Amari Cooper reveals injury, gives status for Cowboys vs. Eagles on Monday Night Football

Cowboys wide receiver Amari Cooper suffered a cracked rib in the Cowboys opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sept. 9, he shared Friday afternoon. 

Cooper has been playing through it for the last two weeks, and it will not affect his availability for the Cowboys Monday Night Football matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles. 

“It’s getting better every day,” Cooper said, per Jon Machota of The Athletic. “I’ll be ready.”

The former Alabama standout has been limited in practice this week. Cooper added that he does not want to miss the Week 3 game because “I want to be the best.”

The news is positive for quarterback Dak Prescott as he tries to continue to light up the passing game. He was already down receiver Michael Gallup, who was placed on IR with a calf injury suffered against the Bucs. 

Cooper leads the Cowboys in receptions and touchdowns this season with 16 and two, respectively, and he is second in yardage with 163 yards behind receiver CeeDee Lamb. 

The Cowboys are off to a great start on offense after being one of the league’s top offensive teams in 2020. As a team, they are averaging 435 yards per game, which is fourth in the NFL. 

After a dismal rushing performance in Week 1, Dallas got their running game together last week and finished with 198 yards. Running backs Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard have totally different styles (Elliott is a power running back while Pollard is quick and shifty), giving offensive coordinator Kellen Moore a variety of options in both the pass and run games this season.

Cowboys a slight favorite for first divisional matchup of the season

Dallas is currently favored by 3.5 points in their date with Philadelphia, who is also 1-1 this season.

Prescott, a former Mississippi State quarterback, will face a fellow former SEC West quarterback in Jalen Hurts, who played at both Alabama and Oklahoma in college. Hurts has averaged 299 yards over two games with a 67.2% completion percentage and three touchdowns. He is the Eagles’ leading rusher with 144 yards and a score on 17 carries.

While the sample size is small, Philadelphia is allowing 11.5 points per game, which is tied for second in the NFL. They held a loaded 49ers offense to 17 points last week in a 17-11 loss.