Cowboys enter Giants opener without Tyler Smith and Malik Davis

Week 1 already asked the Dallas Cowboys to open without Pro Bowl guard Tyler Smith. Now the offense is also without the running back who had won the No. 2 job behind Javonte Williams.

Malik Davis suffered a hip injury at Friday practice, underwent surgery, and is expected to land on season-ending injured reserve ahead of Sunday Night Football at the New York Giants, according to DallasCowboys.com and ESPN.

The stacking of those absences is the story for a metro club that wanted clean health entering MetLife Stadium. Smith is on IR after left-thumb surgery and must miss at least four games. Davis's exit removes the complementary runner and special-teams piece Dallas had penciled into the opener.

How the Davis injury unfolded

Friday's outdoor work at The Star was non-contact and described by the team site as slightly above a walk-through. Davis was carted off. Nick Eatman of DallasCowboys.com reported hip surgery for Saturday and a season-ending IR expectation. ESPN's Todd Archer, citing a source, likewise had Davis headed to IR and unavailable for the Giants.

"Very disappointing. Malik's done everything the right way. He's such a good person off the field, he works his ass off, he's come from nowhere to be our No. 2 back, and he's done it the hard way," Cowboys chief operating officer Stephen Jones said on 105.3 The Fan.

"Now unfortunately, I think he's looking at a pretty serious injury. So disappointed for Malik. Obviously tough for our team, but like anything it's next man up."

Two counting disagreements in the record

On last season's rushing total, DallasCowboys.com listed 252 yards and two touchdowns for Davis; ESPN listed 250 yards on 52 carries and two scores, along with that 103-yard Christmas game against Washington. On surgery timing, NBC 5 and the AP said the operation happened Friday night while citing the team site; Cowboys.com and ESPN say Saturday.

Neither dispute changes the roster math: Davis is done for 2026, and the backfield is thinner for Sunday night.

ESPN also noted Davis's preseason line - 68 yards on 12 carries plus an 8-yard touchdown reception - the kind of tape that had secured him the backup role after he arrived undrafted in 2022 and climbed back from practice-squad seasons.

Depth behind Williams

Emari Demercado, claimed off waivers from Kansas City, is the next back on the active picture. ESPN detailed his Cardinals career (819 rush yards, three TDs on 126 carries; 50 receptions, 324 yards, one TD) and the overlap with Klayton Adams. Israel Abanikanda is on the practice squad and could be elevated.

Hunter Luepke stays available for fullback and short-yardage work. Blue is with the Eagles' practice squad; Mafah is unsigned.

Special teams feel the hit too. ESPN described Davis as part of the "core four" on kickoff and punt return and coverage units, a personal protector, and a player with seven special-teams tackles last season. That workload now redistributes across a thinner group.

Opener without the planned depth

Dak Prescott still has CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, and Williams as the featured runner. What he does not have is the No. 2 back the staff preferred or the left guard who started the prior stretch. Demercado and, if elevated, Abanikanda become the emergency valve. The Giants present the first live test of whether that thinner board holds for four quarters under the lights.

Sources

Dallas Cowboys

ESPN

NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth