IRVING, Texas – Dwayne Harris and Ernie Sims remain hopeful they'll be ready to play this weekend after nursing injuries.
Harris didn't practice Wednesday after injuring his hip against the Rams. Sims, who missed the last two weeks after re-injuring his groin, practiced fully and is still easing his way back in.
"The last time I came back, I had a slight little hiccup when I first came back," Sims said. "This time, it's definitely progress, definitely moving in the right direction. I've just got to keep putting days like this right behind each other, make sure I don't have any setbacks at all."
Sims' focus is on strengthening his groin and the muscles around it. He said the groin is still healing and probably will be the rest of the season, so his focus is on making sure it's healthy enough to play on Sundays.
The linebacker was able to participate fully Wednesday, and he believes if he continues to progress the way he has he'll be able to be ready in San Diego.
"I'm going to see how I respond after today, any type of swelling or soreness or what not," he said. "I made a conscious effort not to go full speed, not 100 percent, but still try to get my job done. At the same time, ease into it, not going full throttle like I was back in training camp." [embedded_ad]
That can be frustrating for a player who was one of the defensive standouts at camp and appeared to be in a battle for a starting job.
"That's the nature of the beast," Sims said. "I'm going to keep dealing with it and try to get back on that field 100 percent as fast as possible."
Meanwhile, Harris played through the right hip injury he suffered on his second punt return against the Rams when he took a knee to the side. He'd go on to catch a 24-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter.
He doesn't expect to miss this weekend's game, but the trainers have advised him not to take unnecessary contact while it's still sore. He doesn't want to aggravate it worse than it is.
"It was swollen, so I just iced it, just to get the swelling down," Harris said. "It's still a little sore. Other than that, I'm fine."
Harris isn't the only nicked up receiver, as Miles Austin deals with a day-to-day situation with his hamstring. Given his past hamstring history, the Cowboys will likely be as cautious as possible with that injury. Austin didn't practice Wednesday, as head coach Jason Garrett indicated earlier in the day.
"Again, we'll see what his progress is as the days go by," Garrett said.
