After last week’s demoralizing and damaging loss to the Panthers, the Cowboys are on the brink of collapse in 2025. While many things are still mathematically possible, and will be even if they lose again this week, Dallas is near the point where talking about playoff chances becomes futile. In this week’s rooting guide, we’ll […] After last week’s demoralizing and damaging loss to the Panthers, the Cowboys are on the brink of collapse in 2025. While many things are still mathematically possible, and will be even if they lose again this week, Dallas is near the point where talking about playoff chances becomes futile. In this week’s rooting guide, we’ll lean more heavily towards better positioning in the 2026 NFL Draft, but still keep a hopeful eye on what could improve the Cowboys’ postseason hopes. Thursday night’s upset win by the Bengals over the Steelers was a good start. With no playoff implications in an all-AFC matchup, we got what we wanted by Cincy improving to 3-4 and becoming less threatening in eventual draft ordering. For games with broader potential impact, how you personally root going forward depends on your focus. That’s certainly the case for every remaining Dallas game, but also most of the schedule involving NFC teams. NFC East Vikings d. Eagles If you still hope for a playoff spot, the best way to get it is by winning the NFC East. The tragedy of last week’s loss by Dallas is that it squandered a chance to gain ground on both Philadelphia and Washington. But even with that blown opportunity, they’d still move ahead of Washington with a win this week. If that happens while the Eagles somehow lose a third-straight game, Dallas would be right on their heels in the division. Draftwise, it still makes more sense for the Vikings to win to help Dallas. Minnesota is only 3-2 while Philly is 4-2, so that would pull the Vikings further up in the standings and still leave Philly as a four-win team. If Dallas falls against Washington, they’re that much more ahead of the pack in draft order. Giants d. Broncos New York somehow getting back in the playoff hunt seems even more unlikely than Dallas. They’re far more relevant in the draft discussion, so a win is a good thing. And thankfully, with Denver at 4-2, it doesn’t hurt much for the Giants to pull off another upset. NFC vs. NFC Saints d. Bears Another win-win from either perspective. Just 1-5 currently, New Orleans could become catchable in the draft order if they can eke out a few more wins this year. Upsetting the Bears would also help Dallas’ playoff chances, especially given Chicago’s head-to-head tiebreaker. That tiebreaker is also why you’re not as worried about the Bears’ record worsening for draft purposes, because it has the opposite effect in that situation. Cardinals d. Packers Arizona picking up its third win could pull them above Dallas in the standings, so that’s good for the draft. It also doesn’t hurt that much playoffs-wise, because Green Bay is only leading the NFC North by a hair right now. They could easily end up in the wild card race, and their tie with the Cowboys at least makes them more desirable there than teams who could end up with head-to-head tiebreakers. Considering the Cowboys hold the Packers draft pick, any loss by them is a good thing. Falcons d. 49ers This is more split between the two worlds. Draft focused: we’d rather see Atlanta (3-2) win and move further away from Dallas in the order. Playoff focused: it makes sense for the 49ers to just run away with the NFC North, which they currently lead, and put losses on as many potential wild card teams as they can. So this is one where your rooting interest depends on your priorities. Lions d. Buccaneers Same idea here. Detroit winning is better for draft purposes, moving them further up the standings and away from Dallas. The Bucs are the Niners of the NFC South, so their winning would be good for us from a playoff perspective and potential wild card clash with the Lions. NFC vs. AFC Jaguars d. Rams Both teams are 4-2, so it’s a wash from a draft perspective. In that case, we can lean toward the playoffs side and root against the NFC team. Panthers d. Jets There’s probably no catching the 0-6 Jets in the draft order, especially since Dallas has a head-to-head win over them. So better that they just stay in that top spot and allow Carolina to get another win, which moves them further away from a premium pick. Playoff-focused fans will obviously want the opposite, as the Panthers could be a problem in the wild card race with their own tiebreaker against Dallas. Texans d. Seahawks This is a win-win for both the draft and playoffs. Houston (2-3) is a potential issue for Dallas in draft order, while 4-2 Seattle could easily keep us out of a wild card spot if the 49ers do end up winning their division. AFC vs. AFC Browns d. Dolphins Titans d. Patriots Raiders d. Chiefs Chargers d. Colts Easy picks within the same conference: teams with worse records beating the better teams and helping Dallas’ potential draft pick. With both Cleveland and Miami at 1-5, it doesn’t matter much. But the Dolphins feel like less of an overall mess than the Browns, so we could see them winning a couple more down the road. See More: Dallas Cowboys General

