Dez Bryant

Latest On Cowboys, Dez Bryant

June 17th, 2015 at 2:26pm CST by Luke Adams

With contract negotiations between Dez Bryant and the Cowboys producing plenty of rumors and speculation but little progress, the star receiver took to Twitter today to weigh in on the situation. “$13MM is cool, but where is my security?” Bryant tweeted, pointing out that he had been waiting five years for the opportunity to negotiate a long-term deal.

Not long after Bryant published his tweet, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones spoke to reporters about the issue himself, as Jon Machota of the Dallas Morning News details. According to Jones, he has spoken to Bryant within the last two weeks, and while he’s not sure if the wideout will be at the team’s training camp, the Cowboys “would like nothing more than to have long-term security with Dez.” Jones wants Bryant to be a Cowboy “for life,” tweets Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com.

While Jones may have said all the right things, the apparent impasse between the two sides has arrived as a result of the team not meeting Bryant’s asking price, and the Pro Bowler attempted to regain some leverage recently by suggesting he was prepared to sit out regular season games if an extension isn’t in place. Jones didn’t seem to put much stock in that though, saying today that he has “no doubt” Bryant will be on the field for Dallas’ Week 1 game against the Giants.

As Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk writes, Jones’ response is a polite way of saying that he and the Cowboys believe Bryant is bluffing, and it doesn’t appear it has changed the team’s stance at all. Because he has yet to sign his one-year franchise tender, Bryant can’t be fined for missing this week’s minicamp, or August’s training camp. However, once he starts missing regular season contests, he’ll lose nearly $753K per week. It appears the Cowboys aren’t buying that their No. 1 receiver would be willing to simply forfeit those pay checks.

The Cowboys and Bryant have until July 15 to reach a multiyear contract agreement.

East Notes: Bryant, Williams, Henderson, Jets

June 17th, 2015 at 8:53am CST by Luke Adams

With a couple dozen June minicamps around the NFL taking place this week, let’s check in on a few East teams whose sessions got underway yesterday….

A Cowboys source tells Clarence Hill Jr. of the Star-Telegram (on Twitter) that the Dez Bryant holdout threat is “not in our control.” Of course, the team certainly will play a part in determining whether or not the star wideout gets a new contract by the July 15 deadline. If that deadline passes without an agreement though, there’s not much the Cowboys can do for Bryant until after the season.
Appearing on SiriusXM NFL Radio (audio link), Cowboys COO Stephen Jones said that there’s currently “too big of a divide” between the team and Bryant. Jones also indicated that it’s difficult to ascertain Bryant’s value since other top wide receivers around the league are also waiting for new deals. It’s possible that once A.J. Green, Demaryius Thomas, Julio Jones, or Bryant signs a new contract, the others will follow suit.
We heard yesterday that offensive lineman Chris Williams and Seantrel Henderson were absent for the start of the Bills‘ minicamp. In a pair of pieces for ESPN.com, Mike Rodak explains that Williams did show up and participate on Tuesday, while “travel issues” kept Henderson away.
Rich Cimini of ESPNNewYork.com identifies outside linebacker Calvin Pace, running back Stevan Ridley, and guard Willie Colon as a few Jets veterans who could be on shaky ground once training camp rolls around.
Ryan Fitzpatrick of the Jets and Mark Sanchez of the Eagles rank as the NFL’s top backup quarterbacks heading into training camp, in the view of John Clayton of ESPN.com. New York acquired Fitzpatrick in a trade this offseason, while Sanchez signed a new contract to remain in Philadelphia.

Agent: No Talks Yet For Dez, Cowboys

June 16th, 2015 at 11:13am CST by Luke Adams

As expected, wide receiver Dez Bryant wasn’t in attendance today when the Cowboys’ June minicamp got underway. While the minicamp is mandatory, Bryant has yet to sign his franchise tender, meaning he’s not technically under contract with the team and therefore won’t be subject to fines for his absence.

