SPORTSDAY

Those hoping that T.O. would have another emotional postgame moment with a quarterback will be disappointed.

I surfed the Web far and wide looking for reports of T.O. and Jeff Garcia giving each other some love after the ex-San Francisco teammates hooked up (for a TD) at the Pro Bowl. Figured that if T.O. can hug it out with Donovan McNabb, surely he could show Garcia some love.

Apparently not. According to ESPN.com's Hashmarks, Garcia was P.C. when asked about T.O. And T.O. was T.O. when asked about Garcia.

"It seemed like old times," Garcia said. "We didn't miss a beat. ... A guy like that, you have to give him opportunities to make plays."

Said Owens: "It doesn't matter who's back there at quarterback -- he does his job, I do my job. It works out for everybody."

Tony Romo and T.O., who talked to NFL Network earlier this week, also sat down together with FoxSports.com's Alex Marvez.

You can check out that interview here. The Romo/T.O. relationship has progressed to the point that the QB sings love songs to the receiver.

In a touching moment, T.O. reveals that the media made him cry after the playoff loss because he knew what questions were going to be asked about the Simpson Family Bye Week Fiesta.

On a related note, T.O. expressed concern that Romo is "in way over his head" with the Blonde Ambition star. The Original 81 might have been kidding. Always tough to tell with him.

The only question left is which one in Tony Romo and which one is Terrell Owens?

During a two-segment interview on last night's NFL Total Access, the Cowboys' record-setting duo couldn't settle that. At first, Romo assumed the role of the Boy Wonder, but at the end of their sitdown with Rich Eisen, the QB was looking to become the Caped Crusader.

That was just part of a talk that ranged from how much Owens' emotional defense of his QB at season's end meant to the QB, all the way to how good Romo really is at golf. Follow the jump for the long of the jovial conversation. And as a warning: We mean long.

Everybody's favorite wide receiver, Terrell Owens, will do a interview today on CNN around 2 p.m. T.O. will talk about, what else, T.O.
The interview was done in Miami, Owens' offseason home, earlier this week.

T.O.'s not tripping too hard about having to owing the Eagles $769,120, but he's not real happy with the job the players union did representing him in arbitration.

"It is what it is,'' Owens said, according to the Philadelphia Daily News. "Honestly, I'm disappointed in the union. The second time that we've kind of used their services, I've been very, very disappointed in that.''

Of course, agent Drew Rosenhaus handled the Original 81's departure from Philly like a true pro.

The Philadelphia Inquirer's Bob Brookover couldn't resist taking a jab while breaking the news that an arbitator ruled that T.O. must return $769,120 to the Eagles.

Terrell Owens had nearly 800,000 reasons to cry over the weekend.

A league source said yesterday that an arbitrator ruled in the Eagles' favor Friday on a grievance that was filed by the NFL players' union on Owens' behalf more than two years ago. The union had disputed the Eagles' move to recover $1.725 million of the $2.3 million signing bonus the team paid the wide receiver when it signed him to a seven-year, $49 million deal in 2004.

Why should Cowboy fans care? For starters, this gives me more fodder to sensationalize on this here blog when the Cowboys and Iggles meet next season. And it also gives Philly almost $800,000 of extra room under the 2008 salary cap.

T.O. was spotted at the Ghost Bar the other night swapping phone numbers with Paris Hilton, who makes Jessica Simpson look smart. I'd link you to a picture on gossip blog Perez Hilton, but there's a whole bunch of profanity there.

I wouldn't worry too much about a budding Paris-T.O. romance affecting the Original 81 next season. A long-term relationship for her is a weekend.

Jerry Jones said he will definitely pay T.O.'s $3 million roster bonus due in March, Calvin "Lucky" Watkins reports from the Senior Bowl.

It was certainly expected that T.O. would be back next season, considering that he was a model teammate and All-Pro in 2007. Now there's no doubt he'll be here for the last year of his contract.

Now the question becomes: Will the Cowboys work out an extension with T.O.? Jerry said he is open to getting that done.

Terry Glenn's future with the Cowboys is in doubt, however. Jerry said Glenn will need microfracture surgery on his knee, which could signal the end of the veteran receiver's career. Jerry said he will discuss Glenn's future with him soon and left it at that.

By now, the video of Terrell Owens breaking down has made the rounds.

And jokes have been made. But players outside Valley Ranch seemed to know where T.O.'s coming from.

"That's my boy, so I'm not getting into that," Patriots receiver Donte' Stallworth said. "I understand what he's saying, and he's right. He's right."

I tend to see players having a quarterback's back as a good sign too. But maybe that's me.

Jason Garrett and Tony Sparano aren't gone yet, but odds are they'll be head coaches elsewhere by the end of the week. Albert "Einstein" Breer mentioned potential candidates to become the Cowboys' next offensive play-caller.

Receivers coach Ray Sherman should get serious consideration because of his experience. Another factor is his relationship with T.O.

T.O. (and a lot of the Cowboys' other offensive playmakers) love Sherman. I'm sure it would please T.O. to see Sherman get a promotion, although the Cowboys would have to find another receivers coach who would work well with the Orignal 81.

A happy T.O. is an All-Pro T.O.

LOUIS DeLUCA / DMN

T.O.'s tearful postgame press conference will be talked about for years. New Yorkers will fondly remember the Giants' popcorn-themed taunts.

His gutsy performance after three weeks of grueling rehab will be a mere footnote.

With the help of a hyperbaric chamber and a whole bunch of healing hands, T.O. managed to play at a high level a week before he should have even considered coming back from a high ankle sprain.

T.O. dominated the first half, catching four passes for 49 yards and a TD. He was shut out in the second half, but that doesn't tell the whole story. He twice got wide open for would-be touchdowns, but Tony Romo's throws were off target.

Why T.O. didn't get a chance to win the game – Romo's final throw was to Terry Glenn in traffic instead of T.O. in similar coverage on a double post – is a mystery.

"There were opportunities there," T.O. said of the game. "Sometimes we made them, and sometimes we didn't. In the playoffs, every play counts. Every play is magnified."

We put every throw to T.O. under the magnifying glass after the jump.

Calvin "Lucky" Watkins mentioned in his column that Jerry Jones has a decision to make with T.O.

