Quarterback Dak Prescott was spotted at The Star without the walking boot he wore into the bye week, and the Dallas Cowboys are optimistic about a rising level of health around the team.

Wide receiver Michael Gallup, out since the opening night loss at Tampa with a calf injury, is set to return to practice on Wednesday, Cowboys vice president Stephen Jones said. Jones added that defensive end Demarcus Lawrence (foot) isn't close to being back.

But Prescott is not expected to miss time with a calf injury that led to him wearing a protective boot home from the Cowboys' win at New England in Week 6. He smiled and said he wanted the media to have something to talk about this week when asked on Monday how he was feeling.

Jones said Prescott was day-to-day but pointed to a high level of optimism about the quarterback playing against the Minnesota Vikings this week.

"It would have been a tough one for him to make it (this past Sunday), but that would be speculating," Jones said during a press conference discussing the World Cup. "I don't know. Obviously, we would have had the way we were treating him differently if we were trying to get him to play today versus next week. That does afford us a little leeway to work with him in terms of having until next Sunday."

Prescott was lost for the season with a dislocated ankle in October 2020. He rehabbed for months, signed a long-term contract and reported to training camp in tremendous shape by his own measure.

During the Cowboys' first padded practice, Prescott injured his shoulder and rested for most of the preseason.

He hasn't missed time during the regular season, returning to start Week 1 at Tampa. Prescott is currently the second favorite for the 2021 NFL MVP Award -- undefeated Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray is first -- according to BetMGM.

--Field Level Media