next day. But still, I feel very good about where Dak is right now.”

Good enough that there hasn’t been a peep about the team trading for or bringing in a veteran quarterback just in case.

Cooper Rush is listed as the Cowboys’ QB2 on the depth chart, with Will Grier behind him. Rush has not attempted a pass in a regular season game since November 2017 and is a career 1-for-3 passing for 2 yards. Grier started the final two games of Carolina’s 2019 season; the Panthers were outscored 80-16 in those contests.

Suffice it to say the Cowboys would be a vastly different team this Sunday night without Prescott. Still, with a 5-1 record and already a commanding lead in the NFC East, perhaps Dallas doesn’t need to hurry Prescott back into action?

The situation resembles training camp, when Prescott strained a throwing shoulder that kept him out of the team’s first padded practice. The Cowboys insisted the injury was not serious, yet they held him out of the entire preseason and didn’t let him throw at all for the majority of camp. The cautious approach paid off; Prescott came out on fire in the season opener and hasn’t cooled off since.

Prescott spent the bye week rehabbing after an “optimistic” MRI, with he and the team brushing off any visible concern. Still, he was shut down for a week. And held out of real practice on Monday. It’s the same easing-back-in process.

Resting Prescott for exhibitions in August is one thing. Shelving him for a conference game in the middle of a potential MVP campaign and legitimate playoff run is a very different proposition.

“We had less of it, but [had] some of this thinking early when we were thinking about his shoulder,” Jones recalled. “The idea then was: don’t be pennywise and pound-foolish. And make sure you feel good about his ability to not- as you much as you can- about his ability not to reinjure. That’ll be the key.”

In the grand scheme of things, Jones says the summer’s shoulder issue was far more worrisome than the current calf problem.

“Much less,” Jones said flatly. “Much less. Not even in my thought process of things to worry about.”

Jones is no doctor. But he’s also not an Oscar-caliber actor. If Prescott were in real danger of missing Sunday’s game, Jones would arguably be spinning a much different-sounding tale this week.

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Report: Prescott to miss Monday practice; Cowboys eye Week 8 return

NFL Network sources say Prescott has been rehabbing and will return to practice Wednesday, with the team taking a cautious approach. | From @ToddBrock24f7

The Cowboys don’t have a game to gear up for in Week 7, but they have a big name on the injury update list nonetheless as 22 other teams get ready to take the field on the penultimate Sunday in October.

Dak Prescott, who suffered a calf strain while making the game-winning throw in the Cowboys’ win last week in New England, is expected to be ready for game action when the team next lines up next Sunday night in Minnesota. But he likely won’t practice with the offense on Monday when the team returns from their bye week break, and the team will monitor him closely when he returns to practice Wednesday. That news comes from Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero, citing NFL Network sources.

The report likens Prescott’s current calf injury to the strained throwing shoulder he suffered during training camp; the team will take a cautious approach with him now as they did then so as to not aggravate a minor injury and turn it into something more substantial by working him back too soon.

Prescott spent most of the bye week in Dallas, according to the NFL Network insiders. He participated in rehab activities at The Star in Frisco with team director of rehabilitation Britt Brown and head athletic trainer Jim Maurer. The work has involved a lot of footwork drills and running while in the pool, but Prescott has yet to do much on solid ground.

Prescott wore a walking boot to his postgame press conference after the 35-29 walk-off win, but joked about it being merely a conversation starter for reporters. He got an MRI on Monday following the game; the team was said to be “optimistic” about both the results and his availability for Week 8.

All indications are that Prescott is trending toward that optimism being well-founded.

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Cowboys’ Dak Prescott downplays calf injury, walking boot, MRI: ‘Have fun with it this week’

Prescott wore a walking boot Sunday night and will get an MRI on Monday, but says he could’ve kept playing had he needed to vs the Pats. | From @ToddBrock24f7

Dak Prescott signed a lucrative endorsement deal with the Jordan Brand as he rehabbed from injury during the offseason. But following the biggest win yet of his comeback campaign, a walk-off overtime win over the New England Patriots, the Cowboys quarterback was sporting a rather generic- and somewhat concerning- choice of footwear when he addressed the media after the game.

“I figured we weren’t playing for a week, so I would give you guys something to talk about and speculate on this time. So there you go,” Prescott joked in explaining the plastic walking boot immobilizing his right foot. “Might get Jordan to make one of these.”

Prescott will get an MRI on Monday, according to the team. The passer reportedly suffered a calf strain on the final play of the contest, a 35-yard touchdown strike to wide receiver CeeDee Lamb that ended the rollercoaster ride in Foxborough in dramatic fashion, giving Dallas a 35-29 victory.

“The last throw, I just came down funny,” Prescott confirmed. “That’s what it was. Something that will be checked out. I’ll be fine, I can promise you that. Great time to be going into the bye week. As I said, you all can have fun with it this week.”

