Cowboys: Was It A Win Or A Loss On Sunday Night?

The Dallas Cowboys defeated the New York Giants on Sunday night, but in other ways this contest has to be considered a significant loss.

The Dallas Cowboys spent the entire preseason doing what all other NFL teams do – they held out starters and key contributors while heavily evaluating rookies and newcomers to determine who’s worth it and who’s not.

Remaining healthy was said to be the goal. Despite the loss of cornerback Orlando Scandrick as training camp came to a close, this strategy seemed to pay off.

Then came just the third season opener at Cowboys/AT&T Stadium in Arlington.

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Yes, a win is a win and you can bet that this ‘W’ will go far in determining just where the Cowboys end up by regular season’s end.

But there’s key losses to consider and for the next two months, the Dallas depth chart will be heavily tested.

Among the casualties coming out of the win against the New York Giants was a broken foot suffered by wide receiver Dez Bryant. This injury certainly headlines the misfortune for a Dallas team that has Super Bowl aspirations this year. Having just signed a mega-contract during the summer, Bryant is expected to miss anywhere from four to six weeks according to Brandon George of the Dallas Morning News.

Terrance Williams, Cole Beasley and Devin Street will need to be on the ball moving forward.

Next up was rookie pass-rusher Randy Gregory, who suffered an ankle injury after getting caught up in the deep end and getting rolled by Giants rookie offensive tackle Ereck Flowers. While the Bryant injury certainly impacts the Cowboys offensive capabilities until after Halloween, Gregory’s injury offers the same to a defense that expecting to have some improved pass rush this season.

Gregory’s speed was evident during this game, although he didn’t actually end up with a sack. In fact, the entire Cowboys defense only ended up with one sack of Giants quarterback Eli Manning on the whole night, part of the reason that New York was even in this game to begin with.

With offseason acquisition Greg Hardy, another new addition to Dallas’ pass rush efforts, still out three more games due to an NFL imposed suspension, this isn’t exactly a defense that can afford to be losing guys who put heat on opposing quarterbacks.

Jared Dubin of CBS Sports reports that Gregory should miss four to six weeks as a result of his setback.

Back to the offense, left guard Ronald Leary suffered a groin injury that has his future availability in doubt.

Dallas Morning News contributor Rainer Sabin reports that Leary will undergo an MRI to determine just how bad this injury is. Either way, it doesn’t look like Leary is going to be around for awhile. Entering a contract year, this is probably the very last thing he’s interested in dealing with.

Now, the Cowboys are probably better equipped to deal with the Leary situation than any other. The presence of guard Mackenzy Bernadeau and rookie La’el Collins should buffer this loss with little, if any, drop off.

The Cowboys are 1-0 following a thrilling, if not frustrating, victory over a New York team that only thought it had a place winning this contest. The Cowboys were far more damaging to their own cause than anything the Giants did, period.

Moving forward, it’s not necessarily self-inflicted wounds that might make additional wins harder to come by.

Enough doom and gloom – have a few laughs right here courtesy of Mark Francescutti of DMN.

Next: Cowboys Film Room: Week 1 Standouts, Notes and Observations

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