Cowboys Rule Out Three Starters for Thursday Night Clash With Buccaneers

The Dallas Cowboys will take the field for Thursday Night Football severely short-handed. Cornerback Cobie Durant, linebacker DeMarvion Overshown and offensive tackle Drew Shelton have all been ruled out of the Week 5 home clash with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at AT&T Stadium, leaving head coach Brian Schottenheimer to patch together both sides of the ball on a short week. Durant and Overshown remain sidelined by hamstring strains suffered in Weeks 2 and 1 respectively, with neither practicing on Wednesday. Thursday marks Overshown's fourth consecutive missed game; rookie Jaishawn Barham, who has 21 tackles and a forced fumble in four appearances, will start in his place for the fourth straight week. Durant's absence was already addressed by the trade that brought cornerback Joey Porter Jr. over from Pittsburgh. Shelton hurt his hamstring in Sunday's 34-30 win over Houston after just two snaps and is considered week to week, with Tyler Guyton taking on extra responsibility. The news is not all bleak for Dallas: All-Pro guard Tyler Smith was officially activated from injured reserve on Thursday afternoon and is set to make his season debut. The Cowboys (2-2) face a winless Tampa Bay (0-4) side starting undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels at quarterback for the second straight week with Baker Mayfield sidelined. Kickoff is set for 8:15 p.m. ET on Amazon Prime Video.