Owens Has Surgery for Broken Finger

Terrell Owens played in a Super Bowl for Philadelphia seven weeks after getting a plate and several screws put in his ankle. Now he’s hoping another plate and three more screws in his right hand will enable him to play against the Eagles.

Owens had a plate screwed into the bone attached to his right ring finger during an operation Monday night. His recovery time is estimated at two to four weeks, but he’s likely to do all he can to rejoin the Dallas Cowboys in 20 days for his much-anticipated return to Philadelphia on Oct. 8.

“Most of those injuries, when they put a plate in there ... that pretty much fixes it,” Coach Bill Parcells said Monday, before the surgery.

“Once they put that in there, it’s not going anywhere, you’re not going to displace it again. It’s a matter of if you can get it functional.”

The Cowboys are off Sunday, then play at Tennessee before the game against the Eagles.

If things go well, perhaps Owens could play against the Titans. If there are any setbacks, it’s possible he won’t return until the game after Philadelphia, Oct. 15 at home against Houston.

“I feel like I’m a quick healer,” Owens said Sunday night. “I’m going to try to get back as fast as I can.”

Owens was slow to heal from a hamstring injury during the exhibition season, but the stakes were certainly different. As it turns out, his long layoff benefits the Cowboys because raw backups Jamaica Rector and Sam Hurd got extra work that could now pay off.