If Jones wants Owens to return for the final year of his contract, he must pay a $3 million roster bonus in the spring. Owens is due a base salary of $4 million for the 2008 season . That's $7 million for a player the Cowboys threw to only twice in the fourth quarter Sunday.

Talk about a no-brainer. That's a bargain for an All-Pro receiver who has stunningly morphed into a model teammate.

It's an especially easy decision considering the Cowboys' belief that they're on the cusp of a Super Bowl. Eliminate T.O. from the mix, and this team might not make the playoffs.

Tim blogged about Terrell Owens tearing up while defending Tony Romo.

Here's the visual.

If you talk trash, and you don't back it up, trouble tends to follow.

So after Terrell Owens came up with four catches for 49 yards, he had some bullets to absorb.

"We hope T.O. has his popcorn ready," Owens said. "Maybe him and Crayton can sit his home theater and watch us next week."

Good idea! Maybe it will help develop chemistry for '08. Or maybe, they'll start thinking about how to take these comments and shove them back in Brandon Jacobs' face.

"The Cowboys are a great football team," said the gregarious tailback. "They might have had a chance to win if Patrick Crayton didn't drop the two key passes. There was a lot of talk. But it's over with. We won the game. They're chillin' and we're going to Green Bay next week."

JOHN F. RHODES / DMN

T.O. knows what's coming for Tony Romo.

He knows folks are going to blame this loss on the Cowboys' franchise quarterback after Romo's mediocre performance (18-of-36 for 201 yards and a TD with an INT). And he know Romo's focus will be questioned after the much-publicized Simpson Family Bye Week Fiesta.

And T.O. made it clear that this loss shouldn't fall on Romo's shoulders. Tears formed behind T.O.'s designer shades while he stuck up for Romo in his postgame press conference.

"You guys can point the finger at him," T.O. said. "You can talk about the vacation, and if you do that, it's really unfair. It's really unfair. That's my teammate. That's my quarterback. If you guys do that, man, it's unfair. We lost as a team. We lost as a team, man."

VERNON BRYANT / DMN

The Original 81 bolted out of the tunnel and took a pre-victory lap around the field, letting folks on all sides of Texas Stadium scream their hearts out for him.

T.O. showed no sign of a limp, but he doesn't appear to be at full speed. A TV cameraman was able to keep up with him for the first 100 yards.

T.O. looks fine coming out of his breaks and hasn't dropped a pass from assistant equipment manager Mike Kurowski yet.

Cowboys WR Terrell Owens vs. Giants RCB Corey Webster

Unless the Giants start flopping corners, and play Aaron Ross to the right, this will be the matchup the Cowboys get most often. Webster played great last week against Joey Galloway. But the challenge this week is different.

Webster will have to play disciplined to have a chance, close quickly on Owens' underneath routes, and get help over the top. This is a mismatch the Cowboys will look to exploit, but because of the way the coaches motion Owens and line him up all over the place, it’s not one you’ll see all afternoon.

Just got done watching the whole Terrell Owens interview with Deion Sanders and say this about The Original 81: He's nothing if not entertaining.

Deion pressed him about the Simpson Family Bye Week Fiesta. And even if his response wasn't all the way truthful, it was an absolute grand slam of a quote.

"I’ll let the cat out of the bag, that was my apology trip to Jessica (Simpson) and (Tony) Romo," Owens said. "So I sent them on that trip to get away for the bye week. I just tried to correct a harmless little joke I made."

Speaking further on the matter, Sanders uttered the line, "It's not easy being T.O." To which Owens responded, "It not easy being Romo."

If the Simpson line was the winner, the runner-up was Terrell Owens insistance that this season will end with the Cowboys' sixth Super Bowl title.

"Jerry brought me here to bring this team to the Super Bowl," Owens said. "He took a chance or a risk, in a lot of people’s minds, to bring me here. I’m not going to let him down."

Not exactly a guarantee, right? Well, when asked about Jason Garrett's candidacy for head coaching jobs, he sounded pretty sure.

"I can’t really put in to words what he’s done for me -- volumes, for what he’s done for my career, compared to last year," Owens said. "What he does after we win the Super Bowl, that’s on him."

Follow the jump for more of this solid gold session with Prime Time.

Cowboys CB Anthony Henry suffered a high right ankle sprain on Sept. 30 against the Rams. He didn't get back on the field for more than a month, returning in Philadelphia on Nov. 4, and did get back in the starting lineup until the Detroit game on Dec. 30.

So he knows just what Terrell Owens has gone through, with his own high left ankle sprain.

"The pain is aggravating, it’s always gonna hurt, mine’s still hurting me right now," Henry said. "He’s definitely been doing a good job treating his, and coming back and being able to play. It’s definitely frustrating knowing that certain plays, you could’ve made, had you been healthy."

If you compare the injuries of the two, Owens coming back this week would be like if Henry came back for the Vikings injury in October. Even returning when he did, the corner says it's taken a while to get it all back, and he didn't really hit his stride until the middle of December.

But even with the limitations he experienced., Henry thinks Owens will be fine.

"It's everything – pushing off, explosion, vertical speed," Henry said. "But he’s been practicing well, he’s doing stuff I couldn’t do three weeks after mine. He’s much further ahead than I was."

Let's just put it this way: Neither Terrell Owens nor the Cowboys exhibited much caution at all during the portion of practice open to the media.

The workout was outdoors, and held in sweats. As Barry posted a minute ago, Owens came out late for practice, just as we were coming on to the fields, with associate athletic trainer Britt Brown at his side. After getting some early work in during passing lines, Owens retreated to the sideline, took off his shoe, and had the tape job around his left ankle sliced off.

Owens then jogged around the stretching lines high-fiving all his teammates. And in early group work, the Cowboys were tossing fade routes up to Owens, requiring the receiver to go up for the ball. He worked with the first group most of the time, and kept close to Brown when on the sideline. Also, the limp he showed on Thursday was, for the most part, gone today.

Bottom line: It's pretty much like nothing's wrong with Owens.

Albert Breer reports from Valley Ranch that Terrell Owens arrived a little late for practice with associate athletic trainer Britt Brown. His ankle was heavily taped, but Brown just cut the tape off and T.O. began stretching excercises.

The cat's been let of out of Wade Phillips' proverbial bag. And this morning, he really didn't try too hard to push the idea that T.O.'s status is still up in the air.

He knows that we know Owens is playing.

