Dez Bryant Injury: Playing Star WR is Worth Risk for Reeling Cowboys

Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant sat out practice for the second consecutive day Thursday while nursing a thigh contusion. Bryant suffered the injury on a punt return early in Dallas' Sunday night loss to the New York Jets.

Despite not practicing, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is confident Bryant will play, according to Rainer Sabin of Dallas News.

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Asked if the team is taking precautionary measures with regards to Bryant's health, Jones replied, "Cautious is not so much the word for it. We think he can get ready and every day we buy giving him some time off on it I think we can."

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If head coach Jason Garrett and the Cowboys brass are concerned about the injury, it would be understandable if they decided to hold him out of Sunday's game against the San Francisco 49ers. It's impossible to say how serious the injury actually is, but if Bryant and the doctors feel he can go, then Dallas absolutely needs him to play this weekend.

If the Cowboys had held on and beaten the Jets last week like they should have, then they would have been in a position where playing Bryant would be a luxury. Instead, after losing and starting the season off 0-1, playing Bryant is an absolute necessity.

The Cowboys need to avoid the slow start that plagued them last season, making Sunday's game a virtual must-win. The 'Niners are a team that the Cowboys have no business losing to, but playing without Bryant would put them at a severe disadvantage.

Without Bryant on the field, San Francisco's defense will be able to focus all of its attention on stopping Miles Austin. While Austin is an excellent receiver, he really benefits from having a threat like Bryant on the opposite side of the field.

It isn't ridiculous to think the Cowboys could win without Bryant, but there is no reason to take that risk if they don't have to. With Bryant hoping for a fat, new contract next season, he'll obviously want to play, and the Cowboys should go along with that.

Of course, playing him won't come without risk, as there is always the possibility that Bryant could further aggravate the injury. It would be unfair to call Bryant injury prone in the early stages of his career, but he did miss Dallas' final four games last season with a fractured fibula.

Losing Bryant for an extended period of time would be devastating for the Cowboys, so sitting him Sunday would probably be the safer route. Dallas can't afford to be safe at this point, though, as Bryant will be needed and featured heavily against the 49ers.

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LIFE HURTS. THIS INJURY UPDATE BROUGHT TO YOU BY DICKIES.