NFC East

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott missed five games with a thumb injury that required surgery, and he apparently used that time away to relearn how to use his hand.

"The hand's great," Prescott told Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated after leading the Cowboys to a 24-6 victory over the Detroit Lions on Sunday. "Honestly, I feel like I've relearned how to use it, activate it, all this past week-and-a-half. As far as doing my job, there's no limitations; there's no doubt in my mind that I wasn't going to be able to do what I just did. That's what's also in just trusting my rehab process, trusting everything that I've been through.

"In the real-life aspect of it, yeah, there's probably another little step, step-and-a-half that I can get before I'm over 100 percent or at 100 percent. But I can do my job, I can do my job comfortably, I can do my job with a lot of confidence and that's all that really matters to me."

He did his job against the Lions by going 19-of-25 for 207 yards, one touchdown and zero interceptions, which was a much better showing than the Week 1 game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when he finished 14-of-29 for 134 yards, zero touchdowns and one interception and suffered the injury.

Fortunately for the Cowboys, Cooper Rush kept them afloat by going 4-1 as a starter when Prescott was sidelined.

Now the two-time Pro Bowler is back for a team with legitimate Super Bowl aspirations. He will also have additional time to get healthier with the scheduled bye week after a Week 8 matchup with the Chicago Bears.

That should help with that additional "little step, step-and-a-half" to be fully healthy for the stretch run.

The Dallas Cowboys announced Monday cornerback Jourdan Lewis will miss the remainder of the 2022 NFL season after suffering a Lisfranc injury in Sunday's 24-6 victory over the Detroit Lions.

Lewis was injured after intercepting a Jared Goff pass in the fourth quarter.

With his year now over, Lewis finishes 2022 with 26 tackles, one interception and one sack.

Dallas can still count on Trevon Diggs to anchor the secondary. The 2021 All-Pro already has three interceptions and an NFL-high 11 passes defended through seven games.

Diggs can't cover everybody, though, so Lewis' absence is bound to have an impact on a defense that's allowing the fourth-fewest passing yards (185.1) and ranks sixth in opponent passer rating (77.7).

It doesn't help that Lewis' likely replacement as the nickelback is DaRon Bland, a fifth-round draft pick who has logged a total of 66 snaps on defense. The bulk of that action came in a Week 4 win over the Washington Commanders, when Lewis was out with a groin issue.

For Lewis, the Lisfranc injury could add some uncertainty to his offseason in the spring.

The Cowboys are projected to have just $7.3 million in salary-cap space for 2023, per Spotrac, and they have a few notable players heading for free agency including Tony Pollard, Anthony Brown, Leighton Vander Esch and Dalton Schultz.

By cutting Lewis, Dallas would carry $1.2 million in dead money but save $5 million since he'll be in the final year of his contract. If the front office has any misgivings about the 27-year-old long-term, then he might become expendable when the season ends.

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott will return to the field on Sunday against the Detroit Lions after recovering from a fractured thumb he suffered in the team's season opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He will be heavily compared to backup Cooper Rush, who went 4-1 in his absence.

While Rush was impressive, Prescott adds another element to the Dallas offense that his backup can't, and former Cowboys wide receiver Michael Irvin thinks Mike McCarthy would be making a mistake if he used Prescott the same way he used Rush.

"There's a reason we're paying him $40 million a year and a reason we're paying Cooper Rush whatever we're paying Cooper Rush," Irvin said, per USA Today's Nate Davis.

He added: "Not to use that other $38 million, or whatever the difference is, is absolutely asinine. Stop asking my $40 million quarterback to do the same things as my [$1] million quarterback.

"I'm gonna ask him to do some more, that's why I'm paying him."

Prescott is a much more efficient passer and rusher than Rush, so Irvin does have a point.

In his five games as a starter, Rush completed 58 percent of his passes for 956 yards and five touchdowns against three interceptions. He threw for more than 200 yards in three of those games.

However, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones appeared to hint at a quarterback controversy brewing before walking back those comments and reiterating that Prescott is the starter. McCarthy made similar comments, saying that everyone knows Prescott is QB1.

"Clearly, everybody in our locker room and everybody in the building, Jerry included, Dak is our quarterback," McCarthy told reporters back in September. "We want Cooper to be successful as possible. So, I think it stops right there."

When healthy, Prescott is one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. The problem is that he's only been fully healthy once in the last three seasons. During the 2020 season, he played five games before missing the remainder of the year with an ankle injury.

This year, he has been hampered by a broken thumb in his throwing hand.

