Dallas Cowboys defensive end Micah Parsons has been ruled out for Sunday’s Week 5 road game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, according to the team’s Friday injury report.

Parsons suffered a high ankle sprain eight days ago during the Cowboys’ Week 4 win over the New York Giants.

This will mark the first game Parsons has missed due to injury since entering the NFL in 2021.

His absence will be a major blow for the Cowboys’ defense, which is already missing defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence. The unit could also lose cornerback Trevon Diggs, who is currently questionable for Sunday with an ankle injury.

Parsons suffered the injury after he was rolled up by Giants guard Greg Van Roten while rushing center John Michael Schmitz Jr. during the fourth quarter of the Cowboys’ Week 4 win.

The star pass rusher limped to the sideline and was taken off the field in a cart that Thursday. He was seen using a walking boot and scooter to navigate team facilities on Monday.

The Cowboys have been preparing to take on the Steelers without Parsons since at least that day, per ESPN’s Todd Archer.

Parsons also on Monday acknowledged the possibility that he could sit out the next two weeks against the Steelers and Detroit Lions in order to make it to the Cowboys’ Week 7 bye, but told reporters he would play if he could.

“But when you’re a real competitor, you only get 17 chances at this,” Parsons said on Monday, per Archer. “And missing one of these opportunities to perform at the highest level bothers me. I feel like I want to play on Sunday.

“If I can play, I will play, you know. To me, as long as I can run and move how I move, I want to play.”

With Parsons unable to return to Cowboys practice this week, however, the team made the call to rule him out for Sunday.

The Cowboys still seem to be hoping Parsons will return within four games by keeping him off IR, unlike Lawrence, who joined the list on Tuesday with a foot injury.

Diggs’ status was meanwhile downgraded from being limited in practice on Thursday to not practicing at all on Friday. He joins rookie cornerback Caelen Carson, who is facing a shoulder injury, and rookie linebacker Marist Liafau, who is dealing with a quad issue, as questionable heading into Sunday.

The Cowboys will also have to overcome a major absence on offense without wide receiver Brandin Cooks, who will be sidelined with an infection following a procedure on his knee, as they prepare to face Justin Fields and the 3-1 Steelers.