Every week here at Blogging the Boys we’ll spotlight the biggest college matchups and the players who could soon wear the Star. If you want to get a jump on who might help America’s Team in the years to come, this is your weekly college football guide. (For teams previously covered in other weeks, we move down […] Every week here at Blogging the Boys we’ll spotlight the biggest college matchups and the players who could soon wear the Star. If you want to get a jump on who might help America’s Team in the years to come, this is your weekly college football guide. (For teams previously covered in other weeks, we move down the depth chart, giving you more insight on other draft candidates) GAME OF THE WEEK Ninth ranked Georgia and fifth ranked Ole Miss roll into Week 8 in a heavyweight clash. Kirby Smart will be dialing up for bully-ball efficiency and Lane Kiffin will be mashing the turbo button trying to out pace the Bulldogs. This is a pure tempo vs. torque game. The Rebels want pace, space, and chunk plays on the perimeter, Georgia answers with trench control, pressure-down poise, and a red-zone defensive vise that squeezes sevens into threes. The game will hinge on clean snaps in the noise, ball security, and who can limit the most missed tackles. Buckle up for a fourth-quarter nail-biter. Predictions here, Georgia 31, Ole Miss 28. Game Overview Matchup: Ole Miss (5) vs. Georgia (9) October 18th, at Sanford Stadium Kickoff time: 3:30 p.m (EST) Ole Miss favored by 7 points The team with the best turnover differential in this game will take the win Player Watch Ole Miss: Da’Shawn Womack, DE Womack plays like a can-opener with an initial pop that jars the tackle and suddenly the quarterbacks pocket shrinks quickly. If he snaps to a faster counter when plan A stalls and keeps the pads trimmed, he graduates from rotational spark to playing every down like a menace. Georgia: Daylen Everette, CB Everette plays with good energy and a surgeon’s touch. He stalls releases with good physicality then shadows routes without wasted motion. He’s more smother than fast, winning with patience, length, and clean transitions. If he keeps the grabs to a minimum and stacks a few more catch-point steals, you’re looking at a dependable CB2 in the NFL who lets teams lean into press and sleep easy over the top. Zachariah Branch, WR Branch is Georgia’s sudden-change of pace player. One touch and the field slides like a pinball table. Motion him, flip the quick, or uncork a slot post and you can see safeties hit the panic button. Add a dash more stubbornness at the catch point, and he’s a weekly explosives bundle who also dares special-teams coaches to punt or kick anywhere near him. Texas Tech (7) Arizona State Texas Tech hits Tempe for Week 8. It’s pass rush vs. protection and explosives vs. consistency. Watch third downs and which team is winning the battle, and the sneaky special-teams yards that can flip this game quickly. For a score prediction, this is an oddly high scoring game that’s see Texas Tech put 38 on the board, and Arizona State loses after scoring 31 points. Game Overview Matchup: Texas Texh (7) vs. Arizona State October 18th, at Mountain America Stadium Kickoff time: 4:00 p.m (EST) Texas Tech favored by 7 points Edge speed versus YAC yards. This is a game of tackle or chase. Player Watch Texas Tech: David Bailey, OLB Bailey is Texas Tech’s hot motor defender and one tick after the snap everybody’s awake. He shoves pockets backward with that long-arm and chases like a greyhound, turning clean launch pockets into scramble drills. Add a quicker second plan when his first move stalls and keep the pads a notch lower, and he’s a weekly starter. Arizona State: Jordyn Tyson, WR Tyson plays like a small-forward in football pads, he boxes out, shields the ball, and walks off with the down marker. At 6’2”, 200, he paces routes like a vet and keeps drives humming on crossers, glances, and back-shoulders, then shows up again when the paint gets crowded near the goal line. He’s not a speedster, he wins with angles and body control. Drop him into a timing offense and he’ll quietly stack catches until the scoreboard notices. Sam Leavitt, QB Leavitt plays quarterback very well on cue. He’ll drop the quick game and sample a keeper when the edge cheats. He’s not exactly playing with a bazooka arm, which will be something a lot of scouts will pick up on when he transitions to the NFL, but when his feet stay synced the slants turn into sprints and RPOs pop for chunks. Keep the footwork calm when the pocket wobbles, and he’s a drive-starter and drive-finisher all in one. USC (20) vs. Notre Dame (13) Game Overview Matchup: USC (20) vs. Notre Dame (13) October 18th, at Notre Dame Stadium Kickoff Time: 7:30 p.m. (EST) Notre Dame favored by 9 points Player Watch USC: Makai Lemon, WR Lemon