In 2021, he appeared in 16 games, leading the Cowboys to an 11-5 record while completing 68.8 percent of his passes for 4,449 yards and 37 touchdowns against 10 interceptions. He also rushed for 146 yards and one score.

If Prescott can stay healthy, the Cowboys figure to be one of the best teams in the NFC and should earn a postseason berth. However, there's still a lot of season left, and Dallas has some tough matchups ahead, including a rematch against the Philadelphia Eagles on Dec. 24.

Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons and cornerback Trevon Diggs were each fined for unsportsmanlike conduct in last week's loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.

Parsons was fined $10,609 for flexing over Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert, and Diggs was fined $9,577 for taking his helmet off following a late touchdown by Philadelphia.

With the Cowboys down 20-10 to the Eagles in the third quarter, Parsons dove to break up a pass intended for Goedert before getting up and flexing. He also began talking to Goedert and was flagged for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.

Diggs' penalty came after the Cowboys gave up a touchdown that put the Eagles up 26-17 in the fourth quarter. He took off his helmet and slammed it to the ground in frustration.

The Cowboys dropped to 4-2 on the season with the loss, while the Eagles improved to 6-0. Philadelphia owns a commanding lead over Dallas in the NFC East standings, though the New York Giants are still in play for the top spot at 5-1.

After winning Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2021, Parsons is off to a hot start this season. Through six games, he has posted six sacks, two pass breakups, one forced fumble, 26 tackles, eight tackles for a loss and 12 quarterback hits.

Diggs, who was named a Pro Bowler last season, is also off to a solid start, posting two interceptions, nine pass breakups and 18 tackles in six games.

The Cowboys are set to face the 1-4 Detroit Lions on Sunday at AT&T Stadium. They don't face the Eagles again until Dec. 24.

The Washington Commanders announced that quarterback Carson Wentz has been placed on injured reserve because of a fractured finger suffered on Oct. 13 during a 12-7 road win over the Chicago Bears. He will be out for at least the next four games.

Per Commanders senior writer Zach Selby, Wentz underwent successful surgery Saturday in Los Angeles.

Wentz will miss Sunday's home matchup with the Green Bay Packers, an Oct. 30 road game at the Indianapolis Colts, a Nov. 6 home game with the Minnesota Vikings and a Nov. 14 Monday Night Football showdown at the Philadelphia Eagles. He's eligible to return on Nov. 20 at the Houston Texans.

That means Wentz will sit against his two previous teams, the Eagles and Colts. He played for Philadelphia from 2016 to 2020 before starting for Indianapolis last year.

Taylor Heinicke, who served as the team's starting quarterback last season, will take over for Wentz. The former Old Dominion star completed 65.0 percent of his passes for 20 touchdowns (15 interceptions) in 2021.

Through six games, Wentz completed 62.1 percent of his passes for 10 touchdowns (six interceptions) and 1,489 yards. He's also been sacked an NFL-high 23 times.

The 2017 Pro Bowler arrived in Washington after the Commanders traded for him in March. The deal essentially amounts to a one-year trial in Washington as the Commanders can release Wentz after this season without any dead-cap penalty, per Over the Cap.

The 2-4 Commanders have gotten off to a rough start that includes a four-game losing streak, but a strong defensive performance got them back in the win column. They'll look to stay there Sunday against the Packers at 1 p.m. ET.

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones doubted on Friday the authenticity of some of the allegations that have been levied against Washington Commanders owner Daniel Snyder.

During an appearance on 105.3 The Fan (h/t Nicki Jhabvala of the Washington Post), Jones said the following when asked if he feels obligated to protect Snyder and other NFL owners:

"Not at all. Not at all. I'm just not aware of the kind of issues. I hear the media speculation, but that's all I hear. That's not supported by tangible facts. Those are being presented and being looked at and I'm sure there's other things, but you could do those things on any subject matter. But I'm not aware of anything myself that rises to the level that is being speculated, whether or not he's with the Washington team or not."

Among several other allegations, it was reported by ESPN's Don Van Natta Jr., Seth Wickersham and Tisha Thompson this month that Snyder has "dirt" on other NFL owners, including Jones, that he believes he could use to "blow up" the NFL if he so chooses.

While Snyder and Jones are longtime friends, a source told ESPN that Snyder has kept a "file" on Jones and as many as six NFL owners overall through the use of law firms and private investigators.

The Commanders denied the allegations in a statement, calling them "simply ridiculous and utterly false."

