Unfortunately, this injury update list is much longer than it should be.

Micah Parsons (ankle) – Dallas’ premiere pass rusher has been out since suffering a high ankle sprain against the New York Giants back in week four. The Cowboys decided not to put Parsons on IR. He was out with the rehab group on the practice field in the week leading up to the Cowboys matchup against San Francisco and did not practice, focusing on cord work off to the side. This week, both Jerry Jones and Mike McCarthy have said it’s too early in the week to determine whether or not Parsons has a chance to play against the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.

DaRon Bland (foot) – Jones and McCarthy also said that it was too early to say whether or not DaRon Bland will be available against the Falcons. Bland suffered a stress fracture in the last week of training camp, and has yet to play this season after his All-Pro campaign in 2023. Bland was nearly able to return to the lineup against the Lions in Week 6, but suffered a setback later in the week that held him out of the game and has still lingered. Bland was also part of the rehab group this past week leading up to the 49ers game, where he did not participate in any practices during the week. The Cowboys will have to make a decision on Bland by Wednesday, as his 21-day practice window closes then. Bland will either need to be added to the active roster, or be placed on season-ending injured reserve.

DeMarcus Lawrence (foot) – The Cowboys’ other high-end defensive end also went down in the Week 4 contest against the Giants, but Lawrence’s injury was more severe. He was placed on injured reserve by the team on October 1, and his already missed three of the required four games since he sustained his injury. Whether or not Lawrence will be ready to go after the Cowboys play Atlanta on Sunday is still to be determined,with Cowboys executive vice president and director of player personnel Stephen Jones saying after Lawrence sustained the injury that he was “week to week” but not ruled out of any contests. The earliest Lawrence would be able to play is November 10, when the Cowboys host the Philadelphia Eagles.

Brandin Cooks (knee) – The veteran wide receiver was the third Cowboy to come out of the Giants game in Week 4 with an injury, after undergoing a procedure on his knee that led to an infection, which led to a clean-out surgery. While Cooks’ 21-day window has yet to be opened, he was seen off to the side on the practice field doing cord work for the first time last week. He too will be eligible to return on November 10 against the Eagles.

Jerry Jones not OK with idea of Dak Prescott running the ball more for Cowboys – Patrik Walker, DallasCowboys.com

Limiting Dak Prescott’s rushing attempts could be about protecting the team’s $60 million investment.

“You really don’t want to see him really take off with that ball,” owner and general manager Jerry Jones told 105.3 The Fan on Tuesday, following the team’s fourth consecutive loss to the San Francisco 49ers. “These quarterbacks that run, you know they’re gonna get injured. That happens. It happens to the youngest and it happens to the best. It’s happened to Dak.”

Prescott suffered a season-ending broken ankle on a scramble play in 2021, against the New York Giants in Week 5, and has been reticent to use his legs to gain yards ever since. He’s done it on rare occasions, but not like he once did — e.g., during his Mississippi State days.

Jones is perfectly fine with it, carrying the belief that the risk isn’t worth the reward.

“To the end that we rely on him to stay healthy, that’s an important part of it,” Jones said. “I wouldn’t say it’s up there in red letters at the facility to not run, but I’d say we want him to be smart about it. And he is being smart about it. However, he will, when he sees the opportunity, pull it down and run with it — as we know.”

The Cowboys took a 10-6 lead into halftime against the San Francisco 49ers before Brock Purdy began to use his mobility to help lead his offense to three touchdowns in three drives in that quarter alone, and that’s not a fact lost on Jones.

“It’s easy to compare, and that’s fair, when the opposing quarterback is really complementing what they’re doing with their offense with his running,” said Jones. “But I’m satisfied with Dak, in terms of his ability to run. It’s there, as far as physically, he can run. We want Dak, in the future, to do the kind of job with his arm and get the ball out to the outside, you see us trying to do that a lot, and make up for anything that we might want to do [with his legs].”

Could the Cowboys lack of success in 2024 be tied directly to the Trey Lance trade?

