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FRISCO, Texas – It's time.

Time for a return to football.

Not easy for these grieving ��ݮ��Ƶ������� to in three days get all jacked up over playing a football game, the one they love, but one they will have not played in two weeks for various reasons.

The bye, of course.

And then until these past two days, have not been out here at The Star even practicing, the tragic death of teammate Marshawn Kneeland turning their world upside down, and for the most part still. There is no pill to ease this emotional pain. There is no bereavement leave in the NFL.

They have practiced twice now with a shorter version planned for Saturday before climbing aboard the charter flight on Sunday for Las Vegas, where they are scheduled to meet the Raiders at 7:15 p.m. Monday at Allegiant Stadium.

As head coach Brian Schottenheimer has stressed during these moments of sadness and sorrow, having faced the media for the first time on Wednesday since the 24-year-old Kneeland's ruled suicide-induced death in the early morning hours of Nov. 6, with this rallying cry:

"We don't move on, we move forward."

So the 3-5-1 Cowboys are trying to prepare for but a game they sorely need to win to keep even feint playoff hopes alive. And they seemingly had pep in their steps Thursday and Friday, music blaring as usual during their practices. For those two-hour periods, football was a possible release for them from the prison of grief, though the absence of Kneeland's infectious smile and the No. 94 lined up at defensive end is surely hard to ignore.

This is what they do, play football, and as cold as this may seem, as so many of us have experienced no matter how many years we have lived, death for those left behind becomes only a momentary pause. Life goes on. And will so, too, for all of us after our time is up. Sure, the Cowboys will wear helmet decals Monday night to honor their fallen brother. T-shirts during warmups too. And most certainly the Raiders' pregame presentation will pause before the national anthem, asking for a moment of silence to honor Kneeland.

But once the ball is kicked off at 5:15 Allegiant time, the 2-7 Raiders, losers of three straight and seven of their last eight, will not feel sorry for the Cowboys. They will not be playing for the future despite their playoff hopes all but shot. One person, probably regrettably,suggested as much this week, rattling the mental cage of head coach Pete Carroll, who issued thisstern response:

"We're trying to get better, right now."

And the Cowboys must, too, coming off the bye on a two-game losing streak, and knowing the road ahead playing three games in 11 days is arduous. After facing the Raiders Monday night, they return home to play the NFC East-leading Eagles (7-2) on a short-week Sunday and the 5-4 Kansas City Chiefs on an even shorter week after that on Thanksgiving Day.

But they will do so with reinforcements on the way. There's been trade-deadline acquisitions Quinnen Williams and Logan Wilson on the practice field, Nos. 92 and 55 respectively, preparing for their Cowboys debuts, surely ready to start if the game plan necessitates. There were injury-return safeties Malik Hooker and Donovan Wilson practicing once again, albeit on a limited basis. There were activated reserve-list returns DeMarvion Overshown and Shavon Revel, having been added to the 53-man roster, practicing with intentional zest, exhibiting a willingness to play.

Now then, the Cowboys rightfully limited player access these past two days, not opening the locker room for the media but bringing out for interviews the likes of Dak Prescott, Solomon Thomas, Osa Odighizuwa, CeeDee Lamb, Williams, Revel, Overshown and Ryan Flournoy, a best friend of Kneeland's. Probably limited in the effort of "moving forward." But by Monday night after the game, win or lose, by NFL rules they most likely will not have that selective choice.

Again, time to play, and in a game steeped in emotion to spur on unexpected heights.

Wish the Cowboys had access to tape of the high school game I attended Thursday night, a first-round playoff game. The state's No. 2 ranked, undefeated Allen Eagles at their 12,000-seat home stadium against the 8-2 Lewisville Fighting Farmers from my neck of the woods. Allen, by some prognostications, was a 20-point favorite. But here were the Farmers, outmanned by everystretch of the imagination, their quarterback being overwhelmed play after play by the Eagles'pass rush.

And after trailing the majority of the game, but just by 14-3, suddenly in a wave of emotion, Lewisville, fighting, clawing, these kids never giving up, had a 15-14 lead with like six minutes left. Goosebump kind of stuff, that Eagles sideline, the coaches, too, finding themselves in an unaccustomed predicament, to the point causing their head coach to run out like 20-some yards on the field to argue a call with the head referee that should have been worth a 15-yardpenalty. Home cooking, no flag.

Allen on the next possession drove down field for a touchdown and two-point conversionfor a 22-15 lead, and with Lewisville gallantly driving back in the final minutes, across the 50-yard line, a third-down fumble basically ended the game, those kids from Lewisville absorbing the season-ending loss. They could hardly bring themselves to leave the field, just hanging outwhile Allen celebrated.

Caused little ol' me to give those kids a standing ovation.

In the depths of despair, the Cowboys would do well to note the strength of a team's will in this game for incentive.

We can be certain that not in Schottenheimer's wildest dreams of finally becoming anNFL head coach did he expect to be facing this unimageable scenario preparing for a game like this, one now testing his team's will and character. Know what, for sure even his own too.

Now, didn't have to actually play in a game, but can remember covering Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa, Florida, the day after my mother passed away, living just north of Orlando, me by her side. Covered the game with a heavy heart, but somehow qualified doing so in honor of the woman who forced me, kicking and screaming, to enroll in a summer school typing class before my freshman year in high school because my handwriting was basically unreadable to anyone but me (still is). The woman who never uttered a discouraging word over me pursuing a seemingly farfetched dream as a kid of doing this for a living.

This will be the catch for Schotty. The 48 guys dressing for this game, the coaching staff, trainers, equipment guys and anyone else involved with the Cowboys in a nationally televised Monday Night Football game, the incentive to prepare and be ready to play in honor of their fallen teammate.

Dak Prescott agrees, saying this after the team's first full practice on Thursday, sort of echoing what each player's response has been so far about the medicinal benefit of getting back to ball:

"Schotty said it earlier in the week: Some guys are going to get out on the field, and it's going to hurt. Some guys are going to get out there, and it's going to be the best medicine for them. Having dealt with loss, that is the best medicine for me. So getting back out there, handing the ball off and sprinting an extra 10 yards and making sure I'm doing it hard, Marshawn went through my mind a few times at practice today.

"I just countered that with running harder after a play or trying to do something to better this team to show that. It felt good. I know it was a great practice. A lot of guys were out there, good energy, beautiful weather.

"As I said, we're not forgetting, but we're moving forward carrying on the light."

For sure, the absolute best way to honor their teammate, Marshawn Kneeland, by playing to the best of their ability.