Getty Daniel Ross
Daniel Ross will not see the field this season.
Per ESPN’s Todd Archer, the Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle is being placed on injured reserve Saturday, and likely will require corrective surgery, after sustaining a shoulder injury this summer. He didn’t play in Dallas’ preseason finale on Thursday.
Because he’s going on IR before final cuts are official — the deadline for which is 4 p.m. ET Saturday — Ross isn’t eligible to return later this year.
Signed by the Cowboys in 2017 as an undrafted free agent, Ross made three appearances in his rookie campaign, collecting five tackles and a sack. He was a bigger contributor last season, when he logged 14 tackles, one sack and a forced fumble across 13 games.
Ross, who attended college at Northeast Mississippi CC, was brought back this offseason, signing a one-year contract as an exclusive-rights free agent. The 26-year-old wasn’t expected to crack the Cowboys’ 53-man roster; Archer notes they “had received some trade inquiries on Ross leading into the final week of the preseason.”
The Cowboys’ defensive line is set with defensive ends DeMarcus Lawrence and Tyrone Crawford healed from injury, and Maliek Collins and Antwaun Woods locked in at the DT spots. The club has also received solid play from reserves Kerry Hyder and Taco Charlton.
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Final Decision Made on Charlton
Dallas began the process of paring down its roster on Friday, chopping 14 players from the squad, including several linemen. One such player who avoided The Turk is embattled former first-round pick Taco Charlton.
Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones announced Friday that Charlton, the subject of swirling trade rumors and release speculation, will survive cutdown day and make the regular season roster.
“He’s frankly had a great camp,” Jones said, per the team’s official website. “…He does some things really well, and he’s capable of doing some other things really well. And it’s that part – you do the other things really well – that would make him the player we wanted to have when we drafted him with the No. 1 pick (in 2017).”
First Wave of Cuts Announced
Dallas didn’t wait to start trimming the fat from its 90-player squad, releasing running back Darius Jackson. The team also waived, among others steadily trickling in, punter Kasey Redfern, offensive tackle Juwann Bushell-Beatty, guard Lukayus McNeil, tight end Marcus Lucas, safety Jameill Showers, cornerback Tyvis Powell, and long snapper Drew Scott, the Dallas Morning News reported.
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