The Dallas Cowboys have another massive game Thursday, and one of their most important defensive players is going to try hard to take the field.
Jadaveon Clowney is battling a hamstring injury that has him listed as questionable, and NFL insider Ian Rapoport updated his status by calling him a game-time decision for Dallas’ game against the Detroit Lions at Ford Field.
Clowney is second on the Cowboys in sacks (4), is tied for second-most tackles for loss (5) and is tied for third in passes defended (3) this year. The No. 1 overall pick from the 2014 NFL Draft is coming off a dominant two-sack performance in Dallas’ 31-28 performance over the Kansas City Chiefs on Thanksgiving.
Dallas (6-5-1) sits just 1.5 games behind the first-place Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC East. The Cowboys also trail the Lions by a half-game and could pick a valuable tiebreaker with a victory Thursday.
Jadaveon Clowney Is A True Game-Time Decision Thursday
Rapoport did his daily hit on “Good Morning Football,” and the good news is he believes stalwart No. 1A wideout George Pickens is going to play — despite also being listed as questionable for the TNF game.
But Clowney, who is nursing a hamstring injury, could be a different story.
“He only practiced limited on Wednesday, so not much time [practicing],” Rapoport said. “They want to give him up to gametime to see if he can get there for the surging Dallas defense.”
Most players who get in a limited practice end up playing, and even though the Cowboys are playing Thursday it is not a short week for them since they played on Thanksgiving.
So Clowney should be able to go Thursday, even if Dallas limits his reps, especially with the proverbial mini-bye before its Week 15 game against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday Night Football.
Jadaveon Clowney Could Feast Against The Lions If He Is Able To Play
Clowney has only played about 40 percent of the snaps on the Dallas defense, since defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus likes to rotate D-linemen to keep them all fresh. So if Clowney is on the proverbial pitch count, he might end up playing about 30-35 percent of snaps instead.
But the Lions offensive line is in serious flux. Detroit has had a hard time protecting quarterback Jared Goff, who has been sacked eight times in the past three games, and 22 times in the past eight games.
Goff has clearly looked flustered over the past three games, where Detroit has gone 1-2 and needed a furious rally to beat the lowly New York Giants in overtime for its only win. The Lions lost to the Green Bay Packers at home on Thanksgiving and fell to the Philadelphia Eagles 16-9 in Week 11.
Plus, as Rapoport spelled out, Goff’s No. 1 target Amon-Ra St. Brown is on the wrong side of questionable for Thursday night’s game, and St. Brown is one of the most consistent receivers in the game.
So if Clowney can play, he is likely to have a huge impact, even if he’s going up against Lions’ All-Pro right tackle Penei Sewell.
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