Cowboys not sure if Ezekiel Elliott will play vs Raiders, Rico Gathers out

In his press conference on Tuesday, Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said he believes the game against the Raiders on Saturday will be the most extensive work the starters get this preseason.

But those starters might not include Ezekiel Elliott.

Elliott hasn't played in any of the preseason games so far, even though he's participated in all practices. So not playing him at all would be a little odd, considering Garrett's comments about the extensive work the starters should be getting.

Then again, why risk injury to your star player in a meaningless preseason game? Giants fans have been mulling that question since Odell Beckham limped of the field on Monday night against the Browns.

In other injury news, it looks like TE Rico Gathers has been ruled out for Saturday's game as well.

But it's not all doom and gloom on the injury front. 2nd-round pick Chidobe Awuzie could re-join practice this week.

And even Tyrone Crawford, who gave Cowboys fans a big injury scare during training camp in Oxnard, told Brandon George of the DMN on Monday that he's on schedule to be back for the season opener against the Giants.

"My ankle is good. I'm feeling great," Crawford said Monday at The Star. "I'm moving well right now and I'm doing a lot of things that [athletic trainer] Britt [Brown] wants me to, so it's looking like [I'll be back for the opener]."

Crawford said the Cowboys haven't yet given him a timetable for returning to the field for football workouts, but he said he expects that to happen "pretty soon." As of now, he's going through rehabilitation, treatment and "a bunch of different exercises," he said.