DeMarco Murray, the NFL's leading rusher, has a broken hand that will require surgery just days before he was set to eclipse a single-season franchise rushing record set by Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith.
The Dallas Morning News reports Murray's surgery to repair his left hand is expected to take place sometime Monday afternoon, leaving his status for Sunday's game against the Indianapolis Colts in question.
The running back injured his hand during Sunday night's 38-27 win over the Eagles as the offense was trying to run out the clock in the fourth quarter, the team said.
While he didn't rule it out, Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones said during his radio show Monday that it was "probably a tough expectation" that Murray would take the field Sunday.
Should Murray miss the game against the Colts, Lance Dunbar and Joseph Randle will likely split carries in the Cowboys ground game.
Murray talliled 81 yards on the ground against Philadelphia, putting him 87 yards from eclipsing Emmitt Smith's franchise single season rushing record of 1,773 yards.
Through Sunday, Murray has totaled 1,687 yards on the ground. If he misses the game against the Colts, Murray will have one final shot to break the single season record -- in the regular season finale against the Washington Redskins on Dec. 28.
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Murray, a fourth-year back, has yet to make it through an entire NFL season without missing games due to injury. He missed the final three games of his rookie season with a broken ankle, missed six games in 2012 with a foot injury and missed two games with a knee injury last season.
Since that time, he has started 22 straight games and has been the bell cow of the Cowboys ground attack.
The Cowboys (10-4) likely need to win their final two regular season games if they hope to win the NFC East and earn their first trip to the playoffs in four years.
The Associated Press' Schuyler Dixon contributed to this report.