"Terrell Owens said he’s going to play," Phillips said. "I believe him. To what degree and what level remains to be seen. Unless something unforeseen happens, I think he will attempt to play and we will let him play. Like I said, to what degree, he can be effective, we’ll see in the game.

"Terry Glenn’s similar, in that what level these guys can play in the ball game remains to be seen. But they’ll probably be out there."

The question was then posed whether either receiver will be well enough to start. Phillips held on to his secrets on that one.

"I would imagine if Terrell’s ready to go, he’ll start," Phillips said. "Terry, we’ll probably work in. But don’t hold me to that."

Sports Illustrated's Paul Zimmerman tabbed four Cowboys for his All-Pro team, giving Dallas one more selection than the AP's final tally did.

But The Original 81 was not among his picks. Dr. Z took three receivers: The Patriots' Randy Moss and Wes Welker, and the Colts' Reggie Wayne.

Two of Z's selections -- TE Jason Witten and OLB DeMarcus Ware -- made the AP's final list. Zimmerman also took LT Flozell Adams and CB Terence Newman.

So now that Terrell Owens has blown the lid off the days-long charade concerning his status for the Giants game, everyone can exhale.

Including the Cowboys themselves (not that they were ever particularly nervous about it.) Today, Patrick Crayton said that it, in fact, really doesn't matter much if Owens isn't quite going at full speed.

“Even if he’s 85, 90 (percent), his 85 or 90 is better than a lot of receivers in this league,” Crayton said. “Just because of his explosiveness and what he brings, he’s always a threat to run by you. Ask Sam Madison.”

We'll see if we can get our man in East Rutherford, David Moore, to do that tomorrow. Until then, we'll have to settle for the truth in the statement -- T.O. took the veteran Giant to school in November, to the tune of six catches, 125 yards and two touchdowns on Nov. 11.

If there is any question about whether Terrell Owens is going to play on Sunday, it was answered when the receiver did an interview with NFL Network's Deion Sanders on Thursday.

"Oh, I’m gonna play,” Owens said. “I’m gonna play.”

When Prime Time asked T.O. at what level, he said, “At a high level. I’m not worried about nothing.”

Several players said Owens looked good during Monday's walkthrough and during the brief media period on Thursday, T.O. ran pretty smooth. There was a slight hitch in his step, but not enough to cause too much of a concern.

Our own David Moore passed along some thoughts from the Giants from Jersey. And they aren't buying the idea that WR Terrell Owens isn't playing Sunday.

Not for one, stinkin' second. But they are poking fun at a certain healing device T.O.'s famous for.

“He’s going to play. Come on, man. I’ve got a bridge in Brooklyn. You want to buy that sucker?" Giants DE Michael Strahan joked. “He came out there three days after breaking a leg and played in the Super Bowl. He sleeps in a hyperbaric chamber like Michael Jackson. He does all that stuff he needs to do. The guy is going to play in the game.’’

G.J. McCARTHY / DMN

The Cowboys didn't veer off course today. Even though Terrell Owens practiced and looked OK during the media period, and despite the fact he passed around the locker room area with no brace or tape on his left ankle, his status hasn't changed.

That is to say he's a game-time decision.

"I thought that he moved well," owner/GM Jerry Jones said. "I thought he competed right around the level that we practicing at. Those weren’t half speed out there. It is a decision that needs to be made at game-time. We know how critical this is, nothing else happens if we don’t win this game.

"On the other hand, his availability will be determined probably in large part on what kind of risk is involved on not having him for later games. He obviously can run a route, but I think it is a very legitimate game-time decision. He’s in very good spirits, very competitive spirits, very focused on our success here Sunday."

G.J. McCARTHY / DMN

Everyone took part, as the team geared back down into shells and shorts and worked inside its field house with three games left before gameday.

WR Terrell Owens was there, yes. And he had a limp in his step, favoring the left ankle he injured in Carolina. He was rounding out his breaks, rather than changing direction sharp, on most routes. Toward the end, he seemed to be accelerating and cutting better.

But no matter how much we overanalyze all this, the fact remains that Owens will play Sunday. Count on it.

Albert Breer reports that Terrell Owens is at the media portion of practice for the first time since injuring his ankle against Carolina.

More to come ...

We really haven't had any trash talk between the teams this week, but I sense a wee bit of sarcasm from Plaxico Burress on the topic of T.O.

"Don't play," he said.

Burress, of course, has been playing on a bad ankle all season. There's no way that lets Burress come across as looking like the toughest receiver in the NFC.

You might recall that there's some bad blood between the prima donna receivers. T.O. has refused to talk about Burress all season, but I guarantee he remembers being called a coward by Plax last year.

Don't worry, I won't bombard you with any more pictures from Cabo. Instead, we'll look at how things change for All-Pro TE Jason Witten when All-Pro WR Terrell Owens isn't in the game, since there's (wink, wink), a chance The Original 81 sits on Sunday.

"More than anything, you’re missing that down-the-field threat you have," Witten said yesterday. "And I think teams are aware of that. I see a lot more coverage on me, a lot of safety help over the top. With him out there, his big-play ability, it takes a lot of pressure off the entire offense.

His numbers suffered, too. T.O. went down in the middle of the second quarter of the Carolina game, and Witten came out of the Redskins game midway through the third. So that's roughly five quarters of actions. The numbers: Four catches, 35 yards, no touchdowns.

His per-game averages before T.O.'s injury (We'll call it 14 1/2 games, though it was a little less than that): 6.3 catches for 76.6 yards. So that means, even with conservative parameters, Witten had 2.3 less catches, 41.6 less yards and his per catch average took a hit of more than 3 yards (12.2-8.6).

That's more attention in general, and it's also that safety help that Witten spoke of, which prevents him from making plays down the seam. The bottom line is that without Owens out there, Witten's going to get a massive amount of attention, even more than some teams (i.e. Patriots, Giants) committed to him when the big tight end was their primary focus.

The jig is up, Wade. No matter how hard you sell the idea that Terrell Owens' status is up in the air Sunday, you won't find buyers in Giants Land.

And it's not just the players shooting off at the mouth, as the New York Daily News reports.

"He will play," Tom Coughlin said. "There is no doubt in my mind he will play."

Plaxico Burress, who has been tough as nails in fighting through this season, had some receiver-to-receiver advice for T.O.: Don't play. But the Giants really aren't getting their hopes up on that one.

