AP

The suspension of cornerback Orlando Scandrick for his dalliance with Molly is just the latest blow to a Cowboys defense that sometimes feels like it hasn’t provided any good news since the days of Charles Haley and Darren Woodson.

Given that backdrop, a player avoiding going on the regular season Physically Unable to Perform list would qualify as a major success and the Cowboys think they have one coming with defensive end Anthony Spencer. Spencer said he was getting close to returning from microfracture surgery a little more than a week ago and owner Jerry Jones sounded a hopeful note during an appearance on KRLD on Tuesday.

“He’s getting there,” Jones said, via the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “It’s getting there at a faster pace than we thought. We’re hoping that when we get to our 53-man cut down that we’ll be dealing with that problem. The problem is: Do we keep him on the roster because he’s going to be ready to go in a game, or do we PUP him, which would mean we couldn’t use him for six games? It’s looking like we’ll keep him on the roster.”

Spencer played just a handful of snaps before heading to injured reserve last season and his return will be welcomed on a thin defensive line even if his play isn’t at quite the same level that it was before injury derailed his career.