As ESPN’s injury analyst Stephania Bell explained on Twitter, “Walking boot has an elevated heel. Helps rock foot forward when walking thereby decreasing work of calf (doesn’t have to push off). Smart proactive move, even if not serious.”

Prescott felt good enough to do a postgame interview with CBS sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson in the moments after the injury. But he was noticeably limping on the field after the game went final, and received assistance from running back Ezekiel Elliott getting back to the visitors locker room.

Yet the veteran in his sixth season says he could have played on had the game not ended when it did.

“For sure,” he told reporters. “It was a little pain, but, for sure I would’ve been able to keep going. Obviously, I think the adrenaline would’ve been up and [I] may not have even felt it at the time. I think at the time you relax you’re like, ‘Oh, there it is.'”

The 28-year-old, in his sixth game back after an eleven-month recovery from a brutal right ankle dislocation and compound fracture admitted that last year’s injury colored his immediate reaction to feeling something “funny” when he came down on the same leg on the last play of Sunday’s game.

“Yeah, it’s like, ‘No way.’ Life keeps throwing punches, and I’m going to keep throwing them back,” Prescott said. “It’s part of it, it’s part of this game. It’s a physical game we play. As I said, I’ll be fine. I’ve got a lot of confidence in myself and the medical team. As I said, I feel good; obviously, this is a precaution… It doesn’t hurt as bad, obviously, when you score and you win the game.”

Dr. David Chao, sports medical analyst for SiriusXM Radio, said in a YouTube update, “I do not see a significant calf strain,” based on video of the play in question. He pointed to an Instagram clip that showed Prescott taking “many further steps” after landing awkwardly as he made the game-winning throw. “I have reasonable confidence that Dak will be fine,” Chao said, for the team’s next game.

The Cowboys are off in Week 7. Their next game comes October 31 in a Sunday night meeting with the Vikings in Minnesota.

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Report: Cowboys WR Michael Gallup to miss 3-5 weeks with calf strain

The Dallas wide receiver left Thursday’s game in the third quarter with what was called an ankle injury; now it’s been called a calf strain. | From @ToddBrock24f7

Cowboys fans have been eagerly awaiting a fully-healthy Dak Prescott slinging it around the yard once again to his three-headed monster at wide receiver. Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb, and Michael Gallup pose a unique challenge to opposing teams, as each has the ability to break out and take over a game. Focus too hard on one, though, and the others are waiting to make a defense pay.

But someone else will have to step up and sit in as a temporary member of the pass-catching trio in Dallas. Michael Gallup will reportedly be out three to five weeks with a calf strain he suffered in Thursday night’s season opener, according to Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News.

Gallup caught four balls in Week 1, racking up 36 yards on 12 targets before leaving the game late in the third quarter with what was called an ankle injury at the time.

Cedrick Wilson saw increased action in relief of Gallup and ended the night with three receptions for 24 yards.

This was to be a big year for Gallup, the former third-round pick from Colorado State. The fourth-year receiver is in the final season of his rookie contract, with many speculating that the Cowboys will be either unable or unwilling to retain the threesome of Cooper, Lamb, and Gallup beyond 2021.

Now it seems Gallup will have slightly fewer chances to either prove his worth in Dallas or increase his stock with a prospective suitor.

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Jerry Jones: Cowboys Zack Martin ‘unlikely’ for Week 17

Zack Martin has been out since Thanksgiving. Reports said he could play in Week 17, but owner Jerry Jones says it’s unlikely that he does.

The Dallas Cowboys have had more than their fair share of injury news on the offensive line in 2020. Tyron Smith (neck) was lost for the year in October and La’el Collins (hip) has been on the shelf all season. The biggest loss came in November when perennial All-Pro guard Zack Martin injured his calf on Thanksgiving against the Washington Football Team.

He was placed on injured reserve earlier this month; a minimum three-week hiatus. On Monday, reports surfaced that Martin may try to play this Sunday. However, team owner Jerry Jones told 105.3 The Fan on Tuesday morning it’s unlikely he does.

“I’m dubious that he can be there this week, but I’m not about the future weeks,” Jones said, via the team’s website. “We’ve got a chance in the future. He will make, and can make, such a difference in this football team.”

Not only has Martin continued to dominate at guard but he’s displayed his versatile skill set this season by sliding outside to tackle as well, and didn’t miss a beat. Jones realizes the impact Martin could bring if he’s available for a playoff run.

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“It really is the reason for a real optimistic thought about what happens if we could get in the playoffs,” Jones said. “It’s a real, valid, tangible thing to hang your hat on. He could change what we look like out there.”

Martin had been an ironman of sorts before 2020. In his first six seasons, the only two games he missed came in 2018. He’s missed five games total this season making it the toughest of his stellar career.

The Cowboys can only hope all the chips fall their way to get into the postseason this Sunday so that they can have their best player back on the field.

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