"T.O.'s the type of guy, if they allowed him, he would probably go out there with a crutch in his hand," Giants DE Justin Tuck said. "There was a question how effective he was going to be in that Super Bowl and he answered that question, too. I'm expecting him to be 100 percent."

Coach Wade Phillips was adamant that WR Terrell Owens missed all of today's practice, and that he hadn't even seen him, at the just concluded press conference here at Valley Ranch.

The hope is to ramp Owens up to Sunday, in hopes he can play. And that means having a plan, while also going day-to-day.

"It’s day-to-day, but we’re going through a plan or process that’s going to try and get him ready, and he’s adhered to that," Phillips said. "He works out at home, all the time, trying to get better. This is sometimes, a 6-8 week injury, sometimes it’s a four-week injury. So we’re trying to get him back in three. That’s where we are."

Wade said he'd have no qualms over suiting T.O.without practice work. Phillips declined to speculate on the receiver's availability for Thursday's practice.

"If he’s ready to go, and I feel like he could play without hurting himself, yeah, I would play him," Phillips said. "But we don’t know until we get there."

There was no T.O. during the portion of practice the media is allowed to watch. This could mean one of many things:

1) T.O. fibbed to TV Azteca reporter Ines Sainz, a YouTube sensation who just happened to be Miss Spain 1997.

2) Ms. Sainz fibbed to me.

3) T.O. and Miss Spain 1997 struggled with the language barrier (or me with her).

4) T.O. popped out of a trap door on the practice field after the media was shooed inside, much like what happened during Monday's walkthrough.

I highly doubt it was option 2, because I really felt like we formed a bond during my brief conversation with Inez. She seemed to have a pretty good grasp of English, too, so cross off option 3.

Educated guess: option 4.

Meet Ines Sainz, the TV Azteca reporter who landed the exclusive interview with T.O. today.

Ms. Sainz, who has a wonderful personality, passed on a tidbit of T.O. news. She said that he told her his left ankle is feeling better, and he plans to practice today.

Wade Phillips played a fun little game with the media today called Fibbing About T.O.'s High Ankle Sprain.

Phillips first said that T.O. didn't practice. He backpedaled a bit when informed that several players mentioned that T.O. did participate in the workout, although the Original 81 wasn't on the field during the time the media is allowed to watch.

Phillips said T.O. didn't run at all, emphasizing that it was a walkthrough. He stuck to his guns that T.O. would be a gametime decision.

"It was a limpthrough for him," Phillips cracked, "and a walkthrough for us."

Well, a few offensive players said the Original 81 actually looked pretty good while running routes this morning.

No matter what Phillips says the rest of the week, expect T.O. to be ready to go Sunday afternoon against the Giants. Just don't let anybody in New York know that.

Turns out that WR Terrell Owens did participate in this morning’s walkthrough after all.

Several players in the Cowboys locker room indicated as much, saying that Owens was pretty much a full participant in the short session on the outdoor fields at Valley Ranch. Owens was spotted in the training room afterwards, wearing his practice jersey, but declined to speak on the matter.

He was receiving treatment on the high left ankle sprain he suffered against Carolina from associate athletic trainer Britt Brown. Owens was not present for the 15 minutes of this morning's workout that was open to the media.

But Owens’ presence in any capacity has to be considered a positive. Coach Wade Phillips said last week he wasn’t expecting Owens to participate in practice until “Wednesday or Thursday” of this week.

T.O.'s health would have been a huge deal no matter who the Cowboys met in the divisional round. The Giants, who better hope the trusty hyperbaric chamber malfunctions, coming to town makes his recovery that much more important.

Simply put, T.O. torches the Giants. He burned them for four touchdowns in their two meetings this season -- two in the opener at Texas Stadium and two with the NFC East lead on the line in Jersey.

Oh, the Giants can stop T.O. They proved that by shutting him out during the first half of the season opener. Of course, that opened things up for Jason Witten to do whatever he wanted.

And T.O., perhaps inspired by a Jerry pep talk (or not), took over during the second half. He had three catches for 87 yards and a couple TDs.

He started slow against the Giants in the November game, too, but he finished with six catches for 125 yards and two TDs.

Moral of the post: If T.O. is close to normal, you can count on at least a couple big plays by him against the Giants' so-so secondary.

Oh, and he has some playoff history against the Giants, too. He went off for a nine-catch, 177-yard, two-TD performance to carry the 49ers to the biggest comeback in NFC playoff history.

You might be concerned that Tony Romo showed favoritism toward Jason Witten by taking him along for the Simpson Family Bye Week Fiesta. But don't worry about T.O.'s feelings being hurt.

Possibly imaginary sources inform me that T.O. was invited, too, but he ran into some trouble trying to get his hyperbaric chamber through customs. Romo and Witten promised to bring him back a souvenir sombrero to use as a prop during his divisional game touchdown dance.

For this here blog ... this is Timmy Tabloid.

At his press conference, Cowboys coach Wade Phillips said that WR Terrell Owens probably won't practice until next Wednesday and Thursday, based on the fact that he just shed his walking boot and started jogging.

Taking that into account, Phillips expressed little doubt his star playmaker will be ready for kickoff a week from Sunday. The biggest question now is at what level he'll be capable of playing.

For now, based on Owens' past displays of remarkable healing ability, there's optimism surrounding the receiver's status.

"I think pushing off (on the ankle) is the key thing as far as high ankle sprain or any ankle sprain," Phillips said. "I don’t have any doubt about (his toughness), but we’ll have to be careful. We’d like to have him for more than one game too, so you’ve got to be careful there."

T.O. took time out of his preparation a couple days before the loss to the Eagles to try to trademark his famous quote, "I love me some me." Can "Getcha popcorn ready" be too far behind?

So now we know that Terrell Owens is working himself out of the boot that was over his high left ankle sprain. But that's hardly confirmation that Owens will play on Jan. 13, and why the Cowboys receivers are readying for all possibilities.

"We get prepared for both, we’re going to be prepared for ‘With him’ and we’re going to be prepared for ‘Without him,’" Sam Hurd said. "You just don’t look at one aspect of the game. I know it’s a lot of hoping, and he said he’s going to be ready so we think he’s going to be ready. We’re going to prepare, first, to be with him, because he said he’s going to be ready and we believe in him."