While the Cowboys’ minicamp got started without Bryant, his agent, Tom Condon, appeared on SiriusXM NFL Radio to discuss the state of extension negotiations with the club. According to Condon (Twitter link), those talks are nonexistent at the moment, as there have been no conversations with the club regarding a new contract for his client.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that the Cowboys won’t eventually reopen discussions with Bryant and Condon. The team has until July 15 to work out a long-term contract agreement with its No. 1 receiver, and negotiations between clubs and franchised players typically go down to the wire.

Condon added (Twitter link) that – based on his conversations with his client – Bryant is willing to miss regular season games if he’s unhappy with the negotiations between the two sides. As I noted when this rumor first surfaced last week, it’s hard to imagine the Pro Bowl wideout following through on that threat, since the deadline for a long-term deal is next month. While Bryant may try to use some leverage to negotiate more favorable terms on his one-year contract, he won’t be able to sign a multiyear pact until after the season unless the two sides get something done by July 15.

For his part, Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett said today that he’s not worried about the talk of a Bryant holdout, suggesting that those rumors are being floated by others (Twitter link via Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram). Of course, Bryant himself said last Friday, “This is no rumor; it’s legit.” Do you buy it, or are you as skeptical as Garrett appears to be?

Dez, Houston, JPP Won’t Be At Minicamp

June 15th, 2015 at 10:01am CST by Luke Adams

When the Broncos held their mandatory June minicamp last week, franchised wide receiver Demaryius Thomas wasn’t in attendance. Thomas is one of four players who received the franchise tag but have yet to sign their tenders, and the other three appears set to follow his lead this week. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter), Dez Bryant, Justin Houston, and Jason Pierre-Paul won’t report to their respective clubs’ minicamp on Tuesday.

Houston’s anticipated absence from the Chiefs’ minicamp is perhaps the least surprising of the three. Head coach Andy Reid indicated last week that the NFL’s reigning sack leader “probably” wouldn’t be in attendance this week. After Ndamukong Suh signed a record-setting deal with the Dolphins in March, Houston’s asking price likely increased, and there’s no indication yet that he and the Chiefs are anywhere close to an agreement.

Bryant, meanwhile, made a brief cameo at the Cowboys’ OTAs, a hint that perhaps he’d report sooner rather than later. However, a Friday report suggested that he was shifting to a more hard-line negotiating stance, threatening to sit out Dallas’ regular season opener if he and the club haven’t agreed to a multiyear extension by that point.

As for Pierre-Paul, Giants head coach Tom Coughlin had stressed in recent weeks that he expected the veteran pass rusher to attend the team’s June minicamp, but it looks like Coughlin’s prediction won’t come to fruition. The fact that JPP – like Thomas, Houston, and Bryant – has yet to sign his franchise tender means he isn’t subject to fines for missing this week’s supposedly “mandatory” minicamp, since he isn’t technically under contract.

All four franchise-tag players have a month to work out long-term extensions with their respective teams. If a franchised player doesn’t have a multiyear deal in place by July 15, he’ll have to play the 2015 season on a one-year contract, if he plays at all.

Dez Bryant Considering Sitting Out Opener

June 12th, 2015 at 7:12pm CST by Luke Adams

7:12PM: For anyone who doesn’t believe that Bryant is serious about missing actual game time during this contract dispute, the superstar wide receiver is doing what he can to make it convincing. “This is no rumor; it’s legit,” Bryant told Michael Silver of NFL.com (via Twitter).

2:41PM: The Cowboys and Dez Bryant still have more than a month to work out a long-term contract, but if the two sides don’t strike a deal by the July 15 deadline, the star receiver will consider not reporting to the team for its regular-season opener, reports Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com.

While the Cowboys’ decision-makers, including executive VP Stephen Jones, have said publicly that they want to get a multiyear extension done with Bryant this year, the team hasn’t been aggressive about pursuing a deal, Mortensen suggests. Joel Corry of CBSSports.com hints at this as well, tweeting that he can’t blame Bryant for taking an aggressive approach to contract discussions, given the Cowboys’ negotiating stance, “or lack thereof.”

Bryant, 26, received the franchise tag from Dallas earlier this year, which includes a one-year contract offer worth $12.823MM. Like most of 2015’s other franchised players, Bryant has yet to sign that tender, meaning he’s not subject to fines if he misses the Cowboys’ mandatory minicamp next week, or training camp later this summer.

Still, Bryant did make an appearance at one of the club’s OTA sessions, and participated in individual drills. It’s hard to imagine him sitting out a regular season game due to his contract situation, particularly since his options will be limited if no deal is reached by July 15. After that date, teams aren’t permitted to sign franchised players to long-term contracts until after the season.

In my view, this is simply a negotiating tactic and an attempt to regain some leverage for Bryant, who could push the Cowboys to modify his one-year tender offer even if the two sides don’t reach a long-term agreement. Dallas’ deal with Greg Hardy featured a clause that doesn’t allow the team to use its franchise tag on the defensive end in 2016, and Bryant may attempt to get a similar clause in his own one-year contract, barring a multiyear extension.

NFC East Notes: Bryant, Jackson, Eagles

June 3rd, 2015 at 5:37pm CST by Zachary Links

Former Cowboys quarterback and current radio color commentator Babe Laufenberg (via the The Dallas Morning News) watched the Cowboys’ practice on Wednesday and wasn’t sure what to make of the defense. Ultimately, the unit he saw today will not be the same one fans see in Week 1 against the Giants. Greg Hardy could be suspended, Demarcus Lawrence and Rolando McClain could be sidelined, and it remains to be seen where Randy Gregory‘s head is at. Here’s more out of the NFC East..

Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones has not talked recently with Dez Bryant’s agents but he remains hopeful something can be worked out. At the same time, he does not feel pressured to do a deal by the deadline, as Todd Archer of ESPN.com writes. “We know he will be a Cowboy this year,” Jones said. “If he ends up playing this year under the tag we will go right back to work again next year. Now would we like to get a long term deal on him? Of course we would. We’ll work hard to do that and I’m sure we’ll make a push at some point and see if we can make it work. If not, hopefully he will understand it’s difficult to make a deal at this point and he’ll come in and get ready to play.” When and if Bryant signs his tender, he’ll be guaranteed a $12.823MM salary. The deadline to hammer out a long-term pact is July 15th.
In a chat with reporters, Washington wide receiver DeSean Jackson didn’t go into detail on what kept him away from OTAs last week, but he did mention his reality TV show on BET and that he is preparing for the birth of a child, Mike Jones of the Washington Post writes. Team president Bruce Allen on Monday said he wasn’t concerned with Jackson’s absence. “I had personal things I had to do back home,” Jackson said. “I’m a veteran in this league, going on my eighth year. Communication with my head coach and the guys here, they knew about it. Like I said, I had things I had to do, I was obligated to do back home in California. I’m here now, and I’m happy to be here with my teammates, and they’ve been putting in some great work, so I’m just trying to catch up and get back in the swing of things. But I had things I had to handle.”
The Eagles announced that they have finalized their scouting department overhaul, as Geoff Mosher of CSNPhilly.com writes. The most significant move is the promotion of Trey Brown from West Coast scout to assistant director of college scouting. Brown, entering his third season with the organization after three with the Patriots, will essentially assume the responsibilities held by former director of college scouting Anthony Patch, who was fired recently.

NFC East Notes: Kelly, Hardy, Barkley

May 28th, 2015 at 7:12pm CST by Zachary Links

Earlier this offseason, former Eagles running back LeSean McCoy accused Chip Kelly of racial bias, stating that he got rid of “the good black players.” Safety Malcolm Jenkins, still with the team, doesn’t see it that way, as John Gonzalez of CSNPhilly.com writes.

“Chip has been very, very transparent on what he’s evaluating us on,” Jenkins said. “That’s not only what we do on the field, but what we do in our assessments and how disciplined we are with our nutrition and all the sports science stuff. I haven’t seen him make a move outside of those parameters. I don’t think anybody in the locker room now thinks we have an issue with race. I don’t see that being a problem in the future. I don’t think there’s any need for Chip to address it.”

Here’s more from the NFC East..

Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant has not signed his franchise-tag tender but he did take part in a portion of Thursday’s OTAs, Todd Archer of ESPN.com writes. Unless Bryant signs the tender, he is not obligated to show up for the minicamp, but it sounds like he wanted to get on the same page with his teammates. When and if Bryant signs his tender, he’ll be guaranteed a $12.823MM salary. The deadline to hammer out a long-term pact is July 15th.
Greg Hardy‘s arbitration appeal of his 10-game suspension before arbitrator Harold Henderson has wrapped, according to Andrew Brandt (via Twitter). No date has been given for a decision on the Cowboys defensive end just yet.
Matt Barkley‘s name was thrown about in trade rumors a bit this offseason, but if you ask the quarterback, there was nothing to them, as Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer tweets. “I had intel on what was going on, and there was nothing going to happen,” said Barkley, who shares an agent with coach Chip Kelly.
Kelly told reporters that Walter Thurmond was the first Eagles cornerback to get a crack at the safety position since he has experience as a nickel back and always seems to be around the ball, according to the Eagles’ Twitter account.
The Eagles have moved quarterback G.J. Kinne over to wide receiver, according to the team’s official Twitter page.

OTA Rumors: Peterson, Forte, A. Smith, Dez

May 27th, 2015 at 12:28pm CST by Luke Adams

With organized team activities getting underway this week, we’re keeping our eye on plenty of contract and roster situations around the NFL. Here are the latest updates on a few of those situations:

Addressing Adrian Peterson‘s absence from OTAs, Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer issued another strong statement today, telling reporters – including Ben Goessling of ESPN.com (Twitter link) – that the running back has two choices: “He can play for us or not play.” A report yesterday suggested that Peterson is actually considering that second option (retirement), though I noted at the time that it sounded like the 30-year-old’s camp trying to regain some leverage.
After saying last week that he thought he had an idea of when Peterson would report to the Vikings, Zimmer admitted today that he has no idea when that’ll happen, tweets Matt Vensel of the Star Tribune.
Matt Forte, who reportedly wants a new contract, is present at the Bears‘ OTAs, but said today that “nobody likes playing on a one-year deal” (Twitter link via Jeff Dickerson of ESPN.com). As Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune tweets, Forte added, “They said we’re not talking about that type of [contract] stuff right now, so all I can do is play football.”
Antonio Smith won’t participate in the Broncos‘ OTAs, as he continues to be investigated following a complaint of sexual child abuse, writes Mike Klis of 9NEWS. Although Smith has yet to be arrested or charged with a crime, the Broncos decided it would be “best for all involved” if the defensive lineman focuses on resolving his legal situation before reporting to the team.
As expected, Dez Bryant isn’t in attendance for the Cowboys‘ OTAs. However, Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram tweets that the club has been in communication with the wideout. Earlier today, I asked whether Bryant will sign a long-term extension with Dallas before the July 15 deadline, and so far more than half of you have indicated that won’t happen.

Poll: Will Dez Bryant Sign Long-Term Deal?

May 27th, 2015 at 9:00am CST by Luke Adams

The Cowboys’ signing of former first-round pick A.J. Jenkins yesterday drew some attention, but there’s a good chance that Dallas simply added Jenkins to its roster to help the team get through its offseason program. With Dez Bryant not expected to participate in OTAs, and his attendance for June’s minicamp still a question mark, Jenkins represents another healthy body at the wide receiver position, perhaps one with a little upside.

