So here is Spence, still rehabbing but inching closer to returning to the field, the Cowboys desperation at this position the driving force to chance keeping him on the 53-man roster on Saturday, as Jones has been insisting they will do, instead of leaving him on reserve/physically unable to perform, a mandatory six-week stay. While Jones already has said Spencer won’t play in the first game, don’t be misled. Chances are he won’t play in the second game or third and possibly no sooner than the fourth, fifth or sixth.
But here is the deal. Had the Cowboys left him on PUP, he is required to miss the first six weeks of the season. Not just games, but can’t practice, either. That means even if he is cleared to practice after those six weeks expire, he’d still need at least two weeks of practice, which would include just two padded ones, to get ready before he actually played in a game. So that’s eight weeks, maybe even nine.