is a sneaky receiver, he can tap start-stops at an elite level, and when he times it all with the ball in his hands he’s striding for extra yards. He wins with tempo and craft more than raw horsepower, then adds hidden field position on returns. Feed him a steady playcall of slants, crossers, and the sneaky double-move, and you’ll see for yourself that he plays like a high-floor WR2 in the NFL who keeps the offense on beat and the chains moving. Jayden Maiava, QB Maiava is best when he pushes tempo. Playing more upbeat and you’ll watch as he hits receivers in stride, and calls his own number in the red zone when defenses overplay. Keep the platform clean and he carves defenses with anticipation throws, forces constant resets and gets the offense into rhythm. Right now, he’s the engine of the Trojans’ offense and one of the most efficient quarterbacks

KaVontae Turpin feels ‘back to 100%’ ahead of return for Cowboys – Tommy Yarrish, DallasCowboys.com The Cowboys get one of their most explosive weapons back in Week 7. FRISCO, Texas – As the Cowboys prepare to face the Commanders at AT&T Stadium on Sunday, they’ll be getting some of their key playmakers back in KaVontae Turpin. […] The Cowboys get one of their most explosive weapons back in Week 7. FRISCO, Texas – As the Cowboys prepare to face the Commanders at AT&T Stadium on Sunday, they’ll be getting some of their key playmakers back in KaVontae Turpin. Turpin has missed the last two games with a foot injury for Dallas. After being limited in practice on Wednesday and Thursday, Turpin was a full participant in Friday’s practice and carries no injury designation, meaning he’s good to go. “I feel like I’m back to 100%,” Turpin said. “No hurting in my toes, I feel good now that I can be out there competing with my guys on Sunday…” “Wednesday, I took it one day at a time, every play at a time. Thursday I went out there ready to go, then today I went out there not even worrying about it, just knowing that I’m going to be out there Sunday.” He’ll be joining fellow WR CeeDee Lamb back out on the field as well, who has missed the last three full games for Dallas with a high ankle sprain. In the absence of Lamb and Turpin, George Pickens has stepped up big for the Cowboys offense. With the additions of Lamb and Turpin back into the lineup, the hope is that the NFL’s number one offense can only continue to improve under first-year head coach Brian Schottenheimer. “I would just say just keep the trust in Schotty,” Turpin said. “Hopefully he can get everybody the ball, everybody’s out there trying to make a play. My boy [George Pickens] man, I just hope they keep finding ways to move him, put him in the slot, and find ways to get him the ball.” Cowboys CB Trevon Diggs out vs. Commanders after ‘accident’ at his home Thursday night – Calvin Watkins, Dallas Morning News In a weird turn of events, Trevon Diggs will not play this Sunday. FRISCO — Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer announced Friday that starting cornerback Trevon Diggs will miss Sunday’s game against Washington with a concussion. Schottenheimer said Diggs suffered the concussion as a result of an accident at his home on Thursday night. Schottenheimer was informed of the health issue Friday morning before speaking with reporters. “Trevon Diggs came in this morning with some concussion symptoms after having an accident in his home,” Schottenheimer said. “He’s been checked out by our doctors and he is in the protocol and he’ll miss the game.” Schottenheimer said he didn’t have details on how the accident occurred. He didn’t know if Diggs went to the hospital because he needed more information. Cowboys’ defensive progress, CeeDee Lamb’s impact and … the sun: 3 things I’m watching – Jon Machota, The Athletic Several things will be under a microscope for the Cowboys versus the Commanders. Over six weeks into the season and Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus says his group is still working on finding its identity. That’s not a great sign for a unit that ranks among the league’s worst in several categories, including yards allowed (412 per game) and passer rating against (117.0). Will it be any better this Sunday against Washington? Many would say that it couldn’t be any worse than it was last weekend in Charlotte. But don’t expect significant changes. Eberflus, talking with reporters Thursday for the first time since the Cowboys’ disastrous defensive performance at Carolina, said the adjustments they are making are “subtle.” “We had some good meetings this week, some good conversations,” Eberflus said. “When your performance has been inconsistent or not to the standard, you certainly look at everything. You try to find solutions, that’s the coach’s job to get that done. Nothing is off the table.” All areas have struggled, which makes it difficult to expect a small change to lead to dramatic improvement. The current personnel doesn’t appear to be fully bought into the scheme. The roster could also use an upgrade in talent at all three levels. But Eberflus said he believes, “the solutions are in the room.” “There’s no magic call,” he said. “You gotta do those three things, you gotta make sure that you’re fundamentally sound, make sure you do a great job playing with violence and then execute.” Eberflus has coached in the NFL since 2009. He has been in charge of defenses for the better part of the past decade. Has he ever been in a situation like this one six weeks into a season? “The numbers would not say that,” he responded. “But, hey, we are what we are. So we got to be where our feet are. It’s important that we do that. You can’t look at the past. This is where we are right now. We’re working to take a step this week.” Rinse, Repeat: Cowboys made questionable hire at DC, then made his job impossible – K.D. Drummond, Cowboys Wire Matt Eberflus was doomed from the start when the Cowboys hired him. When Jerry Jones hired Brian Schottenheimer as the newest head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, it shocked most observers in the media and the fanbase. Over the last nine months though, Jones has been proven correct in his assessment of what the first-time head honcho was bringing to the table. His offense is creative, and possibly far more importantly, his presence demands a ton of respect from his troops. His energy, knowledge and confidence have inspired a team of players who are used to being in the center of attention. At least, on the offense. The defense is a different story entirely, and while the club has operated under a separation of church and state for the last several

The Dallas Cowboys are hosting their NFC East rival, the Washington Commanders, on Sunday. We checked in with our sister site, Hogs Haven, for a little knowledge on the enemy. We asked five questions and got five answers. Blogging The Boys: How has Year 2 looked for Jayden Daniels? What has he improved on over […] The Dallas Cowboys are hosting their NFC East rival, the Washington Commanders, on Sunday. We checked in with our sister site, Hogs Haven, for a little knowledge on the enemy. We asked five questions and got five answers. Blogging The Boys: How has Year 2 looked for Jayden Daniels? What has he improved on over his rookie year, and what does he still need to work on? Hogs Haven: We have somewhat of a small sample size because he missed weeks 3 & 4 due to injury. However, I’d say he’s following a similar pattern to last year of starting the season looking a bit rusty. Last year, he started the season with a poor QBR of 31.3 and 37.8 (which was borne out by the eye test), before rebounding with a QBR of 94.8 and 92.4 in weeks 3 & 4. This year, he started out with a QBR of 51.6 and 20.3 in weeks 1 & 2, but bounced back with QBRs of 72.6 & 69.6 in weeks 5 & 6 and I think he’s back in his groove now. He honestly looks very similar to last year, not significantly better or worse. He reportedly worked a lot on his footwork during the offseason, which should result in more accuracy and consistency on his passes, though he looked pretty accurate last year and I can’t say I see too much difference. He also added some muscle and I do think I see a bit more zip on his throws. According to PFF, his biggest weakness is making plays when moving to the left or backward, as he’s more likely to take a sack in that situation. I suspect that means he needs to be better at having awareness of pressure (particularly up the middle) and throwing the ball away before taking a sack. He relies a lot on scrambling when under pressure, but it’s harder to scramble away from pressure up the gut. BTB: Let’s do the same question, but apply it to Dan Quinn. HH: Honestly, I think the coaching has looked very similar to last year, with a lot of the same buy-in and effort from players, but also a lot of the same mistakes. It wasn’t just Jayden Daniels, a lot of the team looked like they were shaking off rust in weeks 1 & 2, which is probably partly due to Dan Quinn’s preference for light practices over training camp and resting starters in preseason games to keep them healthy. It’s also probably partly due to having lots of roster turnover in the offseason the last 2 years, as this roster is still very much being rebuilt from a terrible state in the Ron Rivera years. It’s clear the defensive coaching staff (including Quinn) want to play primarily man coverage, but don’t have the personnel for it. Both last year and this year the secondary got torched in the first few games by trying to play man coverage with players (particularly older players) who are better suited to zone. Both last year and this year, they started to adjust to playing more zone in week 4, but there are still some busted coverages that may not have been there if they’d focused on installing a primarily zone scheme in training camp. Overall, I wish the coaching staff (particularly the defensive coaching staff) would do a better job of self-scouting and tailoring the scheme to the players in the offseason. On the plus side, the special teams coaching looks much