Have you ever experienced turbulence on an airplane? If so, that's what following the Dallas Cowboys for the last couple of weeks has felt like.
Dak Prescott might need season-ending surgery on his hamstring tendon, which is partially torn off the bone. The front office sacrificed a fourth-round pick for a wide receiver who has as many touchdowns as you and me. And who could forget Ezekiel Elliott's disciplinary benching?
There is no rest for the wicked around these parts.
After trading for Jonathan Mingo, the Cowboys admitted defeat on two trades they made in training camp, relasing cornerback Andrew Booth and defensive tackle Jordan Phillips. While Booth was acquired in a straight swap for fellow cornerback Nahshon Wright, Dallas gave up a sixth-round pick in the 2025 draft for just two games of Phillips.
Phillips could not wait to get out of Dallas and he swiftly returned to the Bills, where he played the previous two seasons. Upon returning to Buffalo, Phillips took a swipe at the Cowboys that was months in the making.
Let's make one thing clear: the Cowboys are not blameless here. Phillips was a third-stringer on the Giants before he was traded to Dallas. There was a reason for that. Relying on him to play substantive snaps was a terrible idea. That proved true in short oder.
In two games, Phillips posted a 29.6 PFF player grade that ranks 198th among 2021 qualified defensive tackles and a 26.2 run-defense grade that ranked 201st (dead-last) among interior defenders.
Phillips was consistently moved off the line of scrimmage. There were multiple snaps when he got pushed several yards downfield. And who could forget when Phillips decided to tackle and already-grounded Saints offensive linemen instead of pursuing quarterback Derek Carr?
Mike Zimmer has got a lot of things wrong, but he realized Phillips shouldn't be on the field. The Cowboys placed him on injured reserve with an apparent wrist injury.
Phillips did not take kindly to the move. He returned to practice two weeks ago, but had not been moved to the active roster. That, and his phantom IR stint, is undoubtedly the root of his animosity toward the team.
With all of the said, Phillips' shot at Dallas is borderline delusional. Was he hurt enough to go on injured reserve? Probably not. But his poor play is the reason we're here. He was wanted to shore up the interior defensive line. He was worse than bad, so they cut him loose.
That Phillips didn't acknowledge his poor play and instead chose to clown the Cowboys, who, again, look foolish for trading for him in the first place, is a bizarre hill to die on.
