INDIANAPOLIS – The Cowboys are looking internally to figure out how to fix their numerous hamstring problems that have burdened them in recent years.
Executive vice president Stephen Jones said the team is looking at how it behaves now, how it's behaved in the past when the hamstring injuries weren't happening and why they're happening more often. He said everyone, from the strength and conditioning coaches to the trainers and executives, obviously aren't content with the situation.
Eleven players went down with hamstring injuries at different points throughout the 2013 season with hamstring injuries, and a few of them went down again with the same injury. Both Morris Claiborne and Dwayne Harris missed multiple games in December with a recurrence of the injury.
"Is it because of the age of your roster? Is it because they're not working enough and getting in good enough shape before we actually let them start competing? I think those are all things we've got to look at," Jones said. "Obviously, we're under a new set of work rules that we haven't been under long. I think those are things that you've got to consider." [embedded_ad]
The Cowboys study where they rank in relation to other teams on just about everything, according to Jones. He said the Cowboys have done pretty well historically by comparison when it comes to injuries, but he admitted the last couple years have been tough.
It won't, however, change the way the Cowboys view their medical grading system when it comes to evaluating players in the draft.
"I think the bigger thing you look at is when you take a player that's injured is will he overcome it," Jones said, "or does he have a chronic history of just having a hard time staying healthy?"
Jones will look at a player's past injury history and whether or not a certain injury is more of an anomaly in an otherwise healthy career. He didn't say he'd be more averse to grabbing an injured player now, but he said the Cowboys will be diligent in tracking the specific player's circumstances.
