If it feels like the Dallas Cowboys suffer an injury scare in every practice of training camp, that's because they do.
Already down several important players, standout rookie running back Jaydon Blue left Thursday's practice with an undisclosed injury and did not return. Depth offensive lineman Dakota Shepley also left to get evaluated in the medical tent.
However, the biggest scare from Thursday happened when tight end Jake Ferguson went down grabbing his back following a questionable hit from linebacker Kenneth Murray. Ferguson was the intended target from Dak Prescott, but the pass was so erratic that a hit from Murray was not necessary and potentially would have drawn a flag in a real game (h/t to Joseph Hoyt of the Dallas Morning News for the clip).
Cowboys LB Kenneth Murray injured teammate Jake Ferguson on a questionable hit
Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson was down for a little while after this awkward hit from Kenneth Murray Jr. pic.twitter.com/yY7glm5j9c
— Joseph Hoyt (@JoeJHoyt) August 7, 2025
Ferguson was able to get up under his own power, though he skipped the injury tent and went straight to the locker room. Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones told the media after practice that further evaluation is needed, but the team doesn't believe the injury is significant.
It might look like it at first glance, but that is not a cheap shot from Murray. That would imply Murray intended to injure Ferguson. Murray's reaction suggests that is anything but the case. He immediately went to console Ferguson.
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Having said that, Murray simply has to know better. This wasn't a bang-bang play. Prescott's pass was well behind Ferguson, likely due to a miscommunication. While Murray was likely just competing and got caught up in the moment, he has to have better awareness.
If this was a mid-December game and Murray wanted to check an opposing tight end, that's fine. It might get flagged for unnecessary roughness, but defenders get away with hits like that all the time. Padded practice or otherwise, there's no place for it in training camp,
Murray was away from the team at the start of camp for the birth of his child. He only returned to practice on Aug. 2.
The former first-round pick is looking to stake his claim for a starting job, but that can be accomplished simply by making the right reads against the run.
Hopefully, Ferguson is back on the field soon. He wasn't expected to play much in the preseason anyway, but at some point, you have to wonder if Brian Schottenheimer will need to scale back the intensity, or at least reduce the quantity of team drills, given how quickly injuries are piling up in practice.