FRISCO, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys will not reshuffle their roster after one game, owner and general manager Jerry Jones said Tuesday.
Jones made his weekly appearance on 105.3 The Fan two days after a 28-20 loss to the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium. Any move for outside help has to be weighed against what is available this time of year, according to Jones.
“This is a narrow window of making changes on the roster at this date,” Jones said. “You don’t have a lot of moving around relative to where you were at other parts of the year. So it’s not something that you can say, we’re going to reshuffle this deck after your first game. That’s not practical.”
Dallas lost running back Malik Davis for the season to a hip injury in practice two days before the opener. Linebacker DeMarvion Overshown strained his hamstring Sunday and is expected to miss one to two weeks. Safety Malik Hooker will have surgery, Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said Monday.
Jerry Jones Backs The Cowboys’ Preseason Plan
The Cowboys’ starters did not play in the preseason. Jones said earlier in the interview that Dallas never tested the full combination of offense, defense, and special teams in a game-type situation before Sunday.
He would still make the same call.
“I think you’ve got to worry about leaving your game on the field in August, the latter part of July,” Jones explained. “I think you’ve got to worry about getting injuries during that time. And I think where we are right now in preparing these teams, limiting the amount of physical activity relative to contact, limiting that early on, is the right way to go.”
Dallas held the ball for 23:20 Sunday and ran 52 plays. The Giants converted 9 of 11 third downs and ran 68 plays.
The Opening-Drive Punt
Dallas punted on fourth-and-short on its opening possession. The Cowboys gained 37 yards on their first two drives and punted both times, and New York scored on its first possession, a 10-play, 83-yard drive that took 6:13.
Time left on the clock was the reason Jones was comfortable with the punt.
“I could make that decision either way,” Jones said. “I thought we had time to get back if we could get that offense rolling. So I’m okay with the decision.”
Dallas did not lead at any point Sunday. The score was tied once, at 7-7 in the second quarter.
Quarterback Dak Prescott completed 22-of-34 passes for 175 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception. Running back Javonte Williams carried 12 times for 41 yards and a touchdown. Dallas finished with 244 yards to New York’s 394.
Jones said Tuesday that he does not anticipate the Week 1 mistakes by Prescott, Williams, and receiver George Pickens continuing going forward.
Dallas went 7-9-1 last season. Schottenheimer is in his second year as head coach.
The Cowboys host the Washington Commanders on Sunday at AT&T Stadium. Kickoff is 3:25 p.m. CT on FOX.
