Cowboys News: Pollard’s workload, Micah’s lion crawl, NFL’s officiating mistake

The midweek mark in Dallas brought the first glimpse of which Cowboys stars we’re monitoring before the team travels to Arizona. There’s also plenty of reason to take the 0-2 Cardinals seriously, and there’s a familiar face who won’t be suiting up for a rematch against his old team in the silver and blue.

Also in this edition of News and Notes, we need to talk about Micah Parsons. His otherworldly performance versus the Jets has earned him a special accolade from the league, his stats show him to be literally be off the charts of football history, he’s searching for a name to give to his lion-crawl celebration from last Sunday, and he’s even reportedly lined up in yet another position in practice this week… but this one will have opposing defenses quaking. All that, plus a look at the biggest workload in Tony Pollard’s entire life, Luke Schoonmaker gives the behind-the-scenes story of his first NFL catch and touchdown, and the league admits a mistake in Week 2’s contest that helped the Cowboys’ onslaught get rolling.

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RB Tony Pollard has shown that he can carry load but can he hold up for Dallas Cowboys :: Fort Worth Star-Telegram

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Pollard’s 25 carries on Sunday weren’t just his most as a pro. They were the most he’s had in a single game ever, including college and high school. “Whatever they give me, whatever they call, I got it,” Pollard said. Mike McCarthy says the team will be smart with Pollard this week in practice to avoid an overuse injury. He had limited reps in practice on Wednesday.

Zack Martin, Jayron Kearse listed as DNPs on Wednesday practice report :: Cowboys Wire

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An illness forced Kearse to sit out Wednesday’s practice, while Martin continues to rest his knee after being rolled up on during Sunday’s game. Brandin Cooks, Chuma Edoga, and Tyler Smith were all limited. Donovan Wilson was a full participant.

DL Carlos Watkins out indefinitely, needs biceps surgery :: Cards Wire

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The former Cowboy replaced L.J. Collier in Arizona’s starting lineup when the lineman went on injured reserve. Now Watkins, too, will miss the Week 3 rematch with his former teammates as he’s set to undergo biceps surgery for an injury suffered on Sunday. Cardinals safety Budda Baker is also on IR and will miss at least the next four games.

Cowboys' Micah Parsons named NFC Defensive Player of the Week :: Cowboys Wire

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Parsons’s otherworldly stat line earned him his third NFC Defensive Player of the Week award, in just 35 regular-season games played. He’s now tied with Sean Lee for the second-most in franchise history; with his next, he’ll move into a tie for the lead with DeMarcus Ware.

Parsons has highest rate of multi-sack games in NFL history :: Tony Holzman-Escareno

Cowboys vs Cardinals: 6 things to know about Week 3 opponent :: Cowboys Wire

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Although the Cardinals haven’t fared well in their first two games, both against NFC East opponents, the Cowboys can’t take Week 3 lightly. For starters, they’ve won only one game in Glendale since 2008. James Conner will provide a challenge for the Dallas rush defense, and Arizona’s pass rush unit is a solid group that can get after Dak Prescott.

Luke Schoonmaker describes hauling in first NFL touchdown :: The Mothership

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The rookie tight end took his first NFL reception into the end zone for a score… and then promptly gave the ball away. “I didn’t really realize that was a thing, going from college to the NFL, holding onto your touchdown ball,” he said. “[Tight ends coach Lunda Wells] grabbed it for me and they have it now.” Schoonmaker’s family was in the stands to witness the special moment.

Parsons got practice rep... at tight end :: Jon Machota

Parsons asking for public's help in naming lion celebration :: The Mothership

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That celebratory crawl that Parsons did after sacking Zach Wilson last week was something the linebacker first tried in training camp. “I was just joking around with Dak, growling at him and crawling at him,” Parsons said. “And then someone said, ‘You should really do that.'” Now Parsons says he wants to give it an official name, and he’s seeking outside assistance. “If y’all got anything, just help me out and we’re gonna name it something. I might give you one percent.”

Report: NFL tells Jets that John Franklin-Myers shouldn’t have been flagged for roughing :: ProFootballTalk

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A questionable call on Sunday actually went Dallas’s way. The league has admitted that the third-down hit on which Dak Prescott was seemingly contacted low was, in hindsight, a legal tackle. The Cowboys got a new set of downs as a result of the called penalty and went onto score a touchdown on the drive.

Cowboys star in 2 of top 5 NFL broadcasts so far in 2023 :: NFL Media

Story originally appeared on Cowboys Wire