Well, well, well, how the turntables. It looks as though the Pittsburgh Steelers will have to play guessing games all week when it comes to preparing for which Dallas Cowboys quarterback they will face on the road Sunday.
After veteran Cowboys backup quarterback Andy Dalton was placed on the team’s Reserve/COVID-19 list on Tuesday, most assumed that rookie quarterback Ben DiNucci would be the one to start against the Steelers at home on Sunday because he had started the team’s Week 8 game against the Philadelphia Eagles. As it turns out, DiNucci might not even wind up being active for that game. If he is active, it sounds like he’ll back up either Garrett Gilbert or Cooper Rush.
Rush, who was signed to the Cowboys practice squad a week ago, was actually with the Cowboys until they signed Dalton last spring. For his NFL career, Rush has attempted just three passes and completed just one for 2 yards.
As for Gilbert, who the Cowboys signed from the Cleveland Browns practice squad in the middle of October, he has now spent time with seven different NFL teams since he went undrafted in 2014. Most of his snaps as a professional came in 2019 and with the Orlando Apollos of the now-defunct AAF league.
Gilbert, who was originally selected in the sixth-round of the 2014 NFL Draft by the St. Louis Rams, has attempted just six career NFL passes and completed just two for 40 yards. He last attempted an NFL pass as a member of the Cleveland Browns in the Week 13 game against the Steelers.
The Steelers are currently 13.5-point road favorites over the Cowboys as Tuesday begins to wind down. Earlier on Tuesday, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin indicated during his press conference that the team was preparing to face Dalton on Sunday. Dalton, who had missed the Cowboys Week 8 game with a concussion, was placed on the Cowboys Reserve/COVID-19 list not long after Tomlins press confgfrence had ended.
