IRVING – Playing without Terrell Owens for the final six quarters of the regular season, the Cowboys' passing game faltered, partly because of his absence, partly because winning the finale against Washington meant little, and partly because the younger receivers did not make plays.

Their off-season plans to find a complement to Owens went nowhere.

With no trade possibilities and having different needs in the draft, the Cowboys decided to stick with what they had at receiver, which can be viewed as dangerous considering the age and health of Owens (34) and Terry Glenn (33).

With Owens missing from this week's minicamp because of a family matter and Glenn not taking part in any on-field team workouts, Sam Hurd and Miles Austin practiced with the first-team offense.

While the stakes were much lower, coach Wade Phillips liked what he saw.

"We're optimistic at this time of year certainly," Phillips said, "but I think rightfully so with those two guys."

Hurd and Austin arrived in 2006 as undrafted free agents out of Northern Illinois and Monmouth. They have combined for 29 catches for 265 yards and a touchdown, which is a decent four-game stretch for Owens, who has 28 touchdown catches in two seasons with the Cowboys. Or Glenn, who had back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons before missing all but one regular-season game in 2007.

Hurd and Austin paid attention to the trade and draft talk and were relieved when the Cowboys stood pat.

"It shows they believe in us," Hurd said, "and they're going to let us develop and grow and become the great wide receivers we can be."

Patience and potential can only go so far, so the third year is pivotal to a player's success.

Because Austin played at a smaller school, his development has taken longer. But Phillips has seen a change: "He seems to feel like nobody can cover him, and that's the way he needs to be."

Austin's greatest asset is his speed, but he's worked on becoming a more disciplined route runner to earn the trust of the coaches and Pro Bowl quarterback Tony Romo.

"The coaches want to see if you can be dependable," Austin said. "Coach [Jason] Garrett stresses he doesn't want any flash players making big plays here and then you don't get to the right depths."

Hurd, who is dependable, has been mentored by Owens on the nuances of the position. He has fought the perception that he lacks speed.

"The moment you think, 'OK, I'm going to try and run with him,' you're not going to turn and run with me, especially because I know how to position my body," Hurd said. "That's something I learned from Terrell. Once I'm on top of you, I'm on top of you."

Austin and Hurd had their moments this off-season, like Austin's deep touchdown catch on Pacman Jones and Hurd's plucking the ball from the air Wednesday on an intermediate route in a two-minute drill.

"Until they fully get thrown to the wolves every game ... it's always up in the air," Romo said. But I've seen them. They've produced when they had the opportunity, and I think they'll be fine."

Minicamp ends with picnic: Instead of ending the three-day minicamp with an hour-long practice, Phillips made it family day at Valley Ranch.

Players reported for meetings at 11:45 a.m., then had a picnic with family members as the Cowboys concluded their organized on-field workouts before training camp begins next month in Oxnard, Calif.

Players can work out at Valley Ranch until July 15.

Five players cut: The Cowboys released three rookie free agents – Grand Prairie guard Brandon Hale, linebacker Alain Karatepeyan, wide receiver Joe West and cornerbacks Justin Phinisee and Jerron Wishom.

The Cowboys have one open spot on their roster to reach the 80-man limit for training camp. Excluding the six draft picks and safety Ken Hamlin, 72 players are under contract.