Amari Cooper hasn’t been on the field for the Dallas Cowboys for the previous two games after he tested positive for COVID-19, but it appears like his absence will stop there. According to Ed Werder of ESPN, Cooper is expected to travel with the Cowboys to New Orleans leading up to their “Thursday Night Football” matchup with the Saints and play in the Week 13 opener. This comes as the team officially activated Cooper off of the reserve/COVID-19 list on Wednesday.
Cooper was automatically ruled out for Dallas’ previous two games after testing positive for COVID-19. Because he is unvaccinated, Cooper was required to go into a 10-day isolation, which forced him out of Weeks 11 and 12 — both losses for the Cowboys to the Chiefs and Raiders.
COVID-19 has hit Dallas particularly hard over these last few weeks as they will go into this matchup missing over a handful of personnel members consisting of coaches and players. Key among them is head coach Mike McCarthy, who will not be making the trip after he entered health and safety protocols.
As for Cooper, his status was still in question, despite that 10-day window coming to a close. McCarthy said Tuesday that the star receiver was “still not feeling the best.” That said, it does appear like he is on track to return. According to NFL/NFLPA protocols, Cooper’s symptoms needed to be improved for him to be activated off of the reserve list and needed approval from the club physician after consulting with ICS and the NFL chief medical officer, which he has since received.
On top of Cooper’s looming return, fellow receiver CeeDee Lamb was a full participant in practice on Tuesday after he missed last week due to a concussion.
