Cowboys news: Jayron Kearse took over the defensive play-calling duties Sunday night

Notebook: Kearse took over play-calling duties - DallasCowboys.com staff writers

Whether it was a one-week adjustment given Kearse’s previous stint with the Minnesota Vikings or a change moving forward, the Cowboys had great success with Kearse calling plays for the defense Sunday night, taking over duties from Micah Parsons.

While the Cowboys had two weeks to get a new quarterback ready for the Vikings, they also had a new play-caller on defense as well.

It certainly wasn’t as visual, but safety Jayron Kearse was the new signal-caller on defense, taking over the duties for Micah Parsons.

Head coach Mike McCarthy confirmed the switch in his press conference on Monday. Kearse was seen wearing the ‘green dot’ on the back of his helmet, which signals that he is wearing the headset in the helmet that can hear the calls from defensive coordinator Dan Quinn.

“There’s some game-planning components to it. We made the change. Micah was still a part of the rotation. But I thought Jayron did an excellent job with the communication,” McCarthy said. “He’s an excellent communicator. It was probably as clean as a performance as we’ve had.”

Parsons seemed to play his best game as well, recording 11 tackles and was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week.

Cowboys LB Micah Parsons named NFC Defensive Player of the Week - SportsDay Staff, DMN

Micah Parsons had himself a monster of a game at Minnesota Sunday night, earning his first NFC Defensive Player of the Week award. The first, we suspect, of many.

Parsons registered 11 tackles, including four tackles for loss, in Dallas’ 20-16 victory against the Vikings. His four tackles for loss were tied for the most in the league in Week 8 and are tied for the most by a rookie in any game this season.

He becomes the first Cowboys linebacker to win Defensive Player of the Week since Leighton Vander Esch in 2018, and he joins Vander Esch, Sean Lee (2010) and DeMarcus Ware (2005) as the only Dallas rookie linebackers to earn the honor.

Parsons is the seventh former Penn State linebacker to win Defensive Player of the Week and joins Lee (2010) and Odafe Oweh (2021) as the only rookies to do so.

Updates: Tyron Smith could miss Sunday’s game - Nick Eatman, Rob Phillips, David Helman, DallasCowboys.com

Tyron Smith’s health remains a concern for Dallas as the left tackle not only was forced out of Sunday night’s game due to an ankle injury but could even miss more time moving forward.

Not only will Tyron Smith not practice on Wednesday, but Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy said his chances of playing Sunday seem unlikely.

McCarthy said Smith would be “pressed to play” this week against Denver because of spurs in his ankle.

Smith missed the second half of the Vikings game and parts of the New England game as well two weeks earlier with an ankle injury.

McCarthy said the Cowboys will work on a few options at left tackle but said he’d “rather Denver find out when they find out.” Those options likely include Ty Nsekhe starting at left tackle, or perhaps La’el Collins. Terence Steele has started the last six games at right tackle but he practiced at left tackle during training camp.

Dallas Cowboys vs. Denver Broncos: TV, time, spread, line - Stefan Stevenson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Denver might have traded Von Miller, but recent history suggests Dallas shouldn’t pencil in a “W” based on that fact alone Sunday.

The Broncos (4-4) snapped a four-game losing streak with a 17-10 win over Washington last week. The Cowboys (6-1) are coming off their sixth consecutive game with Cooper Rush filling in for Dak Prescott, who was unavailable with a strained right calf.

Prescott is expected to play against the Broncos.

The Cowboys offense caught a break with the Broncos’ trading linebacker Von Miller on Monday.

The Broncos lead the all-time series 8-5, including the past six meetings. The last came in September 2017 in Denver. It was a 42-17 thumping that remains one of the low points of the Dak Prescott/Ezekiel Elliott era.

Cowboys to break out red, white, and blue throwback helmet stripes for Salute to Service - Todd Brock, Cowboys Wire

The Dallas Cowboys don’t break out the throwback uniforms (or helmets) often these days, but when they do, it’s always a cause for celebration. This Sunday, the team has decided to dust off their 1976 red-striped helmet to salute the troops in attendance.

To the casual time-traveling observer, it will look like 1976 all over again at AT&T Stadium this Sunday. That’s because the Cowboys’ helmets will feature a red, white, and blue center stripe for the first time since the nation’s 200th birthday 46 years ago.

The subtle tweak to one of the most iconic and longstanding uniforms in all of sports comes during the league’s annual Salute to Service weekend, honoring the men and women of the United States military.

For the Cowboys organization, there’s extra meaning. Charlotte Jones, daughter of owner Jerry Jones and a team Executive Vice President, is also the chairman of the National Medal of Honor Museum Foundation, with a new facility set to break ground in Arlington next year, within sight of the Cowboys’ home stadium.

Medal of Honor recipients will be in attendance for the Cowboys-Broncos Week 9 clash. Military members will be recognized at halftime. The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders will also alter their uniforms for the one-day special occasion.

Mailbag: Reunion with Jaylon Smith? - David Helman and Nick Eatman, DallasCowboys.com

The Packers released former Cowboys linebacker Jaylon Smith earlier this week, ending his brief tenure with the team. Could a reunion be in the cards in light of rookie Jabril Cox’s season-ending injury? No. No, it cannot.

David: I don’t see it happening. Once you make the decision to move on from a guy like Jaylon, it just seems a bit awkward and clunky to bring him back into the locker room a few weeks later. That’s the type of decision that feels permanent, or else they wouldn’t have done it in the first place. As far as additional depth, they still have Luke Gifford, and Francis Bernard is also working his way back from a hamstring injury.

Nick: The Cowboys made that move for a variety of reasons and Jabril Cox was just one of them. But I think it was clear they wanted to move on from that experience, mainly because of the very reason the Packers just cut him – he just isn’t a linebacker who can play enough snaps to justify being on the roster. And he doesn’t play special teams either so I don’t it happening at all. The question now is if another team will pick him up. The easy answer is probably not, but don’t rule out the fact that he’s been cut by a 6-1 team and a 7-1 team. There could be several teams out there that just don’t have the defensive depth as others and they might be able to use him.

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