Irvin's teammates prayed as he was taken from the field on a stretcher.

Early indications suggest the Dallas Cowboys receiver will recover from a swollen spinal cord and herniated disc and play again this season.

He was injured while being tackled early in Sunday's 13-10 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, and now the question is how much time he will miss.

"It's really too hard to tell how long he's going to be out right now," trainer Jim Maurer said. "We're optimistic that Mike will be back this year."

"It's going to be a while. How long we don't know," Cowboys coach Chan Gailey said. "Any time you lose a great player it hurts your team. Others will have to play well and perform."

Irvin, who is taking medicine to reduce the swelling, will see a Dallas-area spine specialist Wednesday. An MRI will be taken and compared to one made hours after the injury. How much has changed will determine the next step in his treatment.

Exams Sunday showed swelling in the spinal cord in two places near the base of the skull. Maurer said he doesn't expect the new pictures to show any further damage that may have been obscured by the initial swelling.

"I think they got a pretty good picture of everything he incurred," Maurer said.

The trainer admitted Monday that Irvin lost some feeling immediately after the injury.

"He had some limitations on the field," Maurer said. "He didn't have full motor function and he had pain in his neck."

Irvin was able to move his hands and feet within 15 minutes, much to the relief of his terrified teammates. He was then strapped to a stretcher and taken to the spinal unit at Thomas Jefferson Hospital, where he spent the night.

By Monday morning, Irvin had regained full use of his motor functions -- the most encouraging sign yet.

"That's one of the reasons he's being released as early as today," Maurer said.

Irvin, 33, has been a leader for Dallas on and off the field since joining the team in 1988. He hasn't missed a game because of injury since 1990, Emmitt Smith's rookie season.

"Michael has been a great player for this organization for a long time," said quarterback Troy Aikman, who has won three Super Bowls with Irvin. "He's made a lot of big plays in a lot of big games. We're going to miss his presence and we'll miss his competitive spirit. Hopefully it'll only be two weeks."

That's a highly optimistic view considering Maurer said Irvin is likely to be in the neck brace about a week as he deals with soreness and stiffness. The trainer said he wouldn't speculate whether surgery was an option.

Irvin was injured while trying to shake a tackle from Bobby Taylor at the end of an 8-yard gain with 5:16 left in the first quarter. The damage occurred when safety Tim Hauck hit Irvin on the head as he went down.

The catch was the 750th of Irvin's career, tying Charlie Joiner for ninth in NFL history.

"We're fortunate that Michael is not more seriously injured," Gailey said.

Ernie Mills will start in Irvin's place. Rookie Wane McGarity, who has been inactive the last two weeks, also will get more playing time.

"He's a big part of this team -- he IS this team," McGarity said. "It's been that way for 12 years, so he's going to be missed."

Dallas has seven receivers on the roster, so there's still plenty of depth. Gailey said the team would still consider adding another receiver if Irvin was going to be out six to eight weeks.

One option is former Cowboy Alvin Harper, who worked out for coaches last week. Harper last played in the NFL in 1997.

None of the other injuries suffered by the Cowboys on Sunday were worse than expected.

Cornerback Kevin Smith, playing his first game this season, should be fine after suffering some tightness in his ailing back and cramping in a hamstring.

Cornerback Kevin Mathis (sprained knee) will be re-evaluated this week, while offensive lineman Everett McIver (strained hamstring) and safety Darren Woodson (sprained ankle) are expected to return Monday night against the New York Giants.