Cowboys injury news: Mike McCarthy announces six players to injured reserve with designation to return

The Dallas Cowboys are in the final stages of setting their 53-man roster which means that things are happening left and right. Tuesday was the initial 53-man roster deadline, but the Cowboys had a number of players on both the Reserve/COVID-19 list that needed to be brought back once available, plus a number that were candidates to wind up on injured reserve.

Thursday morning we got the news of three COVID players returning to the roster (CeeDee Lamb, Damontae Kazee, and Carlos Watkins). Shortly after that, as Mike McCarthy took to the podium for his press conference, it was announced that there are six players headed to injured reserve with the designation to return during the season:

• OT Josh Ball
• TE Sean McKeon
• WR Malik Turner
• DT Neville Gallimore
• LB Francis Bernard
• CB Kelvin Joseph

These are all among the players that we have been speculating could wind up on injured reserve (Chauncey Golston was the seventh as he was activated off of the PUP list at the time of the roster being set, but it appears that the Cowboys are moving forward with him). The five open roster spots now allow room for the Cowboys players returning from the COVID list, plus the team signed running back Corey Clement to the active roster on Wednesday evening.

It is unfortunate to see anybody on injured reserve, but it is especially disappointing to see second-round pick Kelvin Joseph there. The Cowboys aren’t exactly deep at cornerback so being without him will likely prove to be challenging.

Josh Ball, Malik Turner, and Francis Bernard have players to fill their “roles” on the team already on the roster. It is likely that Dallas will promote Jeremy Sprinkle from the practice squad (which you can see with our tracker right here) to the roster with Sean McKeon now on injured reserve.

Any player placed on injured reserve has to miss at least three weeks. The next three weeks for the Cowboys are the first ones of their regular season: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, at Los Angeles Chargers, Philadelphia Eagles.