Tag: Jordan Philliips

Cowboys DT Jordan Phillips claims ignorance about wrist injury, move to IR

From @ToddBrock24f7: The big DT hasn’t gotten off to a good start this year. Now he’ll be out at least 4 games with an injury he says he knows nothing about.

The NFL mandates that teams release practice reports that chart which players are limited by injury and to what extent. To those outside the building, an appearance on the report by a player can cause some confusion, especially if that player seemed fine during the most recent game and there were no reports of an injury suffered during practice.

But it seems one Cowboys defender’s inclusion on first injury report of Week 3 is coming as a surprise, even to him.

Defensive tackle Jordan Phillips, who was just acquired by the team a month ago, was placed on injured reserve Wednesday with what the Cowboys have identified as a sprained wrist.

Phillips says that’s news to him.

“I don’t know,” he answered when asked how the injury came about, per Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “That’s above my pay grade. You have to ask the people making the decisions.”

https://twitter.com/NickHarrisFWST/status/1836496304408777075

The former second-round draft pick did have surgery last season while with the Bills to repair a dislocated wrist suffered in a win against Dallas, but when asked by reporters midweek if his wrist was “good,” Phillips responded “yes.”

“It is what it is, I guess,” he continued.

One official said the team is being cautious with Phillips.

Phillips played 19 defensive snaps Sunday versus New Orleans but did not record any official statistics. He assisted on a lone tackle and logged one quarterback hit in the season opener at Cleveland.

His PFF grade stands at 29.6, among the lowest grades in the league among defensive linemen.

One play from the Week 2 loss showed the 330-pound Phillips being pushed around badly and ultimately getting flung into the feet of both safety Malik Hooker and cornerback Trevon Diggs nearly ten yards downfield.

https://twitter.com/DannyPhantom24/status/1836242398575538353

Another replay showed Phillips getting away from his blocker on a pass play, but instead of going after Saints quarterback Derek Carr, he inexplicably turned around and re-engaged with New Orleans offensive tackle Trevor Penning, who was still on the ground.

Clarence Hill Jr. and Joseph Hoyt of DLLS Sports point out that Phillips was acquired in a trade that also netted the Cowboys a 2026 seventh-round draft pick, but only if Phillips played two games for Dallas. His appearance on the field Sunday officially checked that box.

And now Phillips will miss at least four games with a wrist injury that he claims not to know anything about.

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Carlos Watkins, who played defensive tackle with the Cowboys in 2021 and 2022, was signed off the Commanders’ practice squad as a likely replacement.

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Cowboys’ newest addition fits defensive puzzle in multiple ways

Adding Linval Joseph, even at 35, gives Dallas a unique interior rotation on paper. If it works, things could get intriguing for Dallas’ defense. | From @KDDrummondNFL

The Cowboys must’ve really been impressed with the opposition when they got their lunch handed to them last December. On December 17, Dallas sent their representatives up north to Buffalo for a cool, rainy road trip riding a five-game winning streak, boasting a 10-3 record. In all honesty, the 31-10 shellacking they took at the hands of the Bills was the start of the unraveling of their promising season.

A close, 22-20 loss to Miami the following week made it a losing streak and they escaped by the skin of their teeth at home against Detroit in the now infamous, OL substitution foot shooting by Dan Campbell. Dallas’ lessened ceiling wasn’t masked in a blowout road finale against inept Washington, and the Green Bay Packers marched into AT&T Stadium and jigsawed the Cowboys hopes and dreams in front of the world.

That was the final shot, but the loss to Buffalo was the beginning of the end. And if the two of the three recent DL additions are any indication, that had a profound impact on the way the front office wanted to put the puzzle pieces together for 2024. On Wednesday, Dallas acquired a second Bills defensive lineman from that day, inking free agent Linval Joseph.

“Breaking: I’m told the #Cowboys are signing DT Linval Joseph, per source. – Josina Anderson

Dallas will have recently acquired two veteran interior defenders to rotate with 3T Osa Odighizuwa, and 1T Mazi Smith.

Last week, Dallas traded for Jordan Phillips, who had signed with the New York Giants this offseason after being with the Bills for the previous two campaigns.

Phillips, 6-foot-6, 349 pounds, is the bigger of the linemen, but he’s primarily been a 3T his entire career who also is a run stuffer. Joseph is a former second-round pick of the Giants… from 2010. He’s going to enter his 15th season in the league and will be the Cowboys’ second oldest player at 35, four days younger than punter Bryan Anger.

Joseph played for Mike Zimmer in Minnesota from 2014 through 2019, and has also spent time in LA with the Chargers (2 seasons) and Philadelphia (one season) before landing in Buffalo last season.

He played in seven games and had 12 tackles and one sack.

Zimmer must be reminiscing somewhat about the days of old when he had the No. 1 defense in yards and points with Joseph making the Pro Bowl.

Joseph will rotate with Smith, and possibly could see starter snaps as the first-round pick from 2023 continues to try to acclimate himself to the league and the rigors of the NFL. It hasn’t been a smooth beginning for Smith, who has made progress from last season and has likely changed targets for what would be considered short-term success in his second season.

Smith played behind another elder statesman, Johnathan Hankins, last season. Hankins was allowed to leave the club and signed with the Seattle Seahawks in free agency.

Zimmer will now be able to deploy a rotation of three functional 320-to-340 pound interior defenders, along with Odighizuwa at 285 pounds as the pass-rush specialist. It gives him numerous intriguing possibilities along with defensive ends DeMarcus Lawrence, Marshawn Kneeland and Chauncey Golston who can rotate inside as well.

Combined with the chess piece of Micah Parsons and what might be the league’s deepest secondary, things could quickly come together.

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