FRISCO, Texas — Good news and bad news are sometimes intertwined, and that's what the Dallas Cowboys are dealing with as they turn the page from their victory over the New York Giants in Week 4 and to their battle with the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 5, potentially being without DeMarcus Lawrence, Micah Parsons or both, due to injury.
The two edge rushers were knocked out of the contest against the Giants with a foot and an ankle injury, respectively, undergoing an MRI to determine the extent of the damage.
The good news: Micah Parsons dodged the worst-case scenario despite needing to be carted off of the field.
"I think Micah is week to week," said executive vice president and director of player personnel Stephen Jones to 105.3 The Fan on Friday. "Every player is different in how their body responds, so Micah is week to week. We haven't ruled him out this week, for that matter.
"We'll just see how things go."
All things considered, that is superb news for the three-time All-Pro linebacker, who has at least some chance of taking on the Steelers after the fortuitously timed mini-bye week and, even if he doesn't, could see his odds of battling the Detroit Lions increase, with the actual bye week arriving thereafter before an[other] all-important bout with the San Francisco 49ers.
The bad news: Things don't sound nearly as promising for DeMarcus Lawrence.
[DeMarcus Lawrence] is probably a little bit longer, in terms of how long he'll take," Jones explained. "But all of these things will be situations that — as we get our hands around them over the next couple of days — we'll see where they go."
In speaking about Lawrence via conference call, head coach Mike McCarthy also didn't exactly sound glowingly optimistic about the four-time Pro Bowler's prognosis.
"Both Micah and DeMarcus are getting second opinions," said McCarthy. "I think those injuries are specific to each guy, and [Lawrence's] is worse than Micah's. I don't have a specific timeline, but we'll get into that a little deeper on Monday. I do know there will be second opinions on both of these guys."
He went on to add that both injuries are "worse than anticipated", though it's unclear what the baseline is for that measuring stick, but it sounds as if the Cowboys were of the initial hope that possibly neither would miss time with 10 calendar days before their next game.
If so, things are indeed worse than anticipated, though also not as season-shattering as they could've been; and McCarthy did state neither will be out for the season.
That said, it's a defense that lost Dorance Armstrong and Dante Fowler to Dan Quinn and the Washington Commanders in free agency and then Sam Williams to a torn ACL at the start of training camp, the use of a 2024 second-round pick on Marshawn Kneeland quickly morphing into perfect timing for such a pick, and after cycling through players like Al-Quadin Muhammed and Shaka Toney at defensive end, signing Carl Lawson for depth provides some insurance.
Lawson was elevated for the second time from the team's practice squad against the Giants, and his defensive reps were turned up from only eight in the Week 3 loss to the Baltimore Ravens to nearly three times that amount (22) in Week 4 — a trend that will likely continue into the Steel City.
Phil Hoskins is also an option on the practice squad as would be moving Chauncey Golston back to defensive end for assistance but, if it does turn out to be an issue that lingers, and given their behavior in training camp regarding free agency, more help could be on the way.
It just doesn't appear defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer is interested in a wait-and-see approach to his defense, and especially not on his defensive front (e.g., Linval Joseph signing, Jordan Phillips trade, Carlos Watkins poaching).
Both Zimmer and McCarthy have been in this league for decades now and they understand adaptation is the name of the game, because players get banged up, and others have to step in.
"It's part of the game," said McCarthy. "It's just a matter of when."
