Tyrone Crawford Released From Hospital
Cowboys defensive lineman Tyrone Crawford was carted off the field today following a scary collision with Buccaneers offensive lineman Ryan Jensen. Fortunately, it sounds like the veteran will be alright. Charean Williams of ProFootballTalk.com writes that a scan and MRI of Crawford’s neck came back as negative, and the lineman has been released from the hospital.
“Everything checks out very good,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said. “I’m really pleased with the initial MRIs, all the examinations. He went on to the hospital and had those examinations. . . .He doesn’t seem to have structural issues at all.”
Crawford is having another productive season in 2018, compiling 34 tackles and a career-high 5.5 sacks. Pro Football Focus currently ranks Crawford 36th among 116 eligible interior defenders. If the lineman is forced to miss any time, the Cowboys could turn to former first-rounder Taco Charlton to fill in.
- DeSean Jackson played today despite being list as questionable with a thumb injury, but the Buccaneers wideout was knocked out of the second half of his team’s game against the Cowboys with a foot injury. As Williams points out, the veteran lost his shoe on his only reception of the game, and he subsequently limped to the sideline before “collapsing in pain.” It sounds like Jackson doesn’t have much of a future in Tampa Bay, and today may have marked his final game with the organization. If the receiver doesn’t play next week, he’ll have finished the season with 41 receptions for 774 yards and four touchdowns.
Cowboys DL Tyrone Crawford Carted Off Field
Cowboys defensive lineman Tyrone Crawford was carted off the field during today’s game against the Buccaneers (via ESPN’s Todd Archer). The veteran suffered an apparent neck injury during the second play of the game, and he was subsequently transported to the hospital.
Replays showed Crawford’s head and neck collide into the shoulder of Buccaneers offensive lineman Ryan Jensen. The 29-year-old was moving his arms and legs following the injury, and he lifted both arms as he was carted off. The Cowboys’ defensive captain also had his head stabilized to a board before exiting the field.
With the Cowboys pushing for a playoff spot, the team will now be struggling to replace one of their defensive leaders. The 2012 third-rounder was having another productive season in 2018, compiling 34 tackles and a career-high 5.5 sacks. Pro Football Focus ranked Crawford 36th among 116 eligible interior defenders, the second-straight season where he’s rated as above-average.
While it will be tough for the Cowboys to replace Crawford’s leadership and production, the team does have some depth at defensive tackle. Randy Gregory replaced Crawford following the injury, and the team could also turn to 2017 first-rounder Taco Charlton. The sophomore was active today after having been a healthy scratch for the Cowboys’ previous three games.
Cowboys Won't Sign Coates
- We heard earlier today that the Cowboys were working out receiver Sammie Coates, but don’t expect Dallas to sign him. The team isn’t going to sign the former Steeler and Brown, and were just “taking a look” at the wideout, according to Clarence Hill Jr. of the Forth-Worth Star Telegram (Twitter link). Coates was once a pretty productive and highly thought of receiver for Pittsburgh, but has had trouble staying in the league the past couple of seasons. Still only 25, the Auburn product will likely resurface somewhere soon.
Cowboys To Place TE Geoff Swaim On IR
The Cowboys are still in pole position to win the NFC East, but their offense was dealt a blow today as the team will place tight end Geoff Swaim on injured reserve, according to veteran Cowboys reporter Clarence Hill Jr. (Twitter link).
Hill adds that the team will promote running back Darius Jackson from the practice squad to take his spot on the roster. Swaim underwent wrist surgery last month, but the team hoped at the time he’d be able to return for a playoff push. Although they’ve kept him on the roster all this time, they finally decided they couldn’t wait any longer.
After Jason Witten retired, Swaim was expected to step up and become the lead tight end in the offense. A fourth-year player out of Texas, Swaim was having by far the best year of his career before going down. Through nine games, he reeled in 26 receptions for 242 yards and one touchdown.
Jackson was drafted by the Cowboys in the sixth round back in 2016, and is already in his third stint with the team. He’s been waived multiple times, and spent time with the Browns and Packers. He’ll provide immediate depth behind Ezekiel Elliot, but likely won’t be too much of a factor.
Cowboys Work Out WR Sammie Coates
The Cowboys are kicking the tires on wide receiver Sammie Coates, according to Todd Archer of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Coates was cut loose by the Texans earlier this week and was not claimed on waivers, making him a free agent. 
Coates had one catch for 12 yards this year and mostly played on special teams for Houston. That’s likely to be his role in Dallas, if signed, though he could have an opportunity to do more since Tavon Austin is still working his way back from a groin strain.
Coates’ best season to date came in 2016 with the Steelers when he had 21 catches for 435 yards and two scores. In 2017, however, he had just six catches for 70 yards and zero touchdowns for Cleveland and his production dipped even further this year. Coates’ 37 snaps this year marked a career low.
The 8-6 Cowboys have a 94% chance of winning the NFC East, according to FiveThirtyEight. If they win at least one of their final two games, they’ll clinch the division and a playoff berth.
IR/Return Decisions: Panthers, Searcy, Cowboys, Jaguars
With the 2018 campaign nearly in the books, NFL clubs are making their final decisions on players to return (or not return) from injured reserve. Each team is allowed to bring two players back from IR, but said players must have been retained on their respective club’s initial 53-man roster. Once an IR player returns to practice, his club will have three weeks to decide whether to activate him to their 53-man roster; if he’s not activated, the player will remain on injured reserve for the remainder of the season.
