Dak Prescott cannot grip a football, according to Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, but as soon as he is healthy enough to play, Cooper Rush will be headed back to the bench – regardless of how many wins he has racked up.
Rush will reportedly make his fourth straight start since Prescott suffered a fracture near his right thumb in the fourth quarter of the Cowboys’ 19-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the season opener.
Jones said during an interview with 105.3 The Fan on Tuesday that Prescott’s surgically repaired thumb is improving but he cannot grip a football “well enough to play.”
So that means Rush will get the call against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday.
The Cowboys have won all three games with Rush under center, and although just less than two weeks ago Jones said he would welcome a quarterback controversy between the two because that meant the team was winning, he walked back on that idea Tuesday.
Jones was asked when Prescott is deemed healthy, would the Cowboys stick with Rush if he continues to pile up victories.
"No. No. As I see it right today," Jones said.
The undrafted Rush has completed 55 of 89 passes (61.8 percent) for 673 yards while throwing four touchdowns and no interceptions in those three consecutive victories.
With Sunday’s 25-10 win over the Washington Commanders, Rush became the first quarterback in franchise history to win his first four career starts.
Jones admitted that he never thought the Cowboys would have beaten the Cincinnati Bengals, New York Giants and Commanders in the last three weeks.
“No. No, I did not,” he said.
Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy said on Monday that Prescott would need to put in an entire week of practice before he could play, and Jones remains hopeful he will be back practicing before long.
"I don't know that you could ask for better news technically, physically in how it's responding, how it's healing so to speak," Jones said.
"So all of those things are on go and I don't know that as we bid bye to each day if considering the injury, considering the location of the injury, I don't know that you could make any more progress.
"There's some things here about healing that again I often say only the man upstairs knows how that works, but he'll have a big week and he'll be hard on himself getting it ready to go."
Panthers quarterback Young unlikely to play against Seahawks due to injured ankle
Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young is dealing with an ankle injury and is unlikely to play in Sunday's game against the Seattle Seahawks.
Young missed his second straight day of practice Thursday, and the winless Panthers released a statement on social media saying he isn't expected to play.
The top pick of this year's draft evidently injured his ankle during Carolina's 20-17 loss to the New Orleans Saints on Monday night, but coach Frank Reich wasn't sure when. Offensive coordinator Thomas Brown said the injury occurred in the first half, but Young never came out and didn't tell anyone until after the game.
With Young expected to sit, Andy Dalton will make his first start with the Panthers after starting 14 games for the Saints last season.
Young has started each of Carolina's first two losses and is experiencing the growing pains that come with being a rookie quarterback.
He ranks 31st in QB rating (66.6) while throwing for 299 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. He's completing 59.2 per cent of his passes and his average of 4.21 yards per attempt is the worst in the NFL among starting quarterbacks.
Without a viable passing game, the Panthers are 28th in total offence and are tied for last in scoring.
Dalton, a 13-year-veteran, is 83-77-2 as a starter with 244 TD passes and 144 interceptions. Carolina will be the fifth franchise he starts a game for following one-year stints with Dallas, Chicago and New Orleans from 2020-22 after spending his first nine pro seasons with Cincinnati.
Dallas Cowboys CB Diggs reportedly tears ACL
Dallas Cowboys Pro Bowl cornerback Trevon Diggs will reportedly miss the rest of the 2023 season after tearing the ACL in his left knee during Thursday's practice.
NFL.com reports that an MRI confirmed the extent of the injury, which Diggs sustained during a one-on-one drill. The fourth-year standout was later spotted on crutches at the Cowboys' training facility, according to the Dallas Morning News.
Diggs' absence is a major blow to a Dallas team that's outscored the opposition by a 70-10 margin in winning its first two games. The 25-year-old's 18 interceptions since entering the NFL in 2020 are tied for the most by any player over that span.
A second-round pick by Dallas in 2020, Diggs earned first team All-Pro honours in 2021 by recording a league-leading 11 interceptions, the most by any player in a single season since the Cowboys' Everson Walls also had 11 in 1981.
Diggs was off to another strong start in 2023, as he allowed just two completions on nine pass attempts thrown his way for a total of 26 yards to go along with one interception.
"Saw that I guess a couple of you saw (Diggs injured) out there on the field," Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott told reporters following Thursday's practice. "Prayers, hoping for the best, simple as that.”
Diggs had just signed a five-year, $97 million extension in training camp that will keep him under contract through the 2028 season.
The Cowboys do have depth at cornerback after acquiring 2019 NFL Defensive Player of the Year Stephon Gilmore from the Indianapolis Colts in March to form a trio with Diggs and DaRon Bland, the team's leader with five interceptions in 2022.
Dallas could move Bland from the slot into Diggs' outside position with Jourdan Lewis taking over the nickel role. Lewis started 30 games over the previous three seasons, but has been eased into action in 2023 due to a foot injury that limited him to just six games last season.
Vikings acquire running back Akers from Rams
The Los Angeles Rams have found a taker for Cam Akers, trading the running back to the Minnesota Vikings.
The deal was completed on Wednesday, with the teams swapping draft picks in 2026.
Akers was a healthy scratch in last Sunday's 30-23 loss to the San Francisco 49ers, and the Rams confirmed this week they were looking for a trade partner.
A trade to Minnesota reunites Akers with Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell, who served as offensive coordinator for the Rams in Akers' first two NFL seasons.
The Vikings' ground game needs some help, averaging a league-low 34.5 rushing yards per game and 2.65 yards per attempt.
Alexander Mattison was given the No. 1 running back job as Minnesota opted to trade Dalvin Cook this offseason, but he's managed just 62 rushing yards on 19 carries.
Akers hasn't been any better this year, finishing with 29 rushing yards on 22 attempts in the Rams' 30-13 season-opening win over the Seattle Seahawks.
He is, however, coming off a career-high 786 rushing yards last season.
Drafted in the second round in 2020, the 24-year-old Akers, who is in the final year of his rookie deal, rushed for 625 yards and two touchdowns as a rookie.
A preseason Achilles tendon tear wiped out nearly all of his second season, but he was able to return for the regular-season finale and rush for 172 yards in four playoff games to help the Rams capture the Super Bowl.
Los Angeles is now moving forward at running back with Kyren Williams.
The second-year back made his first career start last week and ran for 52 yards with a touchdown on 14 carries after rushing for 52 yards with two TDs in Week 1.
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