Twists keep coming in the Cowboys’ Odell Beckham Jr. saga. Days after proclaiming the free agent wide receiver would join the Cowboys, Jerry Jones is backing off.

This lengthy courtship has gone from the Cowboys being the runaway favorites to rumblings of OBJ’s health scuttling a deal to Jones being OK with Beckham’s playoffs-only plan to now the owner indicating time is slipping away regarding a deal.

“I don’t I don’t have an assessment of that,” Jones said during his latest 105.3 The Fan appearance regarding a potential Beckham deal (via the Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Clarence Hill). “But as of this morning, we don’t have anything but I don’t I don’t have an assessment. The reality is though that time is moving on down the road relative to being relative to playing in the playoffs. And so every day diminishes our chances of going forward.”

Despite Jones’ comments last week, CBS Sports’ Josina Anderson adds (via Twitter) no deal was imminent at that point and nothing is believed to be in the works early this week. While we have heard next to nothing on Beckham and the Bills or Giants, it is safe to still call the Cowboys the favorites. But this will-they/won’t-they drama is now late in its second month.

The Rams led the way on the OBJ front for months, but their incentive-laden offer and on-field struggles took them out of the mix. The Cowboys did not surface as a team to watch until shortly after failing to acquire Brandin Cooks and Jerry Jeudy at the trade deadline. Nearly two months have passed since the Cowboys zoomed onto the Beckham radar, but the 30-year-old pass catcher’s injury timetable continues to be pushed back. Long thought to be ready to play by December, Beckham has since indicated hopes of signing with a team ahead of the playoffs for the purposes of ramping up toward a postseason return.

The Cowboys boast a deeper receiver situation than they did to start this season. Despite third-round rookie Jalen Tolbert failing to carve out playing time, Dallas has seen Michael Gallup regain some of his pre-ACL-tear form and Noah Brown enjoy his best season yet. James Washington has debuted, and T.Y. Hilton is now on the team. The 10-year Colt has not made his Cowboys debut yet, however. Beckham seems to still have a path to join this contingent, but his price point — once thought to be around $20MM AAV on a multiyear deal — certainly has impacted negotiations as well. Ten months after the former Giants, Browns and Rams receiver suffered his second ACL tear, the wait continues.

The Odell Beckham Jr. hype train has slowed down. The last of Beckham’s three free agency visits ended more than a week ago, and it produced a run of headlines pertaining to the high-profile wide receiver’s late-season availability.

Skepticism about Beckham being able to contribute for a contender this season had brewed before he embarked on his free agency tour, and his Cowboys meeting led to reports of a further delayed timetable — compared to the long-rumored November-December return window. This preceded Beckham coming out and saying he preferred to sign with a team and only play in the playoffs. OBJ now looks to be considering moving that timetable back further.

Several teams believe Beckham is moving toward shutting down his efforts to play this season, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com notes. It is fairly clear the offers Beckham sought — reportedly in the $20MM-AAV range on a multiyear accord — have not emerged. The Cowboys are not believed to have submitted an offer during their visit, despite weeks of courting the former Pro Bowler. Beckham, 30, would be in a better position to hit free agency healthy if he did not attempt to play this season.

Mentioned as an option here, Beckham punting on the 2022 campaign would put him in line to be part of a thin free agent receiver class. Ahead of potential cap casualties, next year’s UFA crop stands to be headlined by DJ Chark, Jakobi Meyers, Allen Lazard and JuJu Smith-Schuster. This class is believed to be affecting Beckham’s plans, per Fowler, who adds that teams who have done homework on the eight-year vet expect him to wait and be part of this crop.

Taking this route will mean a 19-month gap between games for the former Giants, Browns and Rams wideout, who has been rehabbing his second ACL tear. The money OBJ would have received this offseason, had he not been injured, may never be available to him again. While Beckham already played four seasons on a five-year, $95MM deal he signed back in 2018, the first half of Super Bowl LVI showed he still had plenty left in the tank. Regrouping for 2023 may still limit his earning power, due to age and injury history, but it would protect him against a reinjury this year crushing his value — perhaps irrevocably.

That said, a Beckham-Cowboys partnership is not dead yet. The Cowboys signed T.Y. Hilton this week, and Josina Anderson of CBS Sports tweets that move partially came about because the team is not certain how long the end of Beckham’s rehab effort will take. One report indicated Beckham would not be ready to play again until February 2023. Jerry Jones said Beckham playing during the regular season was important for a signing to commence, but he stopped short of saying it was mandatory. Jones said late last week the sides were still talking, and Anderson adds (via Twitter) they huddled up again Monday night to discuss terms and a timetable.

Dallas has won four straight and now has a deeper receiving corps than it carried into the season. Michael Gallup is healthier, while James Washington made his debut in Week 14 after missing most of the season due to a foot fracture. A four-time Pro Bowler during his 10-season Colts stay, Hilton supplies more depth for the CeeDee Lamb-fronted group. A healthy Beckham would certainly make the Cowboys’ offense more dangerous, but it became clear last week the Cowboys do not view Beckham as healthy.

Injuries to other teams’ receiving cadres likely will continue to keep a late-season OBJ signing on the radar, but both the Cowboys and Bills (Cole Beasley, John Brown) have made moves to add lower-profile depth recently. Beckham attempting to be the rare impact player to spend a season without a team and come back would make for an interesting scenario, and more teams figure to pursue him in free agency come March. Will that now be the window when Beckham finally signs?

Odell Beckham Jr. is on visit No. 3 of his three-meeting itinerary, but after the Cowboys’ public courtship led to attending a Suns-Mavericks game Monday night, some brake pumping appears in order about a partnership.

The Cowboys are concerned about Beckham’s knee following his physical, Ed Werder of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter). The prospect of Beckham not being ready to play until at least mid-January has surfaced, and Werder adds it is possible a Beckham deal would not benefit a team until the 2023 season. The Cowboys have long been viewed as the favorite; Beckham visited the Giants and Bills last week.

As the OBJ sweepstakes have progressed, steady skepticism has existed regarding the standout wide receiver’s recovery leading to contributions during the 2022 season. Jerry Jones stopped short of guaranteeing Beckham can play this season, but said his ability to do so is “paramount” to a deal taking place. Though, the owner walked that back a bit by indicating an agreement is not completely off the table if Beckham cannot contribute until next season.

“I’m going to kind of keep that one at bay, because that’s degree,” Jones said during his latest 105.3 The Fan interview (via Todd Archer of ESPN.com). “It’s a lot different if you play one play or if you played or are available for a week and that week be the Super Bowl week, than if he’s available the next week. And so everything in between. I would say that’s a point of discussion — a player’s own belief of where he is in becoming ready to play is real big.”

Both Beckham ACL tears — in October 2020 and February 2022 — occurred in his left knee. The former Giants Pro Bowler is also now 30. Timelines connected to his return from the Super Bowl LVI tear ranged from mid-November to early December, but this Cowboys physical throws cold water on even the back end of this range. Sources close