Cowboys Notes: Lawrence, Irving, Jones

Cowboys cornerback Byron Jones had hip surgery this week, as Todd Archer of ESPN.com writes. The issue started for Jones during the 2018 season and the club initially hoped that it would heal with rest. Unfortunately, things did not improve, forcing Jones to go under the knife. The good news is that the team believes Jones could be ready for training camp.

To date, the 26-year-old (27 in September) has not missed an NFL game. Last year, the Cowboys shifted Jones back to cornerback after spending the previous two seasons at safety and he thrived. Jones led the club with 15 pass breakups and earned the first Pro Bowl nod of his career.

Jones figures to be a part of the club’s plans moving forward and an extension could be on the way. For now, he’s set to play out his fifth-year option in 2019 at a salary of $6.26MM.

Here’s more from Dallas:

• Cowboys exec Stephen Jones says Demarcus Lawrence‘s desire to get paid like Von Miller and Aaron Donald is holding up negotiations. “The top two guys, I’m sure that is why we’re struggling a little bit,” Jones said (via the Dallas Morning News). “There is a delta between the top two guys and where the rest of the edge rushers and pressure players have been paid up to this point. We’re motivated to do it right now. We were motivated to do it before we put the tag on him. At the same time, we have some conviction of the range he should be in in terms of his compensation and I’m sure they have some conviction of what they’re asking for. I’m not being critical, but therein lies the root of the negotiations.” The Cowboys are offering Lawrence $20MM per season, but Lawrence recently upped his asking price to $22.5MM/year.
• Defensive tackle David Irving has retired from the NFL, and as he tells it, it was coach Jason Garrett‘s suggested course of action. “He told me I should just quit, smoke all the weed I want, the team didn’t need me,” Irving told Jori Epstein of USA Today. “I’m a distraction to the team. He views marijuana as a drug, whereas I view it as a medicine. It’s not a good situation.” Meanwhile, Irving says owner Jerry Jones was supportive of him and expressed disagreement with the NFL’s drug policies that landed him an indefinite suspension. Irving, meanwhile, plans to be a pro-marijuana advocate in his post-football life with a focus on how CBD can help NFL players deal with pain.
• On Thursday, the Cowboys acquired pass rusher Robert Quinn from the Dolphins, which should help to reinforce their D-Line after losing Irving to retirement and Randy Gregory to an indefinite ban. Of course, they could be left with a glaring hole on the other side if they are unable to reach a long-term deal with Lawrence.