Dallas Cowboys waive DB Kaiir Elam, sign RB Malik Davis from practice squad

The Cowboys have made a somewhat surprising move. Dallas waived cornerback Kaiir Elam on Saturday, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.

In their corresponding move, they decided to sign running back Malik Davis from the practice squad. Elam was in the middle of his first season with Dallas after four with the Buffalo Bills, and he’d amassed 29 total tackles and one pass deflection.

So, Dallas’ secondary will look a little different on Sunday against the Eagles, but at least they’ll have their quarterback. Dak Prescott popped up on the team’s injury report earlier this week, but if you wanted some reassurance, you got it in the form of team owner Jerry Jones not even knowing Prescott was hurt.

The Cowboys listed Prescott with a hip injury following Wednesday’s practice, though he remained a full participant. Head coach Brian Schottenheimer downplayed the situation, calling it “nothing major” and emphasizing that the team was simply being smart with Prescott’s workload, and Jones’ reaction underscored that.

Still, the Cowboys are entering a brutal three-game gauntlet. They’ll face Philadelphia, Kansas City and Detroit in an 11-day span, and any injury news involving their franchise quarterback draws attention. Prescott, 32, has stayed healthy this season after hamstring surgery ended his 2024 campaign early. That stability has fueled one of the best stretches of his career. 

He enters Week 12 with 2,587 yards, 21 touchdowns, six interceptions and an NFL-best 75.1 QBR while completing a career-high 69.9% of his passes. His sharp performance continued in Monday’s 33-16 win over Las Vegas, where he went 25-of-33 for 268 yards and four touchdowns. 

At 4-5-1, Dallas sits 10th in the NFC and faces long but realistic odds of reaching the postseason. According to The New York Times’ playoff simulator, the Cowboys have a 10% chance to make the playoffs entering Sunday’s divisional showdown with Philadelphia. 

A win nearly doubles that number to 18%. A loss drops it to just 4%. Prescott, though, has remained firm in his belief that the Cowboys can still make a run.

“We’re in control,” he said earlier this week, via ESPN’s Todd Archer. “Life’s going to throw things at us, and it threw us a hell of a curveball this past week. … To have a testimony, we’ve got to go through a test. And this is a big test to our brotherhood.”

With the Eagles up first, followed by Patrick Mahomes on Thanksgiving and a Lions team battling for the NFC’s No. 1 seed, Dallas needs its quarterback at full strength. For now, despite the injury report, Jerry Jones doesn’t seem worried.

— On3’s Nick Geddes contributed to this article.