How did we get here? For me, it all goes back to the Trey Lance trade, a move that made no sense at the time it happened in 2023 and will ultimately net the Cowboys nothing but the loss of a fourth-round pick. That is, unless you’re so dissatisfied with Dak’s play that you’re ready to leapfrog Cooper Rush on the depth chart and take a gamble on Lance. When we last saw him, Lance was throwing five interceptions in the preseason finale against the Los Angeles Chargers.

Or maybe you’d like to keep Lance next year when his cap hit is $22 million?

The Lance trade cost Dallas a running back this season. Maybe it cost the Cowboys a running game, period. The fourth round is when they all started going off the board last spring — Bucky Irving to Tampa Bay, Ray Davis to Buffalo and, yes, Isaac Guerendo, the 49ers’ third-stringer who cruised through the Dallas defense for 85 yards — and the Cowboys could only sit and watch. Yes, there were other opportunities later in the draft. Giants fifth-rounder Tyrone Tracy ran for 145 yards against Pittsburgh on Monday night.

Maybe the Cowboys could have used a Guerendo or a Tracy?

But Jerry Jones could only talk of his excitement at Zeke’s return before and after the draft. It’s sad enough that Elliott’s 11-yard run Sunday night was such cause for excitement. Who knew he could still do even that?

The Cowboys offense still has Dak and CeeDee and its tight end collection, and the starting offensive line Sunday night was the starting offensive line at the season’s outset. This is a team that ranked first, fourth and first in scoring the last three seasons. Now, the Cowboys are 22nd.

The 3-4 Cowboys are starting to get on the nerves of fans and media alike.

Free from the confines of national sports talk, Mike Golic sees no reason to discuss the New York Jets or Dallas Cowboys.

Those may be America’s teams in some of its biggest media markets, but halfway into the NFL season, Golic believes it’s time to ignore them like any other bad team.

“Quite honestly, it’s a waste of time, other than you’re going to get clicks,” Golic said Tuesday on The Dan Patrick Show. “But to talk about the Jets in any meaningful way or to talk about Dallas in any meaningful way, they’re not going to do anything. They’re not going to be a threat.”

After Patrick questioned why anyoe would discuss the Jets’ “debacle” and when it’s “appropriate” to stop talking about the Cowboys, Golic laid out why Dallas’ disastrous offseason and New York’s flailing front office are predictable reasons to end the debate about both squads.

Still, Golic admitted the Cowboys are a draw.

“I think it’s always an appropriate time to talk about the Cowboys,” Golic told Patrick. “They’re like the Yankees, they’re like Notre Dame. Whether they’re good or bad, they’re always talked about.”

Best and worst Cowboys from Week 8, according to PFF – David Howman, Blogging the Boys

On the bright side, the Cowboys rookie offensive linemen fished with positive grades.

C Cooper Beebe – 77.3

Cooper Beebe had yet another really encouraging game, giving up just one pressure all night and not allowing a single sack or hit on the quarterback. Beebe was also pretty solid in the run game. Additionally, his endless hustle came in clutch when Beebe recovered a fumble to keep the ball with the offense.

LT Tyler Guyton – 73.7

Both rookie linemen had positive performances, though Tyler Guyton struggled a bit more. That’s to be expected going against Nick Bosa some of the time, and it makes Guyton’s four pressures allowed easier to stomach. While he did allow two hits on Dak Prescott, Guyton did not yield a single sack. That’s a good step forward for the rookie.

RT Terence Steele – 49.1

Terence Steele continues to struggle in pass protection. While he gave up as many pressures as Tyler Guyton, Steele’s four pressures allowed resulted in a sack and an interception. Steele actually posted a worse run blocking grade than pass blocking, which is especially concerning given that run blocking is supposed to be his best trait.

RB Dalvin Cook – 53.6

For all the hype around Dalvin Cook being called up from the practice squad, he didn’t really do much. Cook tallied 12 rushing yards on six carries and failed to break any tackles or run for 10+ yards. His longest run was just four yards. Not an impressive night for Cook.

WR KaVontae Turpin – 40.1

The Cowboys clearly felt that KaVontae Turpin could be a factor in this game, as he saw four targets in the passing game with an average depth of target of 25.3 yards. Yet, Turpin only managed to catch one pass for 16 yards, which he then fumbled. One of Turpin’s targets resulted in an interception, while another was a drop on the Cowboys’ final offensive possession. This was not his best night.