IRVING, Texas – Terrance Williams may not be available for the Cowboys' Week 16 game against Washington, coach Jason Garrett said Wednesday.
Garrett said at his daily press conference that injured his hamstring during the team's loss to Green Bay last weekend. He said Williams "may or may not be available" to play.
"Terrance has a little bit of a tweak to his hamstring," he said.
That news adds another name to the list of hamstring injuries the Cowboys have suffered since the season started. For those keeping track, Sean Lee, Justin Durant, Morris Claiborne, Dwayne Harris, Bruce Carter, Barry Church, Miles Austin, Danny McCray, Lance Dunbar, Dez Bryant, Gavin Escobar and now Williams have all dealt with hamstring problems for varying amounts of time.
Garrett also said that Harris' injury status is also undetermined for the Redskins game. The loss of both players would be a blow to the Cowboys' depth at receiver, but it would also leave the team without its preferred punt and kick returners.
The Cowboys are looking into "contingency plans" in the event neither receiver is able to go, including Tuesday's signing of veteran return man Michael Spurlock.
"We have to make sure we have some options. Joseph Randle is certainly in the mix there – someone who has done that before," Garrett said. "We signed Michael Spurlock to come in. He's been a returner in this league – both a punt returner and a kickoff returner. He also helps with our depth at receiver. Those are all the factors involved." [embedded_ad]
The continued theme of hamstring injuries is something that has drawn more attention as the season has gone one. With such an inordinate amount of players sidelined with hamstrings, Garrett said it's something the team is actively trying to address.
"It's an ongoing thing. It's not like we're saying 'Hey, we'll figure that out.' We're talking about it now – what we can do a better job of," he said. "We'll see. We'll evaluate what we're doing, what other teams are doing, who's doing it best, who's not doing it well – see if there's some common ground there."
Spurlock should be able to help with wide receiver depth, should Harris and Williams sit out. Garrett said the availability of Escobar and James Hanna at tight end may offset the need to add other receivers to the roster.
