The defensive line is playing great so far this year, seems like they have a great rotation as well. With that said, I am wondering how Neville Gallimore is progressing and will he be able to play in a couple of weeks or is the injury pushing him out further? — APPLETON, WI / DAVID HESSE
Nick: Sounds like it's going to be a couple of weeks still. Not to say that any injury is worse than others, but an elbow injury for a defensive tackle is critical, considering the pushing and leverage that goes on in the trenches. This doesn't seem like one that you'd cast it up and just let him play. He's a quick guy for his size but has to be able to use his arms and his strength. I'm thinking at least two more games.
David: Neville's been progressing more and more in his rehab, as we've been able to see when we attend the open portion of practices. He has officially been out for three games, so he can return to the roster whenever he's ready. If I had to guess, I still think he's a little ways away from being ready to play, but this is something we need to talk to Mike McCarthy about, to try and get a clearer idea of the timeline.
I was confused as to why we did not call one timeout in the last minute and a half of the second quarter against the Eagles? We could not have been that comfortable with a 20-7 lead. We clearly missed an opportunity to put more points on the board. — KENNETH PARKS / GREENBORO, NC
Nick: This question has popped up a lot here recently, and I'll be honest, I didn't really have a big issue with it. During the game itself, I never really thought it was something to consider. I can see why people would say that, but you have to weigh in all of the factors. I hate it when people just think there's a golden book that every coach must follow for each game and each situation. It changes with the flow of the game. And on this game, McCarthy had to be thinking that his team is dominating all sides. As long as the Eagles don't get a gift score, it's going to be a blowout. So he's probably just thinking he doesn't want to give them any time to consider going for it and getting into field goal range. And then before the punt, he's probably not going to really push it and try to get points either. With the way the Cowboys were struggling to block the pass, I bet he thought it was a smarter play to just play it safe.
David: My guess is that McCarthy would say he was comfortable. Despite the scoreline, the Cowboys did dominate that half. But having said that, I'm with you. Dak Prescott is clearly in a zone right now, and it felt weird to not at least try to give him an opportunity to close out the half with some points. The decision itself doesn't bother me, but it's hard to ignore that this coaching staff is on a three-week trend of making strange decisions at the close of the first and second half. It hasn't come back to bite them yet, but I'm starting to get concerned that it will.
