MOBILE, Ala. – For a second-straight offseason, it sounds as though the Cowboys have some injury issues to tend to heading into the spring.
The Cowboys had their full contingent of players available to them when they faced Green Bay in the playoffs last week. But after a six month slog through the NFL schedule, it's no surprise that several players are coping with injuries.
Most notable among those are DeMarcus Lawrence and Cedric Thornton, who battled injuries for much of the last month of the season. Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones said Thornton has undergone shoulder surgery, while Lawrence is expected to have a back surgery.
Jones didn't want to get into the specifics of his players' medical information, but he did say the problems are not long-term concerns.
"I'm not comfortable talking about people's medical conditions until we release it. Until they're good with releasing it, so just don't get into all of that," he said. "We're not worried about any of them, let's put it that way."
Jones also said he doesn't think the duo of Tyron Smith and Dan Bailey will require surgery this offseason. Smith missed two games in the early part of the season with a back injury, and he fought through back and knee injuries for much of the year. After the season ended, reports emerged that Bailey played much of the year with a herniated disc in his back.
Asked for clarification of whether the two would require surgery, Jones replied: "I don't think they'll have it."
Whatever other offseason procedures might be required, Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones said he'd prefer not to comment until following any surgeries.
"We'll more than likely just announce after the surgery has taken place, so that we can wrap it up as far as communication," he said. "Not only whether they had it or not, but where they had it and the results and our evaluation of the surgery."
