The Cowboys have enough to sort out after the loss to the Baltimore Ravens in Rio de Janeiro, but one thing just got a whole lot easier on the schedule. Baker Mayfield’s thumb injury has changed the picture for Dallas’ Week 5 trip to Tampa Bay, and it’s the kind of break the Cowboys badly needed.
Mayfield went down late in the Buccaneers’ Week 3 loss to the Minnesota Vikings and was later diagnosed with a dislocated thumb. Additional testing showed no fracture or tendon or ligament damage, but Todd Bowles said Mayfield is expected to miss at least three weeks. That timeline makes it hard to see him lining up against Dallas on Thursday Night Football.
If that holds, the Cowboys won’t be facing Mayfield at all. They’d get undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels instead, and that’s a much different assignment for a team trying to steady itself.
Dallas still can’t afford to get ahead of itself. The immediate task is the Texans, and that game has to come first. But if the Cowboys handle that interstate matchup, they’ll head into Week 5 with a much friendlier draw than it looked like before Mayfield got hurt.
Daniels’ first NFL start would come on primetime at Jerry’s World, and his brief Week 3 appearance didn’t inspire much confidence. He threw a game-sealing interception on the final drive, and outside of his athleticism, there wasn’t much to latch onto. Tampa Bay has good weapons around him, but the early signs say he’s not ready for a starting defense yet.
The Buccaneers selected Daniels as their backup over veteran Jake Browning, and he earned the job with a strong preseason after looking good in the summer. Still, that Week 3 cameo made it clear he’s nowhere near a finished product. In this league, injuries force teams to move on, and Daniels now looks like an emergency option thrown into the fire.
That’s where the Cowboys can take advantage. Christian Parker’s defense isn’t the ’85 Bears, but the young group has shown promise. Jaishawn Barham, DeMarvion Overshown if healthy, and Dee Winters give Dallas the kind of athleticism that can help contain Daniels’ legs, while Donovan Ezeiruaku and the rest of the defensive front should have chances to get after him.
It also doesn’t help that the Zac Robinson offense in Tampa Bay has been stagnant even with Mayfield, who has regressed considerably after his new extension. So while Dallas has to keep its focus squarely on Houston, the reality is hard to miss: Week 5 just became a lot more favorable.
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