Garrett: Dez Bryant Will Have to Practice Before He Plays

Jerry Jones and the Dallas Cowboys remain hopeful that Dez Bryant could return from that broken foot after this week’s bye, against the Giants on October 25. But head coach Jason Garrett is here to remind everyone that, if Bryant can’t practice this week or next, that’s not going to happen.

"Like with any injury, you certainly want to see a guy out there on the practice field,” Garrett said, per Jon Machota of the Dallas Morning News. "You want to be able to test it on the practice field and see how he responds physically to the work. There are different kinds of injuries, but certainly his would be one where you want to see him on the practice field running around and see how he handles it."

Where Jones called Bryant “Superman” in discussing his ability to return from injury, Garrett dismissed the idea that Bryant’s toughness will come into play at all in his recovery--which isn’t to say Garrett isn’t optimistic. He is. But he wants to make clear that Bryant won’t play until the injury is healed.

"He's going through his rehab and he's been out on the field a little bit, but he's really just taking it day by day," Garrett said. "We'll see how he responds to the work going forward. The bone has to heal. It's the kind of injury that the bone has to heal. Him being a tough guy doesn't really matter in this situation. It's a medical decision and he's certainly going to give himself every chance to go out there and play."