JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Jan. 31 -- Wide receiver Terrell Owens participated in portions of the Philadelphia Eagles' practice Monday, further testing his severely sprained ankle and moving a significant step closer to playing in Sunday's Super Bowl against the New England Patriots at Alltel Stadium.
"If it was my guess," Eagles center Hank Fraley said, "I would say he will play."
Eagles wide receiver Terrell Owens stretches at the start of practice, in which he participated in fewer than 10 plays.
(Rusty Kennedy -- AP)
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It was the first time that Owens had practiced since suffering a syndesmotic, or "high," ankle sprain and a fractured fibula during a Dec. 19 game against the Dallas Cowboys.
"We limited what he did," Eagles Coach Andy Reid said. "But he did it well, and he did it with the team. He moved around pretty good. We'll see how he continues here, how he feels [Tuesday] morning and how he continues throughout the week."
Said tight end L.J. Smith: "He looked pretty good. He ran pretty smooth out there."
Reid continued to take a wait-and-see approach regarding Owens's status for the game, saying he didn't see enough Monday to convince him that Owens will be ready to play. Owens participated in fewer than 10 plays on Monday, Reid said, and the toughest practice-field tests are still to come Wednesday and Thursday. "I have to see how he does here in the next few days," Reid said.
It's clear, though, that the Eagles are operating on the premise that they will have Owens available to serve at least as the third receiver Sunday. A team source said earlier Monday that, barring a setback during this week's practices, Owens is on course to play. The Eagles coaches are counting on having Owens available for 20 to 40 plays as the third wideout behind Todd Pinkston and Freddie Mitchell and could increase that workload if he looks good during practices, said the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because Reid is being cautious in his public comments.
According to the source, Eagles coaches knew late last week that they would have Owens because the wide receiver was able to run and make sharp cuts on the ankle during his workouts last week, and because Owens is intent upon playing in his first career Super Bowl. The Eagles hope that Owens will give his ankle a full test by practicing all-out Wednesday.
Owens underwent surgery on his ankle three days after getting hurt. Baltimore-based orthopedist Mark Myerson, who performed the one-hour procedure, announced last week that he would not clear Owens to play in the Super Bowl. But Eagles officials said they expected Myerson to take that stance because of liability issues and indicated they would move ahead with Owens's rehabilitation in hopes of having him available for the game.
Medical experts not involved in Owens's case said last week that Owens would be risking re-injuring himself, perhaps more seriously than before, if he plays before his ankle heals fully. Myerson and other medical experts say that the injury requires at least eight weeks of rehabilitation following the surgery. The Super Bowl comes seven weeks after Owens got hurt. Reid said Monday that his understanding is that Owens could re-injure himself, but not more seriously than before.
"Could the same injury occur? Yes," Reid said. "But he won't damage it any further than he already has."
