Cowboys' Chidobe Awuzie activated from injured reserve, will likely return for Week 11 battle with Vikings

The veteran cornerback is closing in on a return to the field

The NFL giveth and the NFL taketh away. That's the mantra for the Dallas Cowboys as they head into their Week 10 bye, having now lost rookie center Tyler Biadasz for multiple weeks with a hamstring injury and rookie cornerback Trevon Diggs for potentially the rest of the season, the latter having suffered a fracture in his foot that will sideline him roughly 4-6 weeks. But as Diggs exits with injury, the team is looking forward to the return of veteran cornerback Chidobe Awuzie, having activated him on Tuesday from injured reserve -- where he's been since suffering a hamstring injury in Week 2.

Awuzie returned to practice ahead of the Week 8 battle with the Philadelphia Eagles, but after the team set the expectation of a potential return in that game, they instead decided to keep him sidelined after his practice reps raised concern. He'd go on to miss the Week 9 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers as well, and the additional rest by way of the bye week factors into his potential return in two weeks, as does the fact the Cowboys were forced to make a decision on him this week -- thanks to the 21-day clock nearing its expiration.

If they didn't activate him before that deadline arrived, he would've reverted back to injured reserve.

As for the timing of his injury, it could not come at a worse time, as Awuzie tries to prove himself in the final year of his rookie contract. The former second-round pick played well in Year 1 with the Cowboys, but suffered a sophomore slump of sorts and then an uneven third campaign in 2019, which led to speculation the team might look at converting him to safety. An option Mike McCarthy was admittedly open to, they instead decided to keep him at corner, and he grabbed the team's first interception of the season in the 20-17 opening day loss to the Los Angeles Rams. 

Having now missed seven games, and with only seven left to establish strong value within the organization and on the open market as whole, he'll have to hit the ground running; and without the promising talents of Diggs to help him out on the opposite side of the field. In what's rapidly and steadily become a lost season for the Cowboys, the most Awuzie can do now is try to be around for the reboot in 2021.