Cowboys’ Jason Peters injury deals significant blow to scattered O-Line
By Adam Weinrib
The Dallas Cowboys tried their hardest to work veteran ex-Eagles star Jason Peters into their offensive game plan slowly, and resisted the temptation to push Peters after it became immediately clear his mere presence would pay dividends for their run game.
And yet, their best-laid plans crumbled down anyway on Friday afternoon ahead of a road clash with the Los Angeles Rams. Isn’t that how it always goes?
According to Jon Machota, the team revealed that Peters would miss Sunday’s Week 5 clash as well as “multiple games” afterward with a chest injury. This was supposed to be the week that Mike McCarthy and Co. planned to scale Peters’ workload up from the 21 snaps he played in the team’s low-stress victory over the Commanders the week prior.
The silver lining? The Cowboys’ offensive line hasn’t been quite as much of an issue as anticipated this season, thanks in large part to Tyler Smith’s emergence (as well as an ever-increasing dose of Peters).
The downside? Some of that OL surge has been due to the diminishing role of Matt Farniok and the absence of Matt Waletzko, who’s now likely to be active for Week 5 and beyond.
Cowboys veteran OL Jason Peters suffered a chest injury that could cause him to miss multiple games. Peters played 14 snaps in Week 3 and 21 in Week 4. Cowboys were hopeful he could get more snaps this week. Now, it appears Connor McGovern will get the majority of work at LG
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) October 7, 2022
Cowboys’ Jason Peters to miss multiple weeks with chest injury
LG Connor McGovern will no longer be on a pitch count in Peters’ wake; he played 40 snaps in Week 4, but will be handed a full workload in LA.
He’ll also be given the immediate gift of Aaron Donald in his lap. In theory, Peters would’ve been a more effective matchup against the bull rusher this week. That theory, while intriguing, is no longer valid.
In perhaps more upsetting news, Peters is now likely to miss a reunion with his old team, the red-hot Philadelphia Eagles, in Week 6.
Cowboys OL Jason Peters has a chest/rib injury, and he is considered doubtful to play Sunday at Rams. Could impact his availability against his former team, the Eagles, next week. This likely means no rotation for LG Connor McGovern. Matt Waletzko also likely to be active.
— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) October 7, 2022
His return wouldn’t have been ceremonial there. He legitimately would’ve been a key cog in Dallas’ attempt to upend the league’s last remaining unbeaten team.
Instead, Dallas’ offensive line savior will be laid up for several weeks, just as he was getting ready to pack his heaviest punch.
