Cowboys Lose Spencer For Season

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Dallas Cowboys defensive end Anthony Spencer will miss the rest of the season after undergoing microfracture knee surgery, his agent said Tuesday.

Agent Jordan Woy announced on Twitter that Spencer should be recovered by January or February.

Spencer, who underwent arthroscopic surgery on July 25 and was limited throughout training camp, said last week he suffered a setback in his rehab as he was held out of the Sunday’s game against the St. Louis Rams. Spencer played 34 snaps against the Kansas City Chiefs. He missed all of training camp and the season opener.

Spencer said last week that he didn’t think surgery was needed. It’s not known what changed, but Spencer said he had dull pain in the knee after the game in Kansas City.

“A little bit of weakness,” Spencer said in describing his ongoing issues last week. “he brace has something to do with it, and I haven’t really worn it. I just started running two weeks ago, and that

was the most work I’ve done with that brace on. Just a little pain I haven’t had throughout the year.”

Spencer was designated the Cowboys’ franchise player in free agency in March, giving him a one-year, $10.6 million salary. He is the second franchised defender to be felled by a major knee injury, joining Chicago Bears defensive tackle Henry Melton (torn ACL).

Microfracture surgery is a procedure that creates fractures in the bone to promote development of new cartilage. Running backs Reggie Bush and Marshall Faulk underwent similar operations, but not all of the operations can be hailed as successful and the recovery time greatly varies.