You guys are acting like they can just remove everyone they want from IR without it being a big deal. In the past, once on IR, teams could not bring any players back. Now, teams can bring two players back to the active roster per season after they have been on IR for 8 weeks.
Why would you bring back a player that would be fourth on the depth chart last year? Why fourth? Because as I have pointed out several times the Cowboys offensive scheme focuses tightends more on blocking than receiving and his blocking abilities put him fourth on the depth chart.
I think a lot of fans here are viewing IR like it's a temporary thing for a player to heal and return the moment they are better. The NFL's Injured Reserve does not work like that. If it did, teams would be stashing players on IR for depth and pulling them back the moment they need them. That's why they used to not allow any players to return from IR.
The only reason it changed was because teams were losing more star and important players and they were tying up their 53 roster spots with those injured players for a large part of the season in hopes they could return toward the end and/or for the playoffs. Teams typically use their "Return from IR" options now on players who are important to their team, not young depth players.
Now, you can question why they put him on IR to begin with as I did. And yes, he could have been "stashed" there because they knew he wouldn't be available for several games. However, what they did in leaving him on IR was in no way against the rules and not even against the spirit of the rules in this case.