The Dallas Cowboys will be without their star cornerback Trevon Diggs against the Washington Commanders. To compensate for his absence from what is an already banged-up secondary, Brian Schottenheimer has activated a second-year cornerback off the injured reserve list.

— Todd Archer (@toddarcher) October 18, 2025

The announcement about Diggs came just ahead of Friday’s practice, with Schottenheimer revealing that he suffered a concussion in an accident at home.

“This is the NFL, and if you’re unsure what’s going to happen just wait because something is going to happen,” Schottenheimer said. “And you deal with it, and you don’t lose sleep over it. The biggest thing is just the concern for Trevon that he’s OK. But seems like he is.”

The All-Pro cornerback, who missed time in each of the past two seasons due to injury, has 18 tackles over six games to his name this season. Meanwhile, Carson began the season on IR after hyperextending his knee during training camp.

However, with him being a full participant this week, time running out to activate him off IR, and Diggs’ sudden injury, it only made sense for the Cowboys to put him back on the 53-man active roster. Wide receiver Jonathan Mingo, whose 21-day return to practice window started on the same day as Carson’s, still remains on the injured reserve list.

Before being placed on IR, Carson started in 6 games and posted 27 tackles and defended 4 passes in his rookie season last year. And while he is finally set to make his debut this season against the Commanders, he is likely going to be on a snap count.

What Trevon Diggs’ injury means for the Cowboys

The Cowboys’ defense this season has been terrible this season. They are giving away 411.7 total yards per game (the worst in the league) and are 31st in the league in terms of points conceded per game (30.7). One of the ways the Cowboys were planning to prevent yet another defensive meltdown this week was man-to-man coverage, a strength of Diggs. However, Schottenheimer has assured that the plan remains the same even with the star cornerback sidelined.

“It doesn’t change,” the head coach said. “We adjust always when you get into game day, but it doesn’t change. It’s a good plan. I like the plan. We have to go out and execute the plan. It’s going to come down to us going out and playing well against a really good Commanders offense.”

While Carson is back, Kaiir Elam is likely going to start opposite DaRon Bland. Over six games this season, Elam has recorded 21 tackles, with 14 of them being solo.

The offense of the Washington Commanders continues to thrive in the meantime. Through six games, they have totaled 2,074 total yards, which includes 1,168 passing yards and 906 rushing yards. Running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt recorded 344 yards on the ground, 5.7 yards per carry, while quarterback Jayden Daniels has thrown for 875 yards and seven touchdowns.

The Cowboys’ offense has received a major boost now that CeeDee Lamb is back, but if their defense fails to show up yet again, they are going to be in deep trouble.