Tony Romo has full practice; Dak Prescott still No. 1

FRISCO, Tex. -- Again, the more Jerry Jones talks, the more convoluted he gets regarding the team's quarterback situation.

Surely, the Dallas Cowboys are going to do the right thing and continue to roll with rookie quarterback Dak Prescott.

But you never know with Jones, who now says the quarterback situation will be played out week by week without it probably never getting sorted out.

What we know now is that Romo was a full participant in practice for the first time since his injury Aug. 25. The Cowboys (7-1) still are deciding whether to have him active Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers (4-4) as the backup to Prescott.

Romo received full clearance this week, allowing him to suit up in pads for the first time. He returned to practice Oct. 27 on a limited basis, and was limited in two shells practices last week.

"He's champing at the bit," Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett said. "I think it's all just stages, getting the guys closer and ready to play in a game. Tony hasn't played in a game in nearly a year, 50 weeks. So you want to get a guy out there again and again and again moving around with people around him. First week he did individual. He did 7-on-7. The next week he did more 11-on-11 with people around him. And those are all positive steps."

Romo, 36, grows ever closer to a return from the compression fracture in his back. After missing 12 games last season, twice fracturing his left collarbone, Romo has missed all eight games this season.

He has not played in a regular-season game since last Thanksgiving.

But the Cowboys plan on sticking with Prescott for the near future, including Sunday against the Steelers.

Prescott insists he's not looking over his shoulder.

He has a passer rating of 104.2 that ranks fourth in the league, and he has 12 touchdown passes and two interceptions.

"Nothing changes for me," Prescott said. "I'm the same guy no matter from now to the point I was a third-string guy coming in to OTAs. Nothing changes. Nothing's going to be different from the way I approach the game."

Prescott was asked Wednesday if he had "done enough" to keep the job the remainder of the season.

"I don't really think about if I've done enough or what I've done," Prescott said. "I just think about coming in each and every day and working my butt off in practice, giving this team a chance throughout the week so we can go out there and have a chance to win on Sunday."

Prescott continues to praise Romo for his help, adding he laughs at questions about a quarterback controversy.

"I'm not going to change what the situation is," Prescott said. "It's my love and my passion for this game. The way that I approach it, I don't care who's the other guy or what's going on around me, what the record is, what my last performance was, it's all about how I can get better in my next play."