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Cowboys Place First-Round Pick Malachi Lawrence on IR, Activate Marist Liufau Before Colts Game
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- Cowboys Place First-Round Pick Malachi Lawrence on IR, Activate Marist Liufau Before Colts Game
Dallas will go into Indianapolis without one of its two first-round rookies. The Cowboys placed outside linebacker Malachi Lawrence on injured reserve Saturday and activated Marist Liufau from IR, NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reported , one day after Lawrence showed up on the Cowboys' final injury report as out for Sunday.
IR means Lawrence has to miss at least four games. That covers the Colts, the 49ers, the Titans and the Thanksgiving game against the Eagles, making the Dec. 7 trip to Seattle his earliest possible return. Brian Schottenheimer had already said the ankle injury Lawrence suffered in the 33-30 overtime loss to Arizona was different from the others Dallas came out of that game with.
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"Malachi has [an injury] that might be a little bit longer," Schottenheimer said. "Looks like it could be a few weeks."
Marist Liufau returns to a thin edge room
Dallas Cowboys linebacker Marist Liufau (35) celebrates a sack against the Carolina Panthers.© Scott Kinser-Imagn Images
Lawrence, the No. 23 overall pick out of UCF, had started the last three games. Through eight games he had 13 tackles, three quarterback hits and a sack. His pass rush was further along than his run defense, as we wrote earlier this week , with PFF ranking him 50th of 110 edge defenders as a pass rusher and 101st against the run.
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Set those run-defense numbers next to the back Dallas sees Sunday, and the edge job stays hard no matter who takes it. Lawrence made four run stops on 91 run-defense snaps, according to PFF. Jonathan Taylor has 610 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on 148 carries, and Indianapolis ranks fifth in rush EPA going against what has been the NFL's worst defense by EPA .
Liufau, a 2024 third-round pick, broke his left forearm in the preseason finale against the Saints and opened the season on IR. He joins Rashan Gary, Donovan Ezeiruaku, James Houston, Von Miller and Tyrus Wheat in an outside linebacker group that is still cleaning up mistakes after Gary owned the penalty that cost Dallas against Arizona.
Dallas also elevated wide receiver Jordan Hudson and tight end James Mitchell from the practice squad. Defensive tackle Jonathan Bullard will stay on IR and has been ruled out.
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At 3-5, the Cowboys have run out of room for another letdown , and the staff in Frisco has to find the pass rush Lawrence was starting to provide from the players still standing.
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This story was originally published by Athlon on Nov 7, 2026, where it first appeared in the NFL section. Add Athlon as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
