The season is over for veteran defensive end Tyrone Crawford. Entering September, the biggest concern for Crawford was whether he'd receive a suspension for his role in a bar altercation this past spring in Florida, but that probe remains open in the NFL front office, and Crawford was allowed to take the field.
From there, he began battling an issue that's been described as hip bursitis, per a source with knowledge of the situation, and it cost him two games over the first six. He'd return in Week 5 to face the Green Bay Packers, but that didn't mean he was healthy. In reality, Crawford was healthy "enough" to participate, but the Dallas Cowboys still had very real concern about his hip, and were actually utilizing game snaps to determine if the issue was one that could be managed, or if he'd require surgery to repair it.
As it turns it out, just two games into his return, it's the latter, and Crawford will now undergo a procedure to finally cure what ails him, the team announced -- ending his season. He'll be placed on injured reserve, and the Cowboys will need to determine who'll get his seat on the active 53-man roster.
A separate source tells me the likely move will be to dip into their practice squad and promote undrafted rookie Daniel Wise, who impressed in camp and during the preseason. Additionally, adding reps for fellow first-year players Trysten Hill and Joe Jackson will be inevitable here, particularly when the former is a second-round pick.
Crawford heading to IR is yet another blow suffered by a Cowboys defensive line that hasn't produced much outside of the stellar play of Robert Quinn, and just saw Antwaun Woods return to action in Week 6 after missing three games with an injury of his own. Second-year defensive end Dorance Armstrong is now under evaluation for a neck injury suffered in the loss to the New York Jets, and there's still no word on the status of suspended edge rusher Randy Gregory.
They've lacked the ability to take down opposing quarterbacks in 2019, sans Quinn, and Crawford was key last season in aiding that effort with 5.5 sacks on the year. Without him in the mix going forward, others -- both proven and unproven -- will need to step up, and big.