improved, though it may just be due to better personnel and another year working together. Washington has the 3rd highest special teams DVOA according to FTN, which includes the 6th-most yards gained on punt returns, 4th-fewest punt return yards allowed, NFL-highest yards gained on kick returns, and 11th-fewest kick return yards allowed. BTB: What do you consider the biggest strengths on offense and defense for the Commanders? HH: The biggest strength of the offense is the overall run game, as Washington is tied with the Bills for the 2nd-most rushing yards per game in the NFL. Part of this is due to a good scheme and good coaching from OC Kliff Kingsbury, who also ran a prolific run game while HC of the Arizona Cardinals. Part of this is due to the efficiency of RB Jacory “Bill” Crosky-Merritt, who is rushing at 5.7 Y/A, 3rd highest among NFL RBs. And part of this is due to QB Jayden Daniels, who is a rushing threat himself and forces defenses to maintain eye discipline to see if the ball is kept for a QB run and forces them to spread out to keep contain on the edges to defend against QB runs. The biggest strength of the defense is the run defense against runs up the gut. Rebuilding the defensive line in the offseason was a priority for GM Adam Peters, and the additions of DT Javon Kinlaw, DT Eddie Goldman, and EDGE Deatrich Wise Jr (now on IR) were meant to do just that. In addition, LB Bobby Wagner is an excellent tackler and great at limiting runs between the hashes. BTB: Same question, but what are the weaknesses? HH: The biggest weakness on offense is probably the blocking from the two guard positions and the ability of the interior OL to handle stunts and blitzes. RG Sam Cosmi is still recovering from an ACL suffered in last year’s playoffs, so backup Nick Allegretti took his place to start the season. However, Allegretti struggled and Andrew Wylie was switched from backup RT to RG to fill his spot. Note, it’s possible Cosmi makes his debut this week. LG has

What a difference a week makes.  It feels like ages ago now, but last week the Cowboys were coming off a dominant win over the Jets that restored hope in the defense while offering continued optimism in the offense.  The latter part is still there, largely thanks to Dak Prescott playing at an MVP level, […] What a difference a week makes. It feels like ages ago now, but last week the Cowboys were coming off a dominant win over the Jets that restored hope in the defense while offering continued optimism in the offense. The latter part is still there, largely thanks to Dak Prescott playing at an MVP level, but the defense reverted back to its worst form and cost the team a win over the middling Panthers. Now, all that hope is gone, replaced by the soul crushing cynicism that has marked much of the past eight months for Cowboys fans. Is there anything good left in this world? Our own Tom Ryle and David Howman have some thoughts. Tom: I’ll give you something that could be good. Every team in the NFC East has at least two losses, so from a standings viewpoint, Dallas is right there in the thick of things. The next game is against the Washington Commanders, and a win against the team that just dropped a close one to the Chicago Bears would certainly make us all feel better. The Cowboys certainly have the offense as they lead the league in yards per game and are third in points scored. Now for the bad news: You don’t get to 2-3-1 with that kind of offensive output unless your defense is epically putrid. Each week, they seem to either make the opposing QB look like Tom Brady with a stronger arm, or the lead back is racking up yards like Adrian Peterson in his prime. Unless they can fix things, they are destined for another dismal finish. Doubts abound about coming up with any kind of solution. In his weekly hit on 92.1 the Team, the local sports station for East Texas, Mickey Spagnola laid out what may be the biggest concern. They simply don’t have the players they need to win at the line of scrimmage. They can’t really do much if anything about that now. Those draft picks they got for Micah Parsons may lead to some future solutions, but those are not going to help now, and we will likely see another year of Dak’s prime slip away. David: With all due respect to Mr. Spagnola, I don’t even think it’s that deep. They have the players in the trenches to win, but not in this scheme. Matt Eberflus wants his defensive tackles to get up the field and penetrate. Osa Odighizuwa and Solomon Thomas excel there, and Kenny Clark has been better than expected in that regard. But when it’s all you do, offenses know that. Week after week, we’re seeing oodles of trap and wham concepts in the run game that spring loose, at which point the running back is able to juke Kenneth Murray (it’s always Kenneth Murray, for some reason) out of his shoes for a huge gain. In fact, each of the last two weeks, Dallas has surrendered at least six runs of 10+ yards, leading the league for both weeks. The pass rush is slightly less concerning