The Dallas Cowboys have confirmed that Josh Butler’s season is over after he tore his ACL in Thursday’s 27-20 win against the New York Giants.
Butler’s injury was non-contact and concerning from the start. He went down while defending Giants receiver Darius Slayton and was quickly taken back to the locker room.
“Unfortunately, Butler is going to have to have season-ending ACL surgery,” Cowboys chief operating officer Stephen Jones told 105.3 The Fan.
Butler had been up and down between the practice squad and active roster to start the year but was called into action with Trevon Diggs banged up. He notched a 12-tackle game against the Washington Commanders with three pass breakups and a sack.
Butler took to social media with a message after the injury.
“Love yall, thank you for the support,” Butler said. “I’ll come back stronger.”
Butler is only under contract for this season, making his future in the NFL uncertain.
Cowboys Star CeeDee Lamb Dealing With Injury
The Cowboys are trying to navigate multiple key injuries, including to star receiver CeeDee Lamb. He exited in the second half against the Giants, appearing to reaggravate a shoulder injury he’s been battling. He initially injured the shoulder in Week 9 against the Falcons.
“He’s probably nicked. I don’t know the extent of his injury,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said. “But I’m sure he was limited because of what appeared to be a physical limitation.”
Jones is optimistic Lamb will be ready to roll for a Week 14 matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals.
“I think that Lamb, by the time we get these extra days here for this time we’ve got between Thanksgiving and the next game, I think Lamb will be ready to go,” Jones said.
Lamb said before the Thanksgiving game that he was more banged up than he has been in his career. He was listed on the injury report as having back and foot injuries, and he was limited during his practice time. But as the Cowboy’s most important offensive playmaker left standing, Lamb chose to battle through the ailments.
Cowboys Keep Slim Playoff Hopes Alive
With the win against the Giants, the Cowboys moved to 5-7. They’ll still need to pile up wins and help if they want to make the postseason. NFL.com gives the Cowboys a 6% chance of making the playoffs.
But star pass-rusher Micah Parsons has been vocal that the team has not lost hope.
“There’s been a lot of trash talk out there, talking about what difference can we make. We still got some guys coming back from the chamber,” Parsons said during the postgame on-field interview with Fox’s Erin Andrews. “I’m telling you all right now, we’re coming.”
The Cowboys’ next three games are against teams that currently have losing records (Bengals, Panthers, Buccaneers). They’ll close out the season with a pair of divisional matchups against the Eagles and Commanders.
Dallas has not missed the postseason since 2020 but are trying to make a run without quarterback Dak Prescott. He’s out for the year after having surgery on his hamstring.
