Cowboys Get Bad News on Latest Keanu Neal Update

The Dallas Cowboys will be without safety-turned-linebacker Keanu Neal when they host the Philadelphia Eagles for Week 3's Monday Night Football matchup. The Cowboys announced on Saturday that Neal has been placed on the COVID-19 list after the sixth-year veteran tested positive for the virus.

Keanu Neal COVID-19 Update

It's also been confirmed that the 26-year-old is unvaccinated, which means that he'll have to isolate for 10 days before rejoining Dallas — assuming that he's asymptomatic by that time. Meanwhile, players who are vaccinated can get cleared to play as long they produce two negative tests that are at least 24 hours apart.

Neal joined the Cowboys on a one-year, $5 million contract over the offseason after spending his first five seasons with the Atlanta Falcons. He's started in one of two games so far this season, recording 9 total tackles (one of which was for a loss).

Fourth-year LB Leighton Vander Esch could see an increase in playing time as long as Neal is out. Vander Esch played just 22% of Dallas' defensive snaps in Week 1 before seeing that increase to 52% during Week 2's victory over the Los Angeles Chargers. The former All-Pro player finished the win with 7 total tackles and a sack.

The Cowboys are favored to win Monday's NFC East clash at -180 odds, according to FanDuel Sportsbook, while the Eagles sit at +152.

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Devon Platana is not a FanDuel employee. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.