Snyder is also the subject of an NFL investigation into the Commanders organization fostering a toxic workplace culture following allegations of sexual harassment, verbal abuse and a hostile work environment.

When the initial investigation concluded in July 2021, the organization was fined $10 million, and Snyder was ordered to surrender control of the Commanders to his wife, Tanya Snyder, "for at least the next several months."

Snyder was not seen around the team at all last season, but he resurfaced earlier this season when he was on the field at the Cowboys' AT&T Stadium prior to a game between the Commanders and Cowboys.

There have also been multiple allegations of sexual misconduct against Snyder, including one from former Commanders cheerleader and marketing manager Tiffani Johnston.

While speaking to the House Committee on Oversight and Reform earlier this year, Johnston said Snyder once touched her leg under the table during a business dinner and then tried to take her to his limo afterward.

It was also reported by Will Hobson of the Washington Post in June that a former Commanders employee alleged in 2009 that Snyder sexually harassed and assaulted her.

The woman was paid $1.6 million as part of a confidential agreement, but Snyder claimed the payment was not an admission of guilt and was only made at the "guidance of an insurance company."

There has recently been talk of the NFL potentially making a move to force Snyder to sell the Commanders, although it is unclear if the other owners would support it.

Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay suggested this week that there would perhaps be enough of a push from other owners to make it happen, saying, "I believe there is merit to removing him," in reference to Snyder, per ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has addressed the report that he told New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft "don't f--k with me" during a heated exchange Tuesday at the NFL owners' meetings.

"In this particular case, it's probably accurate that I did express myself in probably a way that's not in good taste," Jones said Friday on 105.3 The Fan (h/t Jon Machota of The Athletic).

ESPN's Seth Wickersham and Don Van Natta Jr. provided context on the incident, reporting Jones was the only owner to vote against allowing the compensation committee to open negotiations for a new contract for commissioner Roger Goodell.

Kraft was among the 31 owners who voted in favor of such a measure and replied "excuse me?" when Jones seemingly lashed out.

"Don't mess with me," Jones reiterated.

According to Wickersham and Van Natta, Jones' issue with Goodell's potential new contract is that the triggers for bonuses are "too vague and not connected to a strict set of financial goals and metrics."

He spearheaded an effort to change the commissioner's contract from primarily salary-based to bonus-based using performance metrics in 2017.

"He believes in corporate good governance and wants accountability on the financial goals tied to Roger's bonus," a league source said. "He is sensitive to awarding a big bonus to Roger before he performs and earns it."

Jones echoed those sentiments during Friday's interview.

"Let me be real clear, I'm a real supporter of Roger Goodell as our commissioner," he said. "I think he's done outstanding. … [I had] an issue with the structure regarding how we were going to address the commissioner or his successor. [It was] not [about] my support for Roger."

Jones and Kraft are among the most public faces of the NFL's owners, who have to approve any contract renewal for Goodell.

Goodell has been the NFL commissioner since 2006.

Former Washington Commanders tight end Chris Cooley isn't planning on attending an upcoming ceremony honoring legends of the franchise.

"I don't have any interest in doing this," Cooley said Wednesday on The Kevin Sheehan Show (one-hour mark). "I'm very appreciative of being voted in and I'm very appreciative of my time when I was there with [Washington]. At this point, I don’t have a lot of desire to be involved with the Washington Commanders."

The 40-year-old spent nine seasons in the nation's capital and was a two-time Pro Bowler. He's fifth all-time in receptions (429) and ninth in receiving yards (4,711).

In June, the Commanders announced they were going to add 10 more players to their list of greatest ever, bringing the overall total to 90 to coincide with their 90th anniversary. Cooley was among those to make the cut.

Many will see Cooley's decision to distance himself from the organization as a reflection of the current dysfunction in which the Commanders find themselves mired.

The NFL removed Daniel Snyder from day-to-day duties as team owner in July 2021 following an investigation into Washington's workplace culture after allegations of sexual harassment, verbal and emotional abuse and a generally toxic environment within the franchise. ESPN's Don Van Natta Jr., Seth Wickersham and Tisha Thompson reported the outside perception is that little has changed inside the franchise.

The ESPN report also alleged Snyder used private investigators to unearth unflattering information about other NFL owners, coaches and team executives, a claim the team denied.

Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay was the first to publicly say removing Snyder from the NFL ownership ranks is something at least worth considering.

With all of the off-field drama, the Commanders continue to be a mess on the field as well. They're last in the NFC East at 2-4 and look destined to miss the playoffs for the sixth time in seven years.