Cowboys Rumors: QB Garrett Gilbert to Start over Cooper Rush vs. Steelers

Garrett Gilbert will reportedly make his first career NFL start Sunday when the Dallas Cowboys host the undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers.

According to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, Cooper Rush will serve as Gilbert's backup over rookie seventh-round pick Ben DiNucci.

This comes after Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported on Tuesday that Dallas was "seriously contemplating" starting Rush since Andy Dalton was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list and unavailable, suggesting it wasn't exactly thrilled with DiNucci's performance in a 23-9 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 8.

DiNucci started that game because Dalton was sidelined with a concussion and went 21-of-40 for 180 yards, zero touchdowns and zero interceptions.

He had a number of near-miss interceptions and lost two fumbles, including one in the fourth quarter that Rodney McLeod scooped up and returned for a touchdown to all but clinch the win for Philadelphia. The Cowboys were down just six and driving at the time, but the mistake cost DiNucci a potential win in his first career start.

Gilbert was a sixth-round pick by the then-St. Louis Rams in the 2014 NFL draft out of SMU. He bounced around between multiple NFL teams over his first few seasons, but he didn't see his first game action until 2018 with the Carolina Panthers.

The 29-year-old also saw some game action with the Cleveland Browns last season. Overall, Gilbert is 2-of-6 for 40 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions in his NFL career.

Dallas signed Gilbert off the Browns' practice squad after starting quarterback Dak Prescott was lost for the season because of injury last month.

All of this comes with the caveat that the Cowboys' season and championship aspirations took a massive hit when Prescott was lost for the year with a fractured ankle. He was supposed to lead an offense loaded with playmakers, but the team is now turning to options it surely never expected to rely on in 2020.

The good news for the 2-6 Cowboys is the state of the NFC East. They are still well within striking distance of the 3-4-1 Eagles if they can string together some wins.

The bad news is they are starting Gilbert against the league's only undefeated team on Sunday.