FRISCO, Texas – At some point this year, the Cowboys are going to have both Randy Gregory and DeMarcus Lawrence on the field together again.
But it won't be this week against the Falcons. In fact, they won't have either one of them as Gregory is now also on injured reserve with a calf injury he suffered in practice.
Gregory will now miss at least three games, which would mean he won't return until the Dec. 2 New Orleans game at the earlier. He'll be on IR alongside Lawrence, who has been out since Week 1 with a broken foot although his return seems likely for the near future.
But what about Sunday when the Falcons come to town with their 4-4 record after winning three of the last four games?
For starters, the Cowboys will probably turn to Dorance Armstrong and Tarell Basham, who has been the regular starter at defensive end with Lawrence out.
Basham has 16 tackles, one sack and is tied for second on the team with 13 pressures.
Armstrong had a stellar training camp but went down with a high-ankle sprain that forced him to miss four games.
"Obviously I missed a whole month, too and this is my third game back, but I'm ready to play," Armstrong said. "You've got to have that next-man-up mentality. But I'll be ready."
And of course, there's always the options to use rookie linebacker Micah Parsons off the edge as well. Parsons has played most inside backer this year but has occasionally rushed from the end spot. In Week 2 against the Chargers, Parsons rushed from the outside most of the game and did record a sack.
But lately, he's played more linebacker and still rushed from the middle either as a designated rusher or blitzing. He had 2.5 sacks last week against the Broncos and also has five tackles for loss in the last two games.
