The Dallas Cowboys are just hours away from opening the 2019 season against a familiar foe, the New York Giants. As we all prepare for the big game, here are the final injury reports for both teams headed into Week 1.
Before we get into the injuries, here’s a quick reminder about some non-injury absences for the Cowboys this week:
- WR Noah Brown (PUP)
- DE Robert Quinn (suspended)
- DE Randy Gregory (suspended)
Also, it was confirmed yesterday that DE Taco Charlton will be a healthy scratch today as one of the team’s seven inactive players. This decision suggests that Dallas may by trying to move their former 1st-Round pick in a trade.
Now, on to the injury reports. These reflect the statuses for players based on their participation in practice through Friday.
Dallas Cowboys
- LB Luke Gifford (ankle) – OUT
- S Darian Thompson (ankle) – OUT
- S Donovan Wilson (ankle) – OUT
- G Zack Martin (back) – Limited/Active
The key news here is that Martin, despite limited participation in this week’s practices, is all set to go today. We will likely see the All-Pro guard on the injury lists throughout 2019 as he deals with nagging back soreness, but hopefully it doesn’t cost him any game time. Last year marked the first time that Zack missed any games (two) in his NFL career.
Not listed here is CB Byron Jones, who is reportedly not starting today and will have a limited snap count despite a full week of practice. The Cowboys are protecting their Pro Bowl corner as he only came off the PUP list on August 26th, having missed all of training camp and the preseason recovering from hip surgery.
The three players missing are no surprise. Dallas is carrying preseason standout Luke Gifford on the 53-man roster while he recovers from an ankle injury which will likely keep him out for a few weeks. The Cowboys elected not to place him on injured reserve, clearly hoping he can get back on the field far sooner than Week 9.
At safety, Darian Thompson and Donovan Wilson are both dealing with minor ankle injuries and missed practices this week. Dallas went long at safety and kept Kavon Frazier on the 53 at final cuts, but that still leaves them just three active safeties for today’s game. CB C.J. Goodwin will likely serve as the emergency backup if needed.
New York Giants
- WR Darius Slayton (hamstring) – OUT
- TE Garrett Dickerson (quad) – OUT
- OT Mike Remmers (illness/back) – Full/Active
Starting RT Mike Remmers will play today despite missing part of the week in practice. The Giants are counting on the veteran to help improve their offensive play, and he will get a big test today in Cowboys’ franchise DE DeMarcus Lawrence.
The two players out today are not consequential. Darius Slayton, a 5th-Round rookie, is near the bottom of the Giants’ WR depth chart. Garrett Dickerson is behind Evan Engram and Rhett Ellison at TE.
It’s worth noting that New York is missing WR Golden Tate for four weeks as he serves a PED suspension. They’re also without former 1st-Round pick Corey Coleman, who tore his ACL on the first day of training camp. That leaves just WR Sterling Shepard and Engram at TE as proven receiving targets for Eli Manning.
