Latest On Cowboys WR Dez Bryant

The Cowboys have yet to make a decision on whether veteran wideout Dez Bryant will be with the club in 2018, according to Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star Telegram.Dez Bryant (vertical)

“I don’t have a time frame just yet,” said Cowboys vice president Stephen Jones. “Obviously, it’s going to happen sooner than later. … We have to continue to work on our end and see where we are gonna end up on it.”

Bryant is due a $12.5MM base salary in 2018, and will count for $16.5MM on Dallas’ salary cap. If he’s released, the Cowboys would save $8.5MM but still be on the hook for $8MM in dead money. Dallas could designate the 29-year-old Bryant as a post-June 1 release and in turn save $12.5MM in 2018 space, but that extra room wouldn’t be available until June. As such, it wouldn’t help the Cowboys sign free agents in March.

Bryant has managed to get into the end zone 14 times over the past two seasons, but he hasn’t topped 1,000 yards since the 2014 season. 2017 also marked the first year that Bryant was able to stay healthy for all 16 games since that 2014 season. Bryant only posted 69 receptions and 838 yards, however, which isn’t in line with a salary that makes him the NFL’s eighth-highest-paid wideout.

Speaking at the scouting combine today, Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett also sidestepped the issue of Bryant’s roster status. “We have a tremendous amount of love for Dez Bryant,” said Garrett, who indicated Dallas has yet to discuss personnel decisions (Twitter link via Jon Machota of the Dallas Morning News). “He’s been a great player for us for a long time.”

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