Gerald McCoy Injury 'Makes You Sick,' Says Cowboys Coach

Gerald McCoy Season-Ending Injury 'Makes You Sick,' Says Dallas Cowboys Coach Mike McCarthy

FRISCO - They all say it. We all say it. "Injuries are part of the game.'' But that doesn't make it any more palatable for people who care about the Dallas Cowboys, or for people who care about their defensive tackle, Gerald McCoy, who was lost for the season with a torn quadriceps tendon on Monday's first day of padded practice here inside The Star in Frisco.

"It makes you sick, on a personal level,'' Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy.

McCoy, 32, is universally admired as a team leader - yes, even in his brief time in Dallas, as he signed his contract this offseason after a brilliant stint with the Bucs and some time with Carolina. 

The man who will replace him as the Cowboys' 3-Tech defensive tackle, Tyrone Crawford, rushed to McCoy's side immediately after the Monday workout to express the team's "love'' for him. Phone calls came to McCoy from outside the building, including from "Snacks'' Harrison, who told me, "I reached out to him. I was excited for G this year, too! He’s a really really great dude!''

Said McCarthy: “I can’t tell you what he has meant to our D-line in the short time we’ve been together.''

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The Cowboys believe they have the sort of roster built to survive this loss; “Overall depth of the defensive line is something we feel we’re in good shape there,” McCarthy said. And McCoy, a six-time Pro Bowler, believes he will rebound in 2021 ... and contribute in another way now.

“I will remain the mentor I am to the young guys,'' McCoy said, "and do my part to make sure that this team goes where it needs to.”