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For the first time since September 2019, the Dallas Cowboys have glued together two consecutive wins and are desperately hoping to overturn their 2020 mistakes and beat the odds to steal the NFC East crown in the final two games. They'll need help from the Washington Football Team to do so, as well as their own key players, but there's a chance linebacker Leighton Vander Esch could miss one or both of the remaining contests. The former first-round pick left the Week 15 contest with what's being described as a high ankle sprain, not to return. 

An MRI shows no structural damage, sources tell CBS Sports, but the team currently isn't optimistic about his chances of taking the field on Sunday afternoon against the Philadelphia Eagles.

As it stands, the Cowboys will allow Vander Esch to focus on rest and rehabilitation this week, and make a decision later in the week after seeing when and if he can practice. Should he be sidelined in Week 16, the team will lean more heavily on veteran linebacker Sean Lee, along with Jaylon Smith beside him. Head coach Mike McCarthy also noted the injury is of the "couple of weeks" variety -- also putting his status for the Week 17 finale against the New York Giants in question. The Pro Bowl linebacker missed four games earlier in the season with a broken collarbone that required surgery to repair, but impressed many with how quickly he was able to return to the field after the procedure.

Vander Esch isn't the only walking wounded after the win over the San Francisco 49ers, by the way. As has usually been the case for the Cowboys in 2020, there are several others to keep an eye on.

Starting nose tackle Antwaun Woods was knocked out of the game with a left ankle injury, starting safety Xavier Woods left and didn't return with a chest/rib injury, backup cornerback Chris Westry suffered a sprained PCL and starting wideout Michael Gallup exited late in the game with what's being labeled a hip pointer/hip strain. The additional injuries are being monitored as well, and all but Westry have a more promising outlook, with Westry expected to be moved to injured reserve to close out the regular season -- a separate source confirmed to CBS Sports. It's touch-and-go for A. Woods, X. Woods and Gallup at this point, but it appears none suffered major injury. 

The team will know more when practice fires up on Wednesday and, like the status on Vander Esch, their availability will be determined later in the week -- any or all potentially being a game time decision. That's something two-time NFL running back Ezekiel Elliott knows a little something about, having been unexpectedly ruled out of the fight with the 49ers just ahead of kickoff. Elliott expected to play through his nagging calf bruise -- a sentiment echoed during the week by head coach Mike McCarthy and owner Jerry Jones -- but was unable to do so when pre-game warmups didn't loosen up his calf as intended. McCarthy told media on Monday that Elliott was farther along this week than last, giving him a shot at battling the Eagles, but it's far from a guarantee. 

Help arrived for the Cowboys defense on Sunday, particularly in their secondary, when they got rookie second-round pick Trevon Diggs, starting safety Donovan Wilson and starting cornerbacks Chidobe Awuzie and Anthony Brown back from injury but, in one fell swoop, they are now crossing their fingers they'll not have to face a surging Jalen Hurts with their flag at half staff.