It’s possible that Bryant returns to fully participate in Dallas’ offseason program sooner rather than later, but that would likely require the two sides reaching resolution on his contract situation. Having been assigned the franchise tag, Bryant is in line to earn a one-year salary of $12.823MM if he signs his one-year contract tender, but he hasn’t done so yet.

Like most star players who are franchised, Bryant would presumably prefer to secure a long-term extension rather than going year to year with the Cowboys. However, while the 26-year-old’s on-field production leaves no question that he should be paid like one of the NFL’s top receivers, Dallas may still have lingering concerns about his history of off-field issues.

As Joel Corry of CBSSports.com noted last week when he took a look at Bryant’s situation, the Cowboys’ most recent publicly-reported contract offer looked massive at first glance, featuring a $114MM overall price tag. However, that offer was reportedly for 10 years, with just $20MM in guaranteed money. That’s a very team-friendly structure, considering consecutive franchise tags would pay Bryant significantly more than $25MM in guaranteed money, and would leave him in position to hit the open market at age 28.

Corry points out that the Cowboys are making the Bryant negotiations trickier for themselves by making concessions in contract agreements with other players whose off-field concerns were arguably more significant than Bryant’s — the club was willing to include a clause in Greg Hardy‘s contract that prevents him from being franchised, and La’el Collins‘ new deal doesn’t feature any offsets. Depending on how the negotiations with Bryant progress, the wideout’s camp may point to those deals and rightly argue that a player with Bryant’s track record (an average of 1,312 yards and 14 touchdowns per year since 2012) should receive even more favorable terms.

With Julio Jones, Demaryius Thomas, and A.J. Green also in line for new deals this offseason, all four teams may be trying to wait out the market rather than setting it themselves. In Thomas’ and Bryant’s cases, a July 15 deadline looms — if no long-term contract is worked out by that point, signing the one-year franchise tag looks like the most likely outcome for both star receivers.

What do you think? Does Bryant sign a multiyear extension with the Cowboys within the next few weeks, or is it more probable that he plays out the year on his franchise tag?

Corry On Market For Bryant, Green, Jones

May 20th, 2015 at 6:25pm CST by Zachary Links

Wide receivers Dez Bryant, A.J. Green, Julio Jones, and Demaryius Thomas all have uncertain contract situations going forward. With Green and Jones in contract years and Bryant and Thomas having been franchise tagged, former agent Joel Corry (of CBSSports.com) looked at the market for all four players. The entire piece is worth a read, but here’s a glance at the highlights..

Jones could be the first to get a new deal since signing him to an extension is a top priority for the Falcons now that the draft is over. Jones is a virtual lock to receive the franchise tag in 2016 (~$14MM) and a second one in 2017 would cost nearly $17MM. The average of those two years, Corry writes, could be used as justification for a long-term deal in the $15MM per year range with over $40MM in guarantees.
Ryan Clady‘s negotiations could shed some light on Thomas’ situation with the Broncos. Clady secured salary escalators in his deal, and a similar approach could give Thomas the ability to earn more than $15MM per year.
Jones or Thomas getting deals in advance of the July 15 franchise player deadline for long-term deals could benefit Bryant because of the way the Cowboys have been lowballing him. Bryant became the first player in Dallas history to have three straight seasons with at least 85 receptions, 1,200 receiving yards, and 12 touchdown receptions, so he should have a good amount of leverage. However, from a negotiation standpoint, Corry feels that Bryant has done himself a disservice by showing up frequently at the team’s facilities this offseason.
Signing Green long-term may be easier said than done because of the Bengals‘ preferred structure with lucrative veteran contracts. Historically, the team’s contracts are light on guaranteed money due to the absence of base salary guarantees. Andy Dalton‘s recent deal, which Russell Wilson apparently wants to avoid for himself, is a prime example.

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