to me. They’re actually eighth in pressure rate, but the problem is they hardly get to the quarterback because there’s wide open guys to throw to. That’s another scheme issue: this secondary is built for press man and pattern matching Cover 3, but Eberflus has them running Cover 2 and Cover 4 while giving massive cushions pre-snap. The scheme doesn’t fit the players at any level, which begs the question of why Eberflus – who, it should be noted, is simply running the scheme he’s always run throughout his career – was hired in the first place. Tom: And that begs another question: Is Eberflus a Schottenheimer guy or a Jerry guy? If it’s the former, the head coach needs to admit he made a mistake and move on now, or just accept this as a tank year to maximize draft position. If this was a hire made by the GM/owner, then he needs to make the same decision. That is a more challenging situation, because Mr. Jones detests admitting he messed up. It seems all but impossible for the DC to change his approach, since as you noted this is just who he is. That is a bit of evidence that this was another hire of someone that is familiar to Jerry rather than trying to find someone whose scheme and philosophy fits the players available. Given past history, the most likely outcome will be that management stands pat until the end of the season and then replace Eberflus. That is a depressing thought. This looks to be a season fated for failure. And as with so much about the Cowboys, it all comes down to the dysfunction at the top. David: I’m in agreement on your hunch that Eberflus was picked by the owner, but Schottenheimer also bears some culpability in allowing it to happen. Jerry has always made his preferences known when it comes to staffing, but if Schottenheimer had put his foot down on hiring a different coordinator – for example, there’s no way Jerry knew who Klayton Adams was – then he could have had his way. It’s not even a terrible hire in a vacuum, either. Eberflus has a sterling track record on defense, and that’s no coincidence. He’s just a bad fit for this personnel. Sooner or later, the players will either acclimate to his system or Eberflus will acclimate to his players. The question isn’t so much which happens first but rather how quickly either happens. The issue for me is that this offense is too good to waste on a miserable defense. They’re a top five unit

The Dallas Cowboys and Washington Commanders have turned in their final injury reports for Sunday’s game, and here’s what we know.  First, cornerback Trevon Diggs has been ruled out of this week’s game with a concussion. Diggs sustained an accident at home on Thursday night, and after he was evaluated by the team’s staff, the […] The Dallas Cowboys and Washington Commanders have turned in their final injury reports for Sunday’s game, and here’s what we know. First, cornerback Trevon Diggs has been ruled out of this week’s game with a concussion. Diggs sustained an accident at home on Thursday night, and after he was evaluated by the team’s staff, the Cowboys declared Diggs unable to suit up on Sunday. For positive news, CeeDee Lamb and Tyler Booker were full participants on Friday and are set to play Sunday after missing multiple weeks with their respective ankle injuries. KaVontae Turpin (foot) has targeted this week to come back, and he was right. He was a full participant Friday and will play against the Commanders. Tyler Smith (knee) was also upgraded to full participation and carries no injury designation heading into Sunday. As for the Commanders, Terry McLaurin has been ruled out as the team decided that he isn’t quite ready to return from his quad injury. Deebo Samuel (heel) was seen at practice, but the team is non-committal on his status and ruled him questionable for Sunday. Dorance Armstrong has not been ruled out with a hamstring injury after not practicing all week but Washington have marked him down as questionable. See More: Dallas Cowboys Injuries

The Dallas Cowboys have been ravaged with injuries in 2025. On Friday, it was announced they have yet another one in their secondary, and it’s certainly a head scratcher. According to Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, cornerback Trevon Diggs will miss Sunday’s game against the Washington Commanders due to suffering a concussion at […] The Dallas Cowboys have been ravaged with injuries in 2025. On Friday, it was announced they have yet another one in their secondary, and it’s certainly a head scratcher. According to Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, cornerback Trevon Diggs will miss Sunday’s game against the Washington Commanders due to suffering a concussion at home. Diggs has had his fair share of setbacks the last few years. He tore his ACL in 2023 after two games and missed the rest of the season. Last December, it was announced that Diggs would miss the remainder of the season and would need to have surgery on the same knee where his ACL injury occured. With this injury, 2025 will be the third consecutive season in which Diggs hasn’t played a full season after signing a five-year, $97 million extension. That isn’t ideal at all for a guy that’s looked at as the top player in the secondary in Dallas. This will mean more playing time for Kaiir Elam who has struggled mightily this season, or possibly second-year cornerback Caelen Carson who is back at practice after rehabbing a knee injury. See More: Dallas Cowboys Roster

