Keeping with the season-long theme of health issues at the center position, the Dallas Cowboys saw Phil Costa return to practice on Monday for the first time since he aggravated a back injury on the opening drive in week one, just as Ryan Cook--who has started in Costa’s absence all year--was held out with a hamstring issue.
As Costa is presumably healthy again, and was the starter going into the season, some might conclude that he will step back into the starting job Sunday against the Ravens--but head coach Jason Garrett made it clear Monday that it’s not quite as simple as that.
“The offensive line is like every other position on our team,” Garrett said, per ESPN Dallas. “We’re going to create competition. We don’t have a rule that says this guy was the starter and then he got hurt and you can’t lose your job to injury. We don’t have any of those rules. We’re going to make our best decision.”
Of course, this competition is based on the assumption that Costa is actually healthy, and that remains an “If” at the moment.
“What we have to do is watch him and see what his health is like and see what he’s able to do,” Garrett said of Costa. “He did a good job trying to come back from that injury late in training camp going into that Giants’ game. We’ve got to make sure he’s healthy first and foremost. If he is, we’ll make our next best evaluation from there.”
Stay on top of the latest Dallas Cowboys news with NBCDFW.com. Follow NBC DFW on Facebook or have breaking Cowboys news sent directly to your phone with Blue Star SMS alerts. Text "bluestar" to 622339 (NBCDFW) to subscribe, text HELP for more info, and text STOP to end the subscription. Message and data rates may apply.Read more about it here.