I think if you watch the tape from Sunday closely, and you know what you're looking at, it's pretty clear that the Redskins' options were much more open (playing man without safety help, blitzing, etc.) from a play-calling standpoint with Owens absent.

"It does go to a lot of man-to-man," Owens said. "Teams have to fear him in a lot of aspects of the game, because of who he is and what he brings to the table. We do see a lot of man. When he’s out there, teams will jump from man to zone and back to test us, but we gotta handle it the same way."

T.O. skipped his Wednesday chat with the media for the second consecutive week, but word is his ankle is healing as quickly as the Cowboys hoped.

He put his left shoe on today for the first time since suffering the high ankle sprain in the first half of the Dec. 22 win at Carolina.

"I thought he was ready to go today the way he was talking," Sam Hurd said. "He was excited."

Troy Aikman said Tony Romo is having the best season by a QB in Cowboys' history, so that pretty much ends that debate. There's no arguing that Jason Witten is having the best season by a TE in team history, since he's shattered the record for catches and yards while blocking like a beast.

How about the best season by a WR around these parts? You can certainly make a case for T.O.'s 2007. The top three candidates (listed in chronological order):

Bob Hayes (1966) -- Caught 64 passes for 1,232 yards and 13 TDs for 10-3-1 team. Ranked first in NFL in TDs and second in yards.

Michael Irvin (1995) -- Caught 111 passes for 1,603 yards (both franchise records) and 10 TDs for 12-4 team.

Terrell Owens (2007) -- 81 catches for 1,355 yards and a franchise-record 15 TDs for 13-2 team.

Wade Phillips wouldn't go so far as to say he was confident that T.O. could play in the Cowboys' first playoff game. Tony Romo did so without hesitation.

"I'd be very surprised if he wasn't back," Romo said. "There's a few guys that on this team that you just know they'll do whatever it takes in certain situations. Jason Witten and some guys like that, you just know they'll fight through certain things and give you everything they've got."

T.O., who didn't make his normal Wednesday appearance in the locker room, proved his toughness and competitiveness by playing in Super Bowl XXXIX six weeks after breaking his ankle and tearing ligaments in his leg while being horse-collared by Roy Williams. He has three weeks to recover from a high ankle sprain. His quarterback figures T.O. will crank up his trusty hyperbaric chamber and be fine.

T.O.'s high ankle sprain will sideline him this weekend in Washington. Everything after that is to be determined.

The best-case scenario is that T.O. is ready to go for the divisional game on Jan. 12 or 13. He'll surely crank up the hyperbaric chamber and do everything else possible to make that a reality. But T.O. playing in the Cowboys' first playoff game is far from a sure thing.

"I'm hopeful," Wade Phillips said, "but I wouldn't say confident."

The Cowboys just released the information on the MRI performed in Terrell Owens' left ankle: no news is good news.

The MRI confirmed the diagnosis from Saturday's 20-13 win at Carolina. He suffered no bone damage and does not need surgery. While a timetable has not been established, the Cowboys do not expect Owens to play next Sunday at Washington.

With Chicago's winning vs. Green Bay clinching homefield advantage for the Cowboys, Owens will probably be seen again on Jan. 12 or 13 in the divisional round of the playoffs.

Terrell Owens' high ankle sprain would seem to put any aspirations of a deep playoff run on hold.

At least, that's the way a lot of people would see it. Just don't express those feelings to the Original 81, himself.

"The bye week helps, and I have all the confidence in the world this team can win," Owens said. "As you saw tonight, those guys gutted it out. We have some good receivers in Sam Hurd and Miles Austin. Those guys will get it done."

As for the seriousness of the injury, T.O. tossed us a bunch of "day-to-day" jargon. But he did allow that he feels that the injury isn't serious, and several people close to him said tonight that the feeling is that he'll be OK.

"I know it’s not to the extent of what my first injury was, on the opposite leg," Owens said, referencing the injury he suffered in 2004 with the Eagles. "I’ll be fine, it’s day-to-day."

T.O. suffered the dreaded high ankle sprain, which sidelined CB Anthony Henry for three games earlier this season.

T.O. is already looking forward to the playoffs. He mentioned that it's a good thing the Cowboys have a first-round bye.

"I will follow the doctor's orders," he said. "I won't rush anything. I have all the confidence in the world that this team can win. As you saw tonight, those guys gutted it out."

T.O. left Bank of America Stadium on crutches with a walking boot on his injured left ankle. He'll have an MRI tomorrow.

Looks like 790 The Ticket might as well be hubbed not in Miami, but the Metroplex, because the Cowboys talk keeps coming from them.

Jerry Jones is a guest on The Michael Irvin Show, and he's been effusive in his praise for new Dolphins VP Bill Parcells.

"There’s nobody smarter than Jimmy Johnson and Bill Parcells, and you’ve got to respect that," Jones said. "I’ve certainly made my best decisions when I’ve been around someone who’s really smart, and I made my best decisions around those guys."

Jones said he didn't disagree strongly with Parcells more than four or five times, and that "Bill was more on board with Terrell (Owens) than people think." And he also went over how he would recommend Parcells to others. Follow the jump to see what he said.

Jerry Rice talked about T.O. a little bit during a recent interview with SI.com.

SI.com: Could you tell Terrell Owens would become T.O. when you were teammates in San Francisco?

Rice: No, he was quiet (laughs). He didn't say anything. He was so quiet, he just sat back and it looked like he was willing to learn. Then all of a sudden he changed. Some people, when success starts happening they have a hard time dealing with it. I'm just glad he's gotten wiser and now he's letting his actions speak for themselves on the football field.

Per request, I transcribed T.O.'s entire chat with the media today. Follow the jump to read it. The questions are paraphrased. The answers are verbatim.

T.O. talked to the media again today, breaking his Wednesday-only routine. He wanted to make it clear that he does not blame Jessica Simpson for the loss to the Eagles and hopes there are no hard feelings.

"If I don't get the ball this week, I'm going to have to go to Hollywood and bake some cakes or something," T.O. said.

That was a joke.

On a serious note, T.O. was asked about Tony Romo's focus. Is the Cowboys' franchise QB as focused as he should be?

"You've got to ask Tony," T.O. said, not exactly giving a ringing endorsement.

