It's no secret that the Dallas Cowboys were forced to deal with a litany of injuries to key contributors a season ago. That's certainly not the only reason they had such a disappointing 2024 campaign, but it definitely didn't help.
As such, any injury that occurs during this 2025 training camp is bound to throw a scare into coaches, players, and fans alike. And after just a few short days of practice, right tackle Terence Steele is providing one of these early scares.
As practice got underway on Thursday in Oxnard, Steele was nowhere to be found, and it was later revealed by the team that the sixth-year veteran was being evaluated for an ankle injury. And that's all that was said.
Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram has reported that the injury isn't believed to be serious, but fans of America's Team are undoubtedly waiting anxiously for specifics.
Cowboys RT Terence Steele dealing with ankle injury in training camp
Editor's note: Jane Slater of NFL Network has reported it's a high-ankle sprain for Steele, but he is only expected to sit out for a few days.
Steele has been extremely durable since signing with the Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2020. Thrust into the starting lineup very early on after injuries forced La'el Collins and Cameron Ewing out of action, the Texas Tech alum started 14 games in his first season, thus becoming just the fourth offensive tackle in the Super Bowl era to start that many as an undrafted rookie.
And for the most part, he's been solid ever since, missing just five games over the past four years and zero over the last two. So, he's certainly been a fixture.
Behind Steele, the Cowboys simply aren't that deep at right tackle. With Steele out, sixth-year journeyman Hakeem Adeniji took his place taking first-team reps.
For those unfamiliar with the 2020 sixth-round pick, Dallas is already his fourth stop after spending three years with the Cincinnati Bengals, one year with the Minnesota Vikings, and one year with the Cleveland Browns. But he never took a regular-season snap for Cleveland in 2024, as he was placed on injured reserve last August with a knee injury.
And behind him on the depth chart is Matt Waletzko, who has appeared in just 11 regular-season games after the Cowboys took him in the fifth round of the 2022 draft.
So, it's clear to see why Steele's injury is a touch concerning. Even if the ankle ailment isn't overly serious, another thing to think about is that even missing a few days or weeks of practice gives him less time to get comfortable next to first-round rookie right guard Tyler Booker.
Continuity is extremely important to an offensive line, and the more reps these guys get next to one another, the better off the Cowboys will be.
For now, though, we just play the waiting game until we know the severity of Steele's injury.