After coming into the year with high expectations, the Dallas Cowboys’ season has nosed dived into a tankathon thanks to the current quarterback situation. Both starters — Dak Prescott (ankle injury) and backup Andy Dalton (concussion) — have been out for multiple weeks now.
Dallas’ answer was rookie and former seventh-round pick Ben DiNucci out of James Madison. On Sunday Night Football against the Philadelphia Eagles, DiNucci was terrible. He threw for 180 yards on 40 throws, only 21 passes were caught by Cowboy receivers. DiNucci also coughed the ball up twice, both resulting in touchdowns for the Eagles.
Because of his poor play, the Cowboys have decided to not play DiNucci in Week 9 against the undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers. Instead, it will be a battle between two veterans, former Texas quarterback Garrett Gilbert and Cooper Rush per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.
Gilbert was signed by Dallas off of Cleveland’s practice squad after Prescott’s injury. He served as the main backup during the loss to the Eagles.
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So, Dallas will be starting its fourth QB in Week 9: Dak Prescott, Andy Dalton, Ben DiNucci and now either Garrett Gilbert (who arrived 3 weeks ago) or Cooper Rush (who just returned on the practice squad this week). Incredible adversity at the most important position. https://t.co/RPURXTAtih
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) November 3, 2020
Ian Rapoport is also reporting that the Cowboys are favoring to start Gilbert. It would be his first career NFL start after appearing in games for Cleveland and the Carolina Panthers.
However, he will still have to battle it out with Rush, a guy who spent the previous three seasons in Dallas as the backup quarterback. While head coach Mike McCarthy has never had Rush on his roster, offensive coordinator Kellen Moore understands exactly what he can bring to the table.
This will be interesting: Sounds like the #Cowboys are leaning towards Garrett Gilbert as their starter after considering all options. But they want to see how Coooper Rush and GIlbert handle practice reps https://t.co/HeJTHlsjQL
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 3, 2020
Dallas will be playing the final undefeated team in the league in Pittsburgh on Sunday. With how bad the Cowboys’ offensive line has been this season, Gilbert could be seeing T.J. Watt’s face a lot in the backfield.
The game will kick off at 3:25 p.m. CST and will be broadcasted on CBS.
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