T.O. talked at length yesterday about his frustration after catching only five passes for 58 yards in the last two games. He's determined to deal with it without being destructive.

"I think everyone knows and this team knows that if I'm involved, our chances of winning are better," T.O. said. "Other than that, there's no need for me to whoop and holler and scream on the sideline about getting me the ball.

"If you see me upset on the sideline, that's me getting frustrated because I want to win – and I know we have the talent on this team to win. When that's not happening, I get frustrated."

Everybody knows how important it is to T.O. that he gets involved early. He hasn't caught a pass in the first half of the last two games.

If he doesn't get the ball in his hands early against the Panthers, you can expect the NFL Network cameras to catch T.O. trying to get Tony Romo's ear.

"Just give me a little more time," T.O. said when asked what type of things he'll say to Romo on the sideline. "I know sometimes, he'll drop back and I'm not initially open. But, at the same time, that'll come from maturity and experience. He'll be able to see that he can throw me open. That just comes with practice and timing and development of him as a quarterback."

T.O., a huge hoops fan, made a trip to the AAC for tonight's Suns-Mavericks game. He doesn't have a date, famous or otherwise.

T.O. is a guest of ex-Cowboys RB/current consultant Calvin Hill, whose son, Grant, is the Suns' starting small forward.

For those folks tired of girly gossip, breathe easy. This post has nothing to do with Jessica Simpson.

T.O. said this morning that he'd advise Tony Romo to sit out Saturday if his bruised right thumb needs the rest.

"Be smart and realize that with the guys we have in this locker room, I feel like we can go into Carolina with Brad [Johnson] and win," T.O. said. "If it takes him to sit out a week to rest that thing, then I would really encourage that."

T.O.'s publicist wants the world to know that he was just joking about Jessica Simpson this morning. You can judge for yourself by listening to the conversation. And you can vote here.

T.O. had just finished saying he was looking forward to sipping mai tais and looking at bikinis when I asked for his thoughts about Simpson. Here's the transcript:

Me: "Speaking of looking at bikinis, what do you think about all the hubbub about Jessica Simspon and Tony Romo?"

T.O.: "Right now, Jessica Simpson is not a fan favorite in this locker room or in Texas Stadium." [reporters laugh]

Me: "Why not in this locker room?"

T.O.: "I think with everything that has happened, and obviously the way Tony played and the comparison between her and Carrie Underwood, I think a lot of people feel like she's probably taking his focus away. Other than that, she was at the top of my list until last week." [reporters laugh after last line; T.O. had a straight face during the first sentence]

Me: "She looks good, but you want to see her on TV and not at Texas Stadium."

T.O., playing to the crowd: "Oh, I've got a message for her when we make the playoffs. Just stay tuned." [reporters laugh as he walks off]

UPDATE: My take? He wasn't kidding when he said Simpson isn't a favorite in the locker room or when he talked about Romo's focus.

AP

T.O., who had his leg snapped by a Roy Williams horse-collar tackle a few years ago, echoed Patrick Crayton's thoughts about the NFL suspending No. 31 for Saturday's game.

"When you have a rule put in place for you, then obviously you would think to police yourself as far as that type of tackle," T.O. said.

T.O. and Williams have become friends in the last couple years, hanging out occasionally and taking a trip to the NBA Finals together. T.O. said they have never discussed the play in Philly that resulted in him suffering a fractured ankle and torn ligaments -- and helped lead to the Roy Williams Rule.

"I don't hold any grudges or whatnot," T.O. said. "It happened, and I was able to come back from it. I know one guy, Tyrone Calico, he never really came back from it."

However, it is still a painful memory for T.O. He said seeing Williams horse-collar Donovan McNabb -- his third violation of the rule this season -- took his breath away and made him flash back to the excruciating pain he suffered that December 2004 day.

The Cowboys are off Friday, but don't expect to find T.O. checking out Blonde Ambition during its opening day in Texas theaters. He's not joking when he says that Jessica Simpson is screwing up Tony Romo's focus.

"Right now, Jessica Simpson is not a fan favorite in this locker room or in Texas Stadium," T.O. said. "I think with everything that has happened, and obviously the way Tony played and the comparison between her and Carrie Underwood, I think a lot of people feel like she's probably taking his focus away.

"Other than that, she was at the top of my list until last week."

Romo didn't make his usual Wednesday appearance in the locker room, so we didn't have a chance to get his reply to T.O.'s concern about Ms. Simpson. And T.O. isn't done dealing with her, either.

"I've got a message for her when we make the playoffs," T.O. said. "Just stay tuned."

T.O. tells Calvin "Lucky" Watkins that he wants the ball. Stunning news, huh?

Well, the Cowboys sure tried against the Eagles. They targeted him 12 times. He caught two of those passes, and the Eagles caught three.

T.O. correctly pointed out two things: 1) There were opportunities missed for him to make plays (one drop and two overthrown deep balls stand out); 2) the Cowboys didn't put him in motion much to help him get free (only once before the 12 passes thrown to him).

Follow the jump for the throw-by-throw breakdown:

Where Tony Romo’s 36 throws went on Sunday:

WR TERRELL OWENS
Thrown to: 12 (5 first half/7 second half)
Final stats: 2 catches, 37 yards (0-0/2-37)
Drops: 1

TE JASON WITTEN
Thrown to: 10 (5/5)
Final stats: 8 catches, 113 yards (4-81/4-32)
Drops: 0

A couple of video selections from our ace Dallas Morning News photo staff:

• Dallas Cowboys at The Anonymous Art Gallery fashion show

Dallas Cowboys Kevin Burnett, Bobby Carpenter, Mat McBriar, Nick Folk, DeMarcus Ware and Jason Witten model clothing from J&E Custom Clothier and local designer Jeanette Antolin during a night of art, fashion and sports at the shop Lifestyle Fashion Terminal in Victory Park on Dec. 14. The event was presented by TAAG, the Anonymous Art Gallery.

• Terrell Owens takes Mesquite family on JCPenney shopping spree

The Ebanks family of Mesquite was selected by Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Terrell Owens' Catch A Dream Foundation after they lost their home and possessions in a fire. Owens accompanied the family around the JCPenney store at Stonebriar Mall in Frisco on Monday.

Much has been made of T.O.'s relationship (or lack thereof) with Bill Parcells, but the Original 81 and ex-Cowboys WR coach Todd Haley really didn't get along.

