OXNARD, Calif. - The Dallas Cowboys are taking it easy with Tony Romo's back.
Romo sat out a competitive practice for the first time at training camp Tuesday, although coach Jason Garrett said it wasn't because of any setbacks from surgery for a herniated disk in late December.
Garrett said the Cowboys are making daily decisions on workload, and Romo is in on them as well. Romo said after the practice that camp was going as planned.
"Feeling great," Romo said. "Everything's on schedule. Just got to be smart. It's going exactly like I thought."
Executive vice president Stephen Jones said it was the 34-year-old quarterback's idea when he skipped Friday's full practice, which was lighter work without pads.
Romo did all the competitive work in the first two practices with pads Saturday and Sunday. The team was off Monday, and Romo was part of the morning walkthrough session earlier Tuesday.
"There's an old adage in football: A day off can be really valuable, two days off can be life-changing," Garrett said. "So when you get in this kind of a situation, we had yesterday off, got some good work this morning in the walkthrough, some mental work of some of the different situations we're working on."
Owner Jerry Jones said Romo "is 100 percent" and he was "not at all" concerned about the health of the first player in franchise history to sign a $100-million contract.
"We're really pleased with the way he's practicing and the work he's getting done and what he's doing both on and off the field," Jones said. "But nothing in any way would concern you certainly about his back."
Romo sustained the injury against Washington last season but stayed in and threw a game-winning touchdown pass. He had surgery two days before the Cowboys lost to Philadelphia with Kyle Orton at quarterback in a season-ending loss that kept Dallas out of the playoffs.
After being held out of competitive situations throughout the offseason, Romo was declared ready for camp. But the Cowboys have been cautious by limiting his throws. Tuesday's break is the most significant cutback so far.
Garrett said the feedback from Romo has been "good."
"But we just have to monitor him," the coach said. "We've just got to make sure we don't overdo the reps ... just be mindful of where he is each and every day."
The surgery in December was the second procedure on Romo's back in eight months. He had a cyst removed before the start of offseason practices last year and didn't do any significant work until training camp.
This year, Romo tried to sneak into a competitive drill during minicamp in June, and Garrett kicked him out of the huddle.
"It's the same approach we take here," Garrett said. "Let's keep taking incremental steps."