With the 2019 season just hours away the Dallas Cowboys won’t have one of their most important defensive players, well, not at kickoff that is. All-Pro Cornerback Byron Jones won’t start against the New York Giants according to ESPN’s Ed Werder.

Source: the #Cowboys won’t start Pro Bowl CB Byron Jones against the NYG. He’s been recovering from offseason hip surgery. He will play but snaps will be closely monitored. Jourdan Lewis and Anthony Brown had outstanding preseasons.

— Ed Werder (@WerderEdESPN) September 8, 2019

Jones had surgery back in March to fix a hip injury he suffered during the 2018 season. He’s been rehabbing around the clock to be ready for the season opener, which he will, just not in a starting role. His snaps will be monitored closely to ensure the Cowboys top corner doesn’t have any further setbacks. Chidobe Awuzie will be the number one corner but it will be interesting to see who gets the nod as the number two between Anthony Brown and Jourdan Lewis, who both had excellent preseasons. Jones has started the previous 58 games for the Cowboys and is currently in a contract year.