George Pickens has knee, calf injuries
One of the basic realities of short-week football is that injured players have less time to get ready to go.
That time will be precious for Cowboys receiver George Pickens.
Pickens appears on the Monday injury report with knee and calf issues. If the Cowboys had held a full practice (they performed a walkthrough), Pickens would not have participated.
Pickens has near-identical stat lines over the past two games. Against the Raiders, he had nine catches for 144 yards and a touchdown. Against the Eagles, Pickens caught nine passes for 146 yards and a touchdown.
Left tackle Tyler Guyton also would not have practiced, due to an ankle injury, along with receiver Kavontae Turpin (shoulder/illness) and defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa (elbow).
Limited in practice would have been defensive end Jadeveon Clowney (neck), defensive end Dante Fowler (shoulder), safety Malik Hooker (toe/thigh), and safety Donovan Wilson (neck).
Quarterback Dak Prescott, who appeared on last week's report with a hip injury, was not listed in the first report for Week 13.
The Cowboys host the Chiefs on Thursday, in what likely will be the most-watched regular-season game in NFL history. It's hard to imagine Pickens. who's having a breakout year in his fourth NFL season (and first in Dallas) not playing in the game.