T.O. isn't the only one who isn't real fond of Haley's combative coaching style. Patrick Crayton was glad to see Haley go, too.

Haley, now the Cardinals' offensive coordinator, still isn't a very happy camper. He had a heated chit-chat with QB Kurt Warner on the sideline after a turnover during yesterday's loss to the Saints. From Dan Bickley of the Arizona Republic's blog:

"People always make a big deal out of (that stuff)," Warner said. "But for us in the locker room, it's no big deal. It's passion. It's fire. It's all those things tied into one, with a bunch of guys trying to compete. That's really all it was. I don't make any big deal out of it. And maybe someday we'll laugh about it."

Warner also added that Haley came over and asked if the quarterback was still mad, implying that the coach said something very inappropriate.

Wonder whether ESPN's Keyshawn Johnson will take a shot at T.O. tomorrow night?

For the second consecutive week, the Cowboys couldn't figure out a way to get the ball to their best weapon. T.O. finished with two catches for 37 yards, giving him five catches for 58 yards in the last two games.

If you're looking for a silver lining, T.O. had those exact same two-game totals before going on the seven-game touchdown spree (50 catches, 862 yards, 11 TDs). And T.O. made sure to mention that there were some missed opportunities in today's game, including an overthrown deep ball by Tony Romo and a drop by T.O.

The Cowboys' offensive performance was pathetic today, as evidenced by the 6 on the home side of the scoreboard.

You won't get any argument from the Cowboys' offensive stars, nor will you get any excuses. Tony Romo (13 of 36 for 214 yards and three INTs) said the Cowboys made way too many mental mistakes. He pointed the finger at himself: "I played poorly." T.O. (two catches for 37 yards) gave the Eagles credit but summed up the Cowboys' effort by saying, "We just played bad."

But the Cowboys aren't concerned that this stinker is a sign of things to come. The Original 81 tried to spin it into a positive, calling this game a gutcheck.

There's no doubt in this locker room," T.O. said. "Throughout the season, I think we've shown the character to gut some wins out. Obviously, the way we've played this season, there's no reason for a lack of confidence. Not at this stage of the game.

"We have all the confidence in the world with this team. We're not going to let any doubt creep in just because we lost this game today."

This season has been remarkably similar to 2004 for T.O. He's getting along famously with his franchise QB and new head coach, and he's putting up huge stats.

In fact, T.O.'s stats this season (74 catches, 1,270 yards, 14 TDs) are almost identical to his numbers with the Eagles in 2004 (77 catches, 1,200 yards, 14 TDs). His regular season abruptly ended in the first half of the 14th game, when Roy Williams broke T.O.'s leg, a play that keyed the creation of Roy Williams Rule against horse-collar tackles.

It's kind of eerie that T.O. will face the Eagles in the 14th game this season, don't you think? The Original 81 ought to be careful around Brian Dawkins.

That's what he told Philly reporters who asked (again) about his breakup with the Eagles on yesterday's conference calls, and at least one columnist agreed with the Original 81.

They tried to get T.O. to take shots at Donovan McNabb, asking if he thought he was missed by his old QB. T.O.'s answer: "I don't know. You tell me."

Hmmm ... let's try to figure this one out by comparing McNabb's stats with and without T.O. since 2004.

WITH T.O.: 467-754-15, 5,873 yards, 47 TD (17-4 record)

WITHOUT T.O.: 436-741-14, 5,628 yards, 33 TD (10-13 record)

Give ESPN credit for showing great restraint with the T.O.-Keyshawn-Tuna love/hate triangle story. Our Disney pals didn't even dedicate five full minutes of SportsCenter to this sensationalizable story.

Keyshawn explained that he was just trying to give T.O. good advice on not tangling with an "old legendary icon coach," which Keyshawn learned the hard way in Tampa Bay. He vowed to explain things "in more elementary terms" from now so T.O. might be able to understand.

Not sure if Keyshawn was rattled by the realization that T.O. has scored twice as many TDs as him, but I found the following statement to be a bit too revealing about the former No. 1 overall pick.

"People have always told me that one thing that you never want to do is get into a [urinating] match with a skunk, because they’ll [urinate] all over you, and you’ll like it," Keyshawn said. "And they’ll like it, better yet."

Let me begin by thanking Albert "Einstein" Breer for stooping to my sensationalistic level while I was tied up with boring corporate stuff today. T.O. lashing out at Keyshawn Johnson is pure blog gold!!

T.O. suggested that somebody compare his stats to Keyshawn's, and I'm always willing to fan the flames when the Original 81 starts flapping his gums. Follow the jump for indisputable statistical evidence that hatin' Keyshawn couldn't hold T.O.'s jock with two hands.

For the first time in my life, I watched a couple minutes of ESPN's First Take. Oh, the things I do for this here blog.

I TiVo'd the show and fast-forwarded to the T.O. interview, so I was spared any ridiculous rants Skip Bayless might have unleashed today. But ESPN, which excels at self-promotion and T.O. sensationalization (strengths for me, too), made sure to ask the Original 81 what he thought about the dude who calls him Team Obliterator.

"You know what? My stats speak for [themselves]," T.O. said with a smile. "And I heard you say in the beginning of the show, every team that I’ve been on, I've been successful. No matter what, I have a lot of naysayers, a lot of haters. But know what? I’m a blessed individual, and I don’t let guys like that get to me. They've got to do what they've got to do to pump themselves up, and I do what I do to pump myself up."

T.O. then made a seamless transition into promoting a home gym product that he's endorsing. Well played, sir.

By the way, anybody that is still ripping T.O. after everything he's done this season (on the field and in the locker room) is either clueless or being obnoxious just to get noticed. Or both.

T.O. walked out of Ford Field with three catches, 21 yards and one NFC East championship cap.

"The only thing this matters is this hat on my head," T.O. said with a megawatt smile. "We won. Nothing else matters."

The Lions kept T.O. from extending his TD streak to eight consecutive games, but Jason Witten gave the Original 81 a lot of credit for the game-winning score.

The Cowboys ran the same four-vertical route play on which T.O. scored against the Redskins and the Giants. With T.O. and Witten lined up on the same side, a safety playing Cover 2 is basically forced to choose whether he wants to help on an elite TE or elite WR. The safety, as had been the case all day, chose to take T.O. away.

