Rico Dowdle injury: Dallas Cowboys RB status revealed after sudden illness

Dallas Cowboys running back Rico Dowdle became sick upon arriving to Levi’s Stadium and is questionable for Sunday night’s game against the San Francisco 49ers, according to the Cowboys franchise. Dalvin Cook, who was recently elevated from the practice squad Saturday, could be in line for a big workload against the 49ers. That information was relayed on Sunday evening by Tom Pelissero of NFL Network.

Shortly after that update, Pelissero let fans know that Dowdle is officially inactive for Sunday Night Football. Dalvin Cook will officially be the man at running back for the Cowboys.

So far this season, Dowdle has 59 carries for 246 rushing yards, with no touchdowns. As a receiver, he has hauled in 16 catches for 131 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Dalvin Cook’s last game action was with the Baltimore Ravens, when he had eight carries for 23 yards and no touchdowns. It was against the Houston Texans in the playoffs.

Dowdle played his college football with the South Carolina Gamecocks, where he racked up 2,167 yards and 16 touchdowns on 428 carries. As a receiver, he had 62 catches for 483 yards and three touchdowns. His best season came in 2016, when he had 133 carries for 764 yards and six touchdowns. As a receiver that year, he had 55 receiving yards and a touchdown.

Once he hung up his cleats with the Gamecocks, Dowdle finished 15th on the school’s all-time rushing list. He finished with eight 100-yard rushing games, with a career-best of 226 yards.

The Cowboys are coming off a 47-9 loss to the Lions. The 49ers sit at 3-4 overall, ranking them 3rd in the NFC West. The Sunday Night Football contest is slated to begin at 8:20 PM EST. It will be of course, nationally televised on NBC.