INDIANAPOLIS – Five months after undergoing surgery for a torn Achilles, Cowboys safety Barry Church is impressing head coach Jason Garrett.

“Ahead of schedule and doing great,” Garrett said of Church. “And he played really well for us when he played early on.”

Church has begun running in his rehab, and he said after the season ended the hope was that he would be 100 percent for the offseason conditioning program.

After he got hurt, the Cowboys signed Church to a four-year extension that is worth as much as $12.4 million. He won the job in training camp and started the first three games before getting injured. He finished the year with eight tackles and two pass deflections.