Cowboys Injury Report: Eight Sit Out Wednesday's Practice and Pickens Returns Limited, as the 49ers Come to Arlington on Sunday
Dallas opened its 49ers week with eight players out of practice — Ferguson and Goodson among them, both already ruled out for multiple weeks — and three working limited, George Pickens, KaVontae Turpin and DeMarvion Overshown among them. The Cowboys are 4-5. San Francisco, winners of the last four meetings, is 7-1 and arrives Sunday at AT&T Stadium.
FRISCO — The Cowboys opened their week of preparation for the San Francisco 49ers with a practice report that reads like a triage list: eight players did not participate on Wednesday, the Dallas Sports Journal reported from the team's official report. At the head of it are the two names Dallas already knew it would be without. Tight end Jake Ferguson and running back Tyler Goodson both suffered knee injuries in Sunday's 27-23 win at Indianapolis — Ferguson after catching the Cowboys' first touchdown, Goodson after running for 77 yards at 6.4 yards a carry and handling kick returns — and coach Brian Schottenheimer said Monday that both would miss multiple weeks. “Fergie and Goody will not practice today,” Schottenheimer said Wednesday. “Got a bunch of guys banged up. And see who moves around okay today.”
The rest of Wednesday's did-not-practice list: edge rusher Donovan Ezeiruaku (ankle, sprained against Indianapolis and considered day-to-day), wide receiver Jonathan Mingo (ankle), cornerback Joey Porter Jr. (ankle), safety P.J. Locke (concussion — his second in as many weeks, and already ruled out for Sunday on Monday), safety Malik Hooker (excused for a personal matter) and outside linebacker Von Miller (a rest day). Porter is the week's swing name in the secondary: he opened last week with a full practice, was limited Thursday, then sat out Sunday's game, and Dallas has now given him two straight midweek absences on the same ankle that sidelined him for the Colts. “The most important thing is trying to find a way to make sure we get him on the field,” Schottenheimer said. Safety Jalen Thompson remains out as well, having missed seven games with a hamstring injury.
The limited column carried better news. Wide receivers George Pickens (hamstring) and KaVontae Turpin (ribs) both worked on a limited basis, as did linebacker DeMarvion Overshown (hamstring, back) — and Pickens and Overshown both missed the Colts game entirely, so a limited Wednesday is a step toward Sunday rather than away from it. Dallas also added running-back depth on Wednesday with the practice-squad signing of former Saint Kendre Miller — covered by this desk at signing (SQ-20261111-010) — who joins Israel Abanikanda and Jashaun Corbin behind starter Javonte Williams while Goodson is out.
What it all has to add up to is a healthy-enough roster by Sunday at 3:25 p.m. CT, when the Cowboys (4-5) host the 49ers (7-1) at AT&T Stadium on Fox. San Francisco has won the last four meetings between the teams, including playoff wins after the 2021 and 2022 seasons, and Dallas's margin for error in the NFC race does not survive many more home losses. Thursday's practice report is the next read on whether Pickens, Overshown and Porter are trending toward the field — the three names that most change what Sunday can look like.
