When Cowboys cornerback Morris Claiborne jammed his left knee on August 6, he said he planned to return to the field the next day.
He didn’t return on August 7, however. Or August 8 or August 9 or August ... You probably get the picture by now. Claiborne has missed the last two weeks of practice and the last two preseason games as a result of the knee injury, but his return to the field has taken a step forward.
Tim McMahon of ESPNDallas.com reports that Claiborne said he ran Wednesday for the first time since sustaining the injury and will now wait to see how his knee responds to the new activity. If that goes well, the rehab will move to the next phase with the goal of getting Claiborne on the field against the Giants on September 8. Coach Jason Garrett wouldn’t clarify Claiborne’s status for this week’s game, but said there’s a chance that the corner could wind up playing in the final preseason game of the year if all goes well with his knee.
“We’ll just see where he is physically,” Garrett said. “He needs to practice; he needs to play. But then you say, ‘OK, he’s not healthy enough to do that. What’s our next best alternative?’ You maybe go into a game where he hasn’t had as much work as you’d like him to have. That’s just part of our game. You’ve got to make it work.”
Claiborne, a first-round pick in 2012, battled injuries in the preseason last year as well before playing in 15 regular season games.