FRISCO, Texas – Cowboys’ wide receiver Amari Cooper is dealing with bruised ribs, head coach Mike McCarthy confirmed on Monday.
“Amari had the ribs,” McCarthy said. “I think we’ll see Wednesday how he feels…I would put it in the classification of bruised…something, you know, he was dealing with from last week.”
The Cowboys are scheduled to have a mock game on Wednesday and will begin their normal practice week on Thursday in preparation for the Eagles. Dallas will have an extra day this week prior to next Monday night’s meeting with Philadelphia at AT&T Stadium.
Against the Chargers, Cooper finished with three catches for 24 yards. He exited the game on the final drive. From second-and-five with under a minute to play, Cooper made a 12-yard catch between two defenders. Following the first down catch, Cooper was slow to get up and did not return. The rib injury started bothering Cooper in the game against Tampa Bay and he aggravated the injury against the Chargers.
During the preparation week of practice for the Chargers in positional drills, there were several plays that ended with a similar result – Cooper hunkered over, appearing uncomfortable in the rib area.
His status for Monday’s game remains unknown.
“I don’t know today,” owner and general manager Jerry Jones stated on his availability via 105.3 The Fan. “I’m hoping those ribs can get comfortable enough for him to play by the weekend, but I don’t know.”
In addition, McCarthy stated both defensive tackle Carlos Watkins (knee) and defensive end Dorance Armstrong (ankle) are dealing with injuries sustained during Sunday’s matchup. Meanwhile, defensive end Randy Gregory is expected to be cleared off the Reserve/COVID-19 list and will return to the Star on Wednesday.
