On Tuesday, the Cowboys signed tight end Seth Green to the practice squad, a move that seems to add depth to a somewhat banged-up tight end unit. When asked if the signing was a direct response to TE Dalton Schultz’s re-aggravated PCL sprain, Mike McCarthy responded, “I think [it’s] a little bit of that, but also I just think it’s part of the process, too.” He went on to mention that the Cowboys have been talking about Green for a while and that he believes development of young players is of the utmost importance.
Seth Green is a quarterback turned tight end who spent his senior year at the University of Houston before signing with the Houston Texans in May. The Texans waived Green at the end of training camp in August.
This depth addition comes at a time when multiple Cowboys tight ends are dealing with knee injuries. In Week 2, star TE Dalton Schultz suffered a PCL sprain that kept him off the field in Week 3. He returned for Weeks 4 and 5 but did not log a catch in either game. Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson was also on the injury report last week, and practice squad TE Sean McKeon dealt with a knee injury recently as well.
The State of the Cowboys’ Tight End Unit
Going into Week 3, there was concern over the absence of Dalton Schultz, but rookie tight ends Jake Ferguson and Peyton Hendershot proved they were capable of carrying the load. During the 23-16 win over the Giants, Hendershot had 3 catches for 43 yards and two first downs. Ferguson recorded 2 receptions on 3 targets for 13 yards during that game.
So far, it seems Hendershot would be more of a passing game weapon. Although the NFL sample size is small, his 14.3 yards per reception with 8.3 yards after the catch do reflect what many believed he would be capable of coming out of college.
Meanwhile, Ferguson’s blocking abilities have been credited as a big part of the Cowboys’ win over the Rams on Sunday. The blocking lanes created for Tony Pollard and Ezekiel Elliott contributed to 163 net rushing yards for the pair.
Dalton Schultz’s Future with the Dallas Cowboys
In Sunday’s win over the Rams, Schultz left the game momentarily after his injured knee collided with the knee of a Rams defender. He eventually returned to play but ended the game with a total of 10 snaps and was relegated to blocking duty.
Despite the impact to his right knee, there was no new damage, and Schultz is expected to be active during this coming Sunday’s matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles.
There has been some debate, however, over whether or not Schultz should sit out until healthy. The NFL is full of cautionary tales of players who played through pain but simply could not match their pre-injury production. Those players sometimes suffered greater injuries and sometimes ended up with stats-dampening seasons that affected their reputation and perceived value.
Schultz is currently playing on a one-year franchise tag that is paying him a guaranteed $10.931 million. Being productive on the field would give him the best chance at having leverage during forthcoming negotiations as he is expected to seek out a multi-year contract in the off-season. Being as healthy as possible in that situation would also be to his benefit.
Additionally, with the Cowboys seemingly headed for post-season play, they would benefit from having Schultz as close to 100% as possible later in the year. It could be to everyone’s benefit to allow the rookie tight ends to play larger roles for the time being while Schultz focuses on recovery.