OXNARD, Calif. – Dez Bryant remains out of practice with the hamstring strain he sustained Aug. 6, but Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones is understandably taking a big-picture approach with the All-Pro receiver.
Although there's plenty of time for Bryant to return in preseason, Jones likes Bryant's progress and the team has made clear it won't rush back injured players. The Sept. 13 opener against the Giants is, of course, the primary focus.
"There's a lot of me that likes Dez, seriously, right where he is right now," Jones said. "He's really working on his conditioning. I noticed how hard they (the athletic training staff) had him out here working before the practice. I like that.
"Dez wants to be out here and it's probably killing him not to be making plays. I know it is. But for our perspective, that's working about where we want it to be. I don't think in any way we're going to be behind or limited as to Dez's preparation the way it's working right now all the way up until we play the Giants."
Linebacker Rolando McClain remains on the Active/Physically Unable to Perform list as he recovers from offseason knee surgery. Jones said McClain, who faces a four-game regular-season league suspension, could be healthy to play Week One if he were eligible.
McClain can play in preseason games, but he isn't eligible in the regular season until Week Five against the Patriots.
Asked if McClain needs preseason reps after missing the entire offseason program, Jones said, "I don't think that's necessary. Not in his case. The kinds of things we want to see from him are basically, we know what he can do."
Head coach Jason Garrett recently said McClain is on schedule with his rehab but doesn't currently have a timetable to return in preseason.
