Cowboys vs. Bears inactives: Ezekiel Elliott is officially out, plus other starters

The Cowboys are getting ready to host the Chicago Bears in their final game before the bye week. Given that the Cowboys have several players with injuries this week, and a week of rest coming up soon, it seems that head coach Mike McCarthy has taken that into account with his list of inactives for this game:

The big name here is Ezekiel Elliott, who suffered a knee injury last week against the Lions but finished the game. Elliott was officially listed as doubtful on the team’s injury report, but he won’t go today. The expectation is that Zeke will return after the bye. giving him time to rest up.

Joining Elliott are several other players who were listed on the injury report this week but carried game statuses of questionable. That includes Noah Brown, Malik Hooker, Sam Williams, and Trysten Hill. Also inactive for the day are Jabril Cox and Will Grier, neither of which is a surprise.

Of note: rookie linebacker Damone Clark is on the roster for the first time this year after being activated from the NFI list earlier in the week. Clark will be active for this game and make his NFL debut, although he’s likely only going to work on special teams. That’s still a big deal for him, as it was initially thought Clark wouldn’t play at all this year after having spinal fusion surgery.

The Bears only had four players on their inactive list, but the notable one is starting right tackle Larry Borom, who is out with a concussion. He’s the second starter along this offensive line to miss time, as center Lucas Patrick was added to the injured reserve earlier in the week.