IRVING, Texas – After all that speculation about his playing status, there was Jason Witten on Wednesday morning – practicing.
For any other player, that'd have to be considered surprising. After all, Witten sprained both ankles and one of his knees in Sunday's 20-10 win against Philadelphia.
For a guy who has appeared in 193 career games over a 13-year career, though, it was almost expected. The injuries were enough to spark reports that Witten's status against Atlanta is in doubt – though that'd be his first absence since Week 5 of 2003, his rookie season.
Asked about Witten's status on Wednesday morning, Cowboys coach Jason Garrett seemed to smirk.
"We don't know the extent of his practice today. He won't be full," Garrett said. "We'll see how limited he is. But knowing him, he's doing everything he can and he's making progress."
Witten might not work through the full course of Wednesday's practice, but it's got to be a good sign for Sunday's game that he is already working in full padding so early in the week. Garrett said the conversations about health and readiness will be constant as the week goes on.
"It's always day-by-day with everybody," he said. "As you get into the NFL season there is a lot of different scenarios that come up with the guys who go to practice on Wednesday or Thursday or Friday, or what you project for the week and his availability during the game."
Elsewhere on the practice fields, Ron Leary and James Hanna weren't on hand for the start of Wednesday's practice. Leary sat out of the Philadelphia game with a groin strain, while Hanna had a scope procedure on his knee on Saturday.
Both players appeared to be heading out to practice in pads at the tail end of the media portion of the morning, so it will be interesting to see how both players factor on the Wednesday injury report.
New quarterback Matt Cassel was not at practice, as his plane from Buffalo did not arrive in Dallas in time. Dez Bryant and Randy Gregory rounded out the day's absences.
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