While we’re two games away from worrying about the Dallas Cowboys on the Kansas City Chiefs schedule, the team learned of some frustrating injury news for pass rusher Randy Gregory that will certainly affect things for Dallas for the next few weeks. That’s because Gregory is expected to sit out the next couple of weeks, at least, with a calf injury suffered in practice earlier this week.
Per Jesse Palmer, the Cowboys are considering placing Gregory on injured reserve.
Gregory is having a very strong season up front for the Cowboys, which means Dallas must now endure the next few games without one of its best disruptors working in the trenches. Consider it akin to the Chiefs losing Chris Jones for a month or so.
The Cowboys have lost pass rusher Randy Gregory for the next few weeks.
Gregory has dealt with a number of off-the-field issues in his NFL career as well as injury concerns, but he’s finally put it all together this season for his most dominant stretch of games to date. In 7 games, Gregory has 22 pressures, 12 quarterback hits, 5 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles—a one-man wrecking crew that also eats up a lot of attention from opposing offensive coordinators.
In the wake of Gregory absence, expect the Cowboys to use rookie Micah Parsons in that same role, so it’s not as if the Cowboys are without pass rushers. Parsons is having a solid season himself and could be a good bet for Defensive Rookie of the Year as the team’s first-round pick. Parsons has 18 pressures and 5 sacks this year in 8 starts.
As for the Chiefs, the loss of Gregory on the edge for the Cowboys means an easier job for the Chiefs’ bookends. That’s not the worst news to hear when the team has been dealing with a number of injuries on the right side, especially. Lucas Niang has missed practice in the wake of a rib injury sustained in Week 9 against the Green Bay Packers. Mike Remmers has missed the last couple of weeks with a knee injury, and Kyle Long was just beginning to return to practice after sitting out the entire season thus far.
It’s quite possible the Chiefs roll with Andrew Wylie there or another alternate unless someone gets healthy soon, so the team will be putting an emphasis on providing further help on the right side. That will limit their creativity and flexibility offensively at key moments.