NEW ORLEANS – The Cowboys activated wide receiver Amari Cooper from the Reserve/COVID-19 list on Wednesday morning making him eligible to play in Thursday’s game against the Saints.
Cooper, an unvaccinated player, missed the last two games while testing positive for the coronavirus. There were some questions about Cooper’s availability after not practicing on Monday and Tuesday. Coach Mike McCarthy, who will miss the Saints game due to a positive COVID-19 test, said Cooper was experiencing some symptoms on Wednesday with a cough.
But Cooper needed to participate in Wednesday’s practice in some fashion in order to play.
Without him, the Cowboys lost their last two games as quarterback Dak Prescott completed just 66.6% of his passes and compiled a quarterback rating of 83.1 during the losing streak.
The Cowboys have lost three of four games and enter the Saints game trying to fix what ails them.
“It’s very urgent,” Prescott said of the state of the team. “This is a team that’s hungry and that’s pissed off simply about the way that we’ve executed and the way we’ve played. It’s about us looking in the mirror and checking us first and foremost, and that’s what we’ve done.”
Cooper’s return also coincides with fellow receiver CeeDee Lamb’s expected appearance in the Cowboys lineup. Lamb missed the Thanksgiving Day game, an overtime loss to Las Vegas, with a concussion.
However, backup wide receiver Cedrick Wilson, who had seven catches for 104 yards against Las Vegas, was ruled out against the Saints with an ankle injury. Another backup receiver/special teams player Malik Turner is questionable with an illness. Turner did not practice Wednesday.
Moving Parts
The Cowboys will miss the following coaches due to COVID-19: Mike McCarthy (head coach), Jeff Blasko (assistant offensive line coach), Harold Nash (strength and conditioning coordinator) Kendall Smith (strength and conditioning), Joe Philbin (offensive line coach) and Scott Tolzien (coaching assistant).
Defensive coordinator Dan Quinn will be the interim coach and Ben McAdoo, an offensive consultant, will work in the coach’s box during the game. Tight ends coach Lunda Wells will handle the offensive line. Cedric Smith (strength and conditioning) was taken off the COVID-19 list and will be available for the Saints game.
Briefly: Due to the COVID-19 protocols, players, coaches and team officials were not allowed to leave the team hotel. … DE Tarell Basham (chest), RB Ezekiel Elliott (knee) and Lamb (concussion) were full participants in practice.
