Cowboys' ongoing headache worsens ahead of increasingly difficult Lions matchup

The Dallas Cowboys are home underdogs to the Detroit Lions and it's not hard to see why.

The Lions want to run the ball early and often and contrary to the Pittsburgh Steelers, they're darn good at it. They rank 27th in early down pass rate and boast the 9th best rushing offense in such downs per EPA/play.

Meanwhile, the Cowboys are dealing with tons of injuries to their defensive front, including their top three defensive ends : Micah Parsons, DeMarcus Lawrence, and Marshawn Kneeland. Parsons has yet to be officially ruled out but he's a longshot to play.

And now, they're dealing with an injury to their middle linebacker, Eric Kendricks. Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy told reporters he'd be limited in practice due to a shoulder injury.

Based on the fact that he'll participate to a degree, it's fair to assume Kendricks has a legit chance to play on Sunday. But the mere fact that he's on the injury report with such a banged up defensive line worsens the ongoing headache for the Cowboys: Sure, they've been better against the run as of late but the Lions pose a totally different challenge thanks to their elite offensive line and diverse run game.

Potentially being down your green dot defender is a scary thought. Hopefully, Kendricks is ready to go by gametime. Even if he suits up but isn't 100%, it increases the difficulty of the upcoming matchup.

Mike Zimmer's gameplan will likely put a lot of weight on the linebackers' shoulders as he might draw up several blitz calls to generate pass rush and also wreak some havoc against the Lions' rushing attack.

Additionally, McCarthy revealed CB DaRon Bland would continue to practice on a pitch count after being a full participant on Wednesday . Caelen Carson will be with the rehab group.

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