Former Cowboys star Troy Aikman talks about what caused the spate of injuries early in the season

The Pro Football Hall of Famer said he believes in the NFL’s rules Helping players avoid injuries It may actually be a reason for them.

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Troy Aikman arrives on the red carpet for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Ceremony at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium on August 5, 2023. (Kirby Lee/USA Today Sports)

On Friday “Rodeo Time Podcast” Aikman fondly remembers doing two days of workouts in Wichita Falls, Texas, where the Cowboys were holding training camp in the summer. He noted that although players are not as taxed as they were in the 1980s and 1990s during camps, they may not be prepared for the damage their bodies are exposed to at the beginning of the season.

“I think they only wear pads one day a week or once a day, they get a workout, and then, I don’t know how he reads everything, but he’s very player-friendly and a favorite,” Aikman said. “And a lot of that is, when they negotiate a CBA, the owners always tend to win on the financial side. Then the players say, ‘Okay, well, so we’re not going to practice as long, or we’re not going to practice as much.'” So, they tend to have to compromise when it comes to the time they actually spend in the facilities.

Super Bowl champion Bryce Huff retires from American football at the age of 27

Troy Aikman before the game between the Cincinnati Bengals and Jacksonville Jaguars at Everbank Stadium on December 4, 2023. (Nathan Ray Sibick/USA Today Sports)

“I think the only ones who don’t have a voice in those negotiations are the coaches. They have to wait until the dust settles and say, ‘Okay, how many times do we get it?'” But some of what we’re also seeing is one of the reasons I think we’re seeing a lot of injuries, especially early in the year. There’s a lot of soft tissue injuries, a lot of muscle strains, things like that that players aren’t able to train the way we used to, they’re not able to strengthen their bodies as easily. It’s not that they’re not training hard and so forth. But training on your own is different than being on the football field and practicing football moves.”

Aikman explained that he is a fan of making changes in the name of player safety, but he is concerned that it may do more harm than good to some people.

Joe Burrow of the Cincinnati Bengals, JJ McCarthy of the Minnesota Vikings, and Brock Purdy of the San Francisco 49ers and Baltimore Ravens. Lamar Jackson They were among the quarterbacks who missed time at the start of last season.

Baltimore Ravens’ Lamar Jackson warms up before a preseason game against the Dallas Cowboys, on August 16, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Gareth Patterson)

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Player safety is once again set to be in the spotlight as The NFL is reportedly looking forward to Thanksgiving Eve A game with the potential to expand to an 18-game schedule in the future.

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