The Dallas Cowboys are coming off of a frustrating loss against the Carolina Panthers, but in the NFL things like that can quickly be forgotten. It goes without saying that if you could have picked only one game beginning with the Carolina game for Dallas to win over their next two, you would have picked […] The Dallas Cowboys are coming off of a frustrating loss against the Carolina Panthers, but in the NFL things like that can quickly be forgotten. It goes without saying that if you could have picked only one game beginning with the Carolina game for Dallas to win over their next two, you would have picked this week’s game. The Washington Commanders are a division rival and a win against them means significantly more. How would you feel if the Cowboys pulled it off? Obviously it would depend how the win happened, but would you be a little bit bought back in on the season overall? Again, the NFL swings rapidly from one end of the spectrum to the other in a given week so it is very possible that some fans would be feeling optimistic once more. Let us know what you think in the comments down below and if you would be one of them. See More: Dallas Cowboys Roster

CeeDee Lamb happy with ankle, ready to return for Cowboys – Todd Archer, ESPN CeeDee Lamb sounds like he’ll be ready to play on Sunday. FRISCO, Texas — Dallas Cowboys Pro Bowl wide receiver CeeDee Lamb said he is ready to return to the lineup Sunday against the Washington Commanders after missing the past three games with a high left ankle […] CeeDee Lamb happy with ankle, ready to return for Cowboys – Todd Archer, ESPN CeeDee Lamb sounds like he’ll be ready to play on Sunday. FRISCO, Texas — Dallas Cowboys Pro Bowl wide receiver CeeDee Lamb said he is ready to return to the lineup Sunday against the Washington Commanders after missing the past three games with a high left ankle sprain. Lamb went through a limited practice for the second straight day Thursday, but he said it won’t take him long to get back up to speed. “I feel like I’m moving around, running around being me,” Lamb said. “Happy as can be obviously just believing in my ankle. Obviously, I feel like it’s back to where I needed it to be.” Lamb said that he could have returned last weekend against the Carolina Panthers but that the extra week gave him more confidence. CeeDee Lamb ready to return for Cowboys after missing three games – Tommy Yarish, DallasCowboys.com Lamb talks about missing the past few games. FRISCO, Texas – Barring something unforeseen, the Cowboys offense will add All-Pro wide receiver CeeDee Lamb back to their starting lineup on Sunday against the Washington Commanders. Lamb, who has missed the last three full games with a high ankle sprain, has not enjoyed his time watching Dallas’ league-best offense from the sidelines and is itching to get back out onto the field. “It’s been tough mentally and physically, obviously, with my ankle and rehab and everything, but then mentally obviously because of the player I am and how anxious I am to get out there,” Lamb said.” “But trusting in my process and trusting in my team, my rehab team, and the training staff here, it’s just getting back right and making sure that it’s right for me to go out there and be myself again.” Updates: Sanborn full participant Thurs. – DallasCowboys.com Linebacker Jack Sanborn should also be making a return to the lineup. 3:45 p.m. — Cowboys linebacker Jack Sanborn (concussion) was upgraded from limited participation Wednesday to being a full participant on Thursday’s injury report. That puts him in line to return Sunday against the Washington Commanders, rejoining a linebacker group that has struggled in recent weeks. The only changes to the injury report Thursday were OL Trevon Keegan (neck) not participating after being limited Wednesday, and Juanyeh Thomas (migraine) being limited. For Washington, Pro Bowl WR Terry McLaurin (quad) did not participate Thursday after being limited Wednesday. McLaurin has missed the last three games for the Commanders, and his status for Sunday against Dallas is in question. 