Romo made the read and lofted the ball over the MLB. Next thing you know, the Cowboys are putting on fancy new caps.

DMN FILE

Happy birthday to the Original 81!! T.O. turns 34 today.

Albert "Einstein" Breer put into statistical perspective just how remarkable a season T.O. is having for a receiver his age. Simply put, he's the best 34-year-old receiver in the history of the game.

"He's still running like he’s a young guy," Tony Romo said. "His explosiveness has been a huge help to our team obviously this year. He maintains his body like not a lot of people do. He's one of those guys who could play receiver at the highest level maybe until he's 38 or 39."

Let's assume that Romo is right about T.O. having five prime seasons left. If that's the case, T.O. will have a shot at breaking ex-49ers teammate Jerry Rice's records, considered unbreakable by many.

JOHN F. RHODES / DMN

T.O. is one of the all-time great touchdown celebrators, so I figured I'd ask him about Lions WR Mike Furrey's star-bustin' antics at Texas Stadium last season.

"I didn't pay any attention to it," T.O. said. "I don't know who that is."

In an attempt to be helpful, I gave T.O. a brief recap of Furrey firing a spiral into the decorative star, cracking that sucker. For some reason, the Original 81 didn't seem interested in continuing the conversation.

"Dude," he said while walking away from his locker, "you're digging."

DMN FILE

I know a lot of you folks are still heated about Lions WR Mike Furrey's touchdown celebration at Texas Stadium last season. How dare a receiver disrespect the sacred Cowboys star!!!

Of course, the Original 81's Texas Stadium TD celebrations with the 49ers made Furrey's star-cracking look tame. But I get the feeling most of you folks have forgiven old T.O. after 27 touchdowns with a star on his helmet.

Thinking about these star-dissin' celebrations got me wondering just when the Cowboys faithful forgave T.O. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure he still wasn't a very popular fella around these parts when this season started. Funny how being a model citizen in the midst of one of the best WR seasons in NFL history can warm folks up to you.

If you're a grump who still can't stand T.O., feel free to fire off a ridiculous rant.

ERICH SCHLEGEL / DMN

As Pete mentioned below, we've got full coverage of the gala event last at the Gaylord Texan celebrating the Original 81's 34th birthday.

And if you look at the way he's performed this year, it's clear this wasn't any brass-ring affair, and no golden parachute looks like it's in the offing.

Check the numbers. T.O.'s got 71 catches for 1,249 yards (17.6 avg.) and 14 touchdowns. That projects to 95 catches for 1,665 yards and 19 TDs. The yardage total would be the seventh best single-season number of all-time. With a big game this week, Owens could become the oldest receiver ever to post a 1,400-yard season, and that'd be with three games left.

If Owens manages to haul in 19 touchdown passes -- which would mean catching five in his next four games -- the number could be second all-time, behind only the 22 Jerry Rice put up in 1987. We say "could" because that Moss guy in the Boston 'burbs already has 17.

Terrell Owens celebrated his 34th birthday a few days early -- and the celebration Monday night at the Glass Cactus at the Gaylord Texan Resort in Grapevine also doubled as a charity event. Funds from the event went to the Catch a Dream Foundation, which is designed to help 81 needy families in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.

Here's a video from the event.

T.O. turns 34 Friday, but the shindig's tonight. T.O. celebrated his birthday with a Hollywood bash last year, but he's keeping it local this year, and he's doing it for a good cause.

The Terrell Owens Catch A Dream Foundation's 1st Annual December to Remember Holiday Fundraiser will be held at the Gaylord Texan Resort. It's an invite-only event, but you can gawk at all the celebrities who walk up the red carpet at 7 p.m.

All those famous folks will play casino games that will benefit 81 needy families in the Dallas area. Per a press release, invited guests include, "Michael Jordan, Ashton Kutcher, Jessica Alba, Beyonce, Tyra Banks, Serena Williams, Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys, Justin Timberlake and more ...". Former Terrell (Texas) High quarterback Jamie Foxx will also be in the house.

Calvin "Lucky" Watkins is our T.O. party beat writer, so he'll be on the scene. He'll pay especially close attention to which celebrity cutie Romo has on his arm.

UPDATE: I stand corrected. This shindig is open to the public. Ticket prices range from $125 to $750.

A series of photos featuring Terrell Owens' four touchdown receptions during the Dallas Cowboys game against the Washington Redskins.
• Motion Pictures archive

• Jean-Jacques Taylor states his case.
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• More on CowboysPlus.com (it's free)

Terence Newman is No. 1 on the depth chart for punt returns.
But, Newman, Skyler Green and Jamaica Rector all practice punt returns after practice on Monday.

With the team in shells, the running game was better in the evening practice. I liked how Tyson Thompson ran hard into the hole.

Patrick Watkins had an interception in the evening practice and his stock is rising with the coaches. He's doing a real good job of putting some pressure on Keith Davis for the starting spot at free safety. But, Watkins, a rookie from Florida State, has to keep improving, espeically when the preseason starts.

The cornerbacks were getting physical with the receivers in practice, jamming them at the line of scrimmage, which is a good thing this early in camp.

Weather was cool the entire day with a light drizzle in the morning. Hope it's that way again.

Wideout Terry Glenn is excited about having Terrell Owens on the other side of the field. Glenn said he expects more one-on-one coverage, but also said don't take the new twin-tight end set, as a run oriented offense. The team will pass the ball more than what you think.

Saw Flozell Adams walk out of the locker room with ice on his right knee. He wasn't in the mood to talk, but was rather pleasant.

Here's what I have in mind. We'll try to provide you with important information, such as when the Ventura County Fair begins and where to find the most pretentious coffee shop in town.

But seriously, we'll talk about the best bars, too.

We want this to be a community for all Cowboys fans - and even the haters. Let's be respectful of each other, but not too respectful. You are only allowed to rip me once a day, so save it for something good.

What sort of reader traffic are we looking for? I think 1 billion people per day is a realistic goal. How often will I blog during the day? At least every time my editor calls, which is usually about 27 times per day.

He usually likes to say encouraging things like, "Where the hell have you been?" But sometimes he says mean things, too.

OK, now I'm going for that jog. If you're nervous about posting on this blog, feel free to send an e-mail to my personal account, which at last count, had 1,500 unread messages. Thanks for your continued support.