Sure, the Chicago Bears have injury issues of their own to deal with ahead of their Week 8 matchup.
But have you see what is going on with the Dallas Cowboys?
The Bears aren’t to be taken lightly after beating the Patriots on the road. And in order to secure back-to-back wins (or, at minimum, consecutive games with visual growth by its most important players), Chicago will need to take down a loaded Dallas roster. But the thing is that the Cowboys aren’t at full strength. At least, that’s what their injury report suggests:
Holy cow! The Cowboys’ injury report is a star-studded affair:
Stud linebacker Micah Parsons was added to the injury report with a shoulder injury that kept him limited. Parsons, who has 21 sacks and 29 quarterback hits in 23 games over his first two seasons in the NFL, wasn’t on Wednesday’s injury report. And that makes this situation worth monitoring over the next few days. Parsons is an absolute menace, but Chicago could take advantage of playing against a star when they aren’t at full strength.
Joining Parsons in practicing with limitations were tight end Dalton Schultz (knee), offensive lineman Terence Steele (neck), and linebacker Devin Harper (Achilles). Schultz is the big, splashy name here because he is playing on the Franchise tag. Had he made it to free agency last year, I’d have hoped the Bears kicked the tires on someone with his skill set to diversify the portfolio of Bears pass-catchers. But that didn’t happen. Maybe this offseason will be different.
Rookie defensive end Sam Williams was another addition to the injury report. Williams’ knee injury kept him out of practice altogether. He, too, was not listed on Wednesday’s injury report. Williams just picked up his first two career sacks in Week 7 against the Lions. He also chipped in with 2 tackles-for-loss, 2 QB Hits, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery. If he is healthy enough to play on Sunday, the Bears better know where he is at all times.
Also not practicing on Thursday: running back Ezekiel Elliott (knee), safety Malik Hooker (hamstring), and receiver Noah Brown (foot). There seems to be an expectation that Elliott won’t play at all on Sunday, which would bode well for the Bears if not for Tony Pollard’s presence looming in the shadows. Pollard has been running better than Zeke for the last couple of years. So not having Elliott to split a workload with could actually be good news for the Cowboys.
There is just one more injury report to fill out this week. And for the Cowboys, it’ll be a big one — with all eyes on Parsons’ status.
NEWSLETTER
