Owens Says He’ll Play Against Eagles

Squeezing his broken right hand into a fist, Terrell Owens saw how far he could curl his fingers and smiled.

“When we get back next week,” he told teammate Sam Hurd, “my goal is for it to touch.”

Owens is so pleased with how his hand is healing, he said Friday that he would “definitely” play for the Dallas Cowboys in Philadelphia on Oct. 8, a game that has been marked on his calendar since the schedule was released.

“I’ll be ready,” said Owens, his injured hand wrapped in gauze.

With the Cowboys having a bye this weekend, there remains a chance Owens won’t sit out any games. They play at Tennessee a week from Sunday, and Coach Bill Parcells says he believes Owens could be back then.

“The swelling is down, and he’s running,” Parcells said. “So it will just be a question of when he can catch. Soon as he can do that, we’re good to go.”

Owens lists himself as “day to day.” Asked whether he expects to play against the Titans, he laughed and said, “I can catch with one hand.”

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Carolina Panthers receiver Steve Smith practiced for the second day in a row as he recovers from a strained right hamstring.

“He looked good,” said Coach John Fox, who indicated it will be a game-time decision whether Smith plays Sunday at Tampa Bay.

Smith, who led the league in receiving last season, sat out Carolina’s first two games after being injured during practice on Sept. 5.

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Running back Shaun Alexander will start for the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday against the New York Giants despite a sore left foot.

Alexander practiced for the first time this week on Friday. Coach Mike Holmgren then fulfilled Alexander’s promise to play from the day before.

“My thing with Shaun early in the week, he had to stay in it mentally in studying,” Holmgren said after Alexander participated in the entire practice on a foot he injured during the season-opening win at Detroit.

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New York Jets receiver Laveranues Coles was limited again in practice because of an unspecified calf injury, and remained questionable for Sunday’s game at Buffalo.

Coles has had his left calf wrapped since Monday, and didn’t fully participate in 11-on-11 drills for the third day in a row. It’s unclear when the injury occurred during the 24-17 loss to New England last Sunday.

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The Indianapolis Colts probably will sign kicker Martin Gramatica for Sunday’s game against Jacksonville as a possible replacement for Adam Vinatieri, who is nursing a groin injury and has not practiced all week. Gramatica tried out Wednesday with the Colts.

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Anthony Hargrove’s unexcused two-day absence remained unresolved for the St. Louis Rams. The only certainty is that the defensive end will not be on the field Sunday at Arizona.

Hargrove’s agent, Reggie Blackwell, said Hargrove was “going through some family and personal issues” that came to a head during a conversation with his parents on Wednesday.

Coach Scott Linehan said Hargrove had not been suspended but would be fined. Rookie Victor Adeyanju will replace him in the line, and Brandon Green, inactive the first two games, will be the backup at right end.

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Rookie quarterback Tarvaris Jackson of the Minnesota Vikings requires surgery for cartilage damage in his right knee and probably will be out three to four weeks.