It’s often said that the National Football League is a battle of attrition, and we’re unfortunately reminded of this almost week in and week out.

Let’s be clear, nobody roots for injuries. They’re an unfortunate part of the game of football, but the reality is that they happen. Oftentimes injuries happen to the point that they drastically influence the way a team’s season can go. When discussing the Cowboys starting the season off 2-0 and noting that the last time this happened was in 2015, people were quick to remember just how much injuries ruined that season.

There are two important injuries to watch on the Cowboys schedule

Fortunately for all of us, the Cowboys have been relatively injury-free through the season’s first two games. All of this can change in an instant which we saw during Sunday’s game between the Los Angeles Rams and New Orleans Saints.

Drew Brees cannot grip a football right now pic.twitter.com/8hellzjk9g — Jason McIntyre (@jasonrmcintyre) September 15, 2019

Saints quarterback Drew Brees left the game with a right hand injury and was replaced by Teddy Bridgewater. It’s hard to know how long this could be an issue for the NFL’s all-time leading passer, but considering it’s his throwing hand this is obviously something that’s worth watching. Dallas will visit New Orleans in Week 4 of the season so they’ll see Brees relatively soon.

While Week 4 is on our mind, two weeks after that isn’t far past it. The Cowboys will host the Dolphins, visit the Saints, and then host the Green Bay Packers, but after that they will visit the New York Jets. Obviously earlier this week it was reported that Jets quarterback Sam Darnold has mononucleosis, on Sunday morning there were reports that his return could come anywhere between three and seven weeks.

From @NFLGameDay: Numerous teams are interested in #Dolphins star DB Minkah Fitzpatrick, and Miami could trade him this week... Plus, #Jets QB Sam Darnold's timeline for mono recovery ranges from 3 weeks to 7 weeks. Not good. pic.twitter.com/pHf3wHG2IM — Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 15, 2019

Injuries will suck forever, but again they’re a very real part of football. Should New Orleans and/or New York be down their signal-callers that could drastically influence the way that those games go for the Cowboys.

Keep in mind that the team Dallas hosts next week, the Miami Dolphins, could potentially make a quarterback change based on their starter, Ryan Fitzpatrick, not performing well. The Cowboys defense hasn’t been too great two weeks in, but all of that, just like anything else, can change in an instant.