3 areas where Cowboys must show improvement in to win in Week 7 include early run downs – Mike Crum, CowboysWire Where can the Cowboys improve against the Commanders? Dallas was awful on first down, defensively, against Carolina in Week 6. The Panthers ran 26 times and averaged over six yards per attempt. They only threw the ball five times, but two of those receptions went for over 30 yards. Dallas generated only two negative plays on first down. The first was a sack, the other was a run for -2 yards. Leaving the opponent only four yards to go on second down is crippling for a defense, as it truly opens up the offense’ can attack’s playbook in a multitude of ways. The Cowboys’ offense has been extremely balanced all season. They ran for at least 117 yards every game and an average of 134 per contest going into their matchup with Carolina. However they ran the ball a paltry 19 times for a total of 31 yards, allowing the Panthers to get eight run stops. The team works best when both the rushing and passing games are effective, helping the offense keep the defense off the field. Dallas Cowboys: Reading between the lines (offense) – Mike Poland, Blogging the Boys Taking a deeper look into the Cowboys offensive line heading into Week 7. Right Tackle Terence Steele (2025 Stats: 404 Total snaps, 263 Pass Blocks, 17 Pressures, 1 QB Hits, 2 Sacks, 3 Penalties) Steele’s job this week is part bodyguard, part decoy. With the right guard spot needing help if Bass starts over the rehabbing Tyler Booker, Dallas will tilt a lot of its pass protection toward Bass. That means Steele will often protect the B-gap first and hinge late, stepping down to clamp interior movement, then trying to catch the edge rusher on the rebound. On TV, that can look like he’s losing the corner, but in reality, he’s executing the assignment by sealing the inside for Bass and trusting the help on the outside. Because of that, expect the Cowboys to build in help to Steele’s edge with either a back scanning out to erase the wide rush, or a tight end giving a shoulder before releasing. When you see an end get depth on Steele, don’t panic, it’s by design for the chip on his outside shoulder. The key for Steele is clean communication and crisp footwork. 5 COWBOYS TRADE TARGETS IF THE TEAM IS “ALL-IN” – Mark Heaney, Inside the Star Should the Cowboys made a trade ahead of the deadline? 5. Miami Dolphins Linebacker, Jordyn Brooks It only makes sense to bookend this list with another linebacker, given how crucial improving the position is for the 2025 season. Aside from Bush, former Texas Tech Red Raider Jordyn Brooks could attract interest from Dallas. The 2020 first-round pick of the Seahawks is in Miami now, and with their aforementioned sale on the brink, he may be available, too. Brooks would be a familiar face to Brian Schottenheimer, having spent the 2020 campaign in Seattle together, and

The Dallas Cowboys and Washington Commanders enter this Week 7 matchup in a similar state. Both teams have been dealing with injuries and are coming off a loss in which they lost by a last-second field goal. It’s always a physical game when these two teams play and there’s no reason to expect any different […] The Dallas Cowboys and Washington Commanders enter this Week 7 matchup in a similar state. Both teams have been dealing with injuries and are coming off a loss in which they lost by a last-second field goal. It’s always a physical game when these two teams play and there’s no reason to expect any different this week. There are certain matchups this week that could help sway the game one way or the another for both the Cowboys and the Commanders. Both organizations will try to exploit any and every matchup to help lead them to victory. These are matchup’s we believe could play a big factor in the outcome of the game. QB Dak Prescott vs. QB Jayden Daniels This Week 7 matchup between bitter division rivals likely will involve a QB shootout. Dak Prescott has been playing at an MVP-level all season, and will finally have his entire receiving core at his disposal with CeeDee Lamb and KaVontae Turpin set to return to the starting lineup. On the flipside, Jayden Daniels could be the next QB to have a field day against Dallas’ atrocious defense. His dual-threat ability could be a huge problem. Expect a big day for both of these QBs, one that will help sway the game one way or another. Trench warfare Last week against the Carolina Panthers the Dallas Cowboys clearly lost the battle in the trenches on both sides of the ball. The Panthers defensive front continuously stonewalled Dallas’ OL throughout the game and the Cowboys DL was completely dominated by Rico Dowdle. Tyler Booker is hopefully set to return to the starting lineup which should help improve things up front. Dallas’ entire defensive line though needs to step up their game in a big way. Holding up at the point of attack and applying a little more pressure could go a long ways in this matchup. RB Javonte Williams vs. Commanders’ run defense The Cowboys could never really get anything going on the ground last week due to Carolina’s dominant performance up front clogging the running lanes and making plays in the backfield. This week things could go a little more smoothly for Javonte Williams. Washington is currently ranked 20th in the league allowing 121.7 yards per game and with the return of CeeDee Lamb, KaVontae Turpin, and Tyler Booker, Dallas’ offense will be as close to full strength as they’ve been in quite some time. A big game for Williams could be coming. See More: Dallas Cowboys Roster