Here’s the latest on IR/return players:
- The Panthers have opted not to activate safety Da’Norris Searcy from injured reserve, tweets veteran reporter Howard Balzer. Searcy was designated to return three weeks ago, but once that 21-day window expired without him having been placed on Carolina’s 53-man roster, Searcy was done for the year. It’s entirely possible the Panthers would have activated Searcy if they were anywhere near playoff contention, but most postseason models give Carolina less than a one percent chance of securing a playoff berth, so the club probably didn’t feel the need to risk Searcy’s health. It’s doing the same thing with quarterback Cam Newton, shutting down the veteran signal-caller with two games to go. Searcy inked a two-year deal with the Panthers this offseason, but Carolina would incur just $650K in dead cap by cutting him.
- The Cowboys have designated cornerback C.J. Goodwin to return from injured reserve, according to Brandon George of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link). If he is activated, Goodwin isn’t likely to play a major role on a Dallas defense that ranks as a top-10 unit in DVOA. The Cowboys already have three locked-in nickel package starters in Byron Jones, Chidobe Awuzie, and Anthony Brown, but Goodwin could offer depth and play on special teams, joining fellow reserve defensive back Jourdan Lewis in that regard. Goodwin has only played 188 total defensive snaps over his four-year pro career, but he’s never posted a season in which he played fewer than 45% of his club’s special teams snaps.
- The Jaguars have designated linebacker Donald Payne to return from injured reserve, per Balzer (Twitter link). Payne is a pure special-teamer (he’s played just three defensive snaps since joining Jacksonville in 2017), as the Jaguars deploy Telvin Smith and Myles Jack as their starting linebackers. On the year, the Jaguars rank third in special teams DVOA, per Football Outsiders.
Cowboys Pass On Signing Barry Church
While the Cowboys are not ruling out a potential future Barry Church re-signing, the NFC East leaders are not planning to bring him back at this point, David Moore of the Dallas Morning News reports.
The longtime Dallas safety, waived by Jacksonville last week, surfaced as a possible option for a return to Texas. However, the Cowboys will stick with their current back-line defenders for the time being.
Cowboys officials discussed re-signing Church because of his knowledge of Rod Marinelli’s system, Moore notes, but the team plans to hold off on a reunion. Rookie Ronnie Harrison supplanted Church in the Jaguars’ starting lineup, and the 30-year-old defender cleared waivers.
Safety resided as a rumored priority for months in Dallas, with the team eventually upping its Earl Thomas offer to a second-round pick. The Seahawks didn’t budge, and the Cowboys stuck with their incumbents. Xavier Woods and Jeff Heath remain the first-stringers in Dallas.
Sean Lee Activated, Will Back Up Leighton Vander Esch
- Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee is active today for the first time since November 5 and will play a reserve role behind rookie phenomenon Leighton Vander Esch, per Todd Archer of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Lee still provides value when healthy, but Jane Slater of the NFL Network tweets that Lee told the team he did not want to start and interfere with Vander Esch’s progress. It remains to be seen how Lee will be deployed moving forward.
Cowboys Eyeing Barry Church?
The Jaguars waived safety Barry Church yesterday, and it sounds like his former team could have some interest. Veteran NFL reporter Ed Werder tweets that the Cowboys “will evaluate their interest” in Church if he ultimately clears waivers.
As our own Zach Links pointed out yesterday, a team could theoretically claim Church, pay him his $368K game checks for the rest of the year, and then release him from his deal in the offseason. However, the more likely scenario is that Church will end up going unclaimed, at which time any team could sign the 30-year-old.
Church joined the Jaguars during the 2017 offseason on a four-year, $21.6MM deal. In eleven games this season, Church has compiled 38 tackles, one sack, and one interception. However, he’s been generally poor in coverage, and ranked as Pro Football Focus’ No. 79 safety out of 83 qualified players.
The veteran was much sharper in 2017, and he had a standout 2016 campaign during his final season in Dallas. Church might not necessarily knock Xavier Woods or Jeff Heath out of the starting lineup, but he’d at least provide some veteran know-how as a backup. Throughout the early parts of the season, the Cowboys were connected to Seahawks safety Earl Thomas, so they’re definitely receptive to adding some reinforcement at the position.
Fritz Pollard Alliance Recommends GM Candidates
The Fritz Pollard Alliance has released its annual list of minority candidates for general manager vacancies. Much like the latest batch of recommended coaching hires, the suggested GM list is more than twice as long as last year’s. 
[RELATED: Fritz Pollard Alliance Recommends Head Coaching Candidates]
Here’s the full rundown, via Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (Twitter link):
- Ray Agnew (Rams)
- Joey Clinkscales (Raiders)
- Quentin Harris (Cardinals)
- Alonzo Highsmith (Browns)
- Brad Holmes (Rams)
- Champ Kelly (Bears)
- Martin Mayhew (49ers, ex-Lions GM)
- Will McClay (Cowboys)
- Jimmy Raye III (Lions)
- Jerry Reese (ex-Giants GM)
- Doug Whaley (ex-Bills GM)
- Doug Williams (Redskins)
Clinkscales, Highsmith, McClay, and Williams were all featured on last year’s list, but none of those executives landed GM jobs. The only executive from the last round of recommendations who did not carry over to this year was Ray Farmer, the former Browns GM who is currently serving as a senior consultant with the Rams.
Of the dozen suggested executives on this list, only three sat for GM interviews in the last cycle: Mayhew (Panthers), Raye (Texans), and Whaley (Packers). McClay was asked to interview for the Texans opening, but declined the opportunity and instead signed a two-year extension to stay with the Cowboys. McClay may garner consideration again this time around, but he might not be interested in leaving Dallas.