FRISCO -- Jerry Jones doesn't know if Tony Romo will be active for Sunday's game in Pittsburgh. The Cowboys' owner and general manager also isn't certain about how they will handle the starting quarterback job going forward.

"I know he's going to be a lot more active during the week relative to how we're practicing," Jones said Tuesday morning on "The Fan" KRLD-FM (105.3). "That's his plan and that's what we're excited about. He'll be out there really pushing himself. And he has been, but he'll be really stepping that up. That's the key.

"He's got to absolutely get ready to play at his top level ... I think he can get there, and you'll see that at practice this week."

Romo increased his work during practice last week, participating in individual drills as well as 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 scout team work.

It remains unclear when he'll be active for a game. If rookie quarterback Dak Prescott is still playing at a high level when Romo returns, it's likely the Cowboys will continue riding the hot hand.

Would Romo be on board with being the team's backup quarterback?

"I don't want to really speak for Tony," Jones said. "Anybody with any sense knows that Tony would like to be playing if they understand what a competitor he is. That's that. The key thing I want to emphasize is we probably are never going to have this totally sorted out. We're going to play it by ear, play it as it comes. We can do that.

"To do it really right for the advantage of the team, which we deserve, he's got to really be ready to go at the top of his game. We have the luxury of getting him that ready. When we do that, we've got an edge that can carry us a long way."

"I think what you're going to have is you're going to see Tony really playing well in practice, really being what he can be, which is in my mind, when he's healthy, I don't know that I'd trade him for anybody."

Jones said there is no deadline to determine their starting quarterback for the remainder of the season.

"There is nothing fragile about this team, about the makeup or the momentum," Jones said. "This is all very strong, Dak, the coaches, Tony. What we want to do is absolutely, play by play, series by series, game by game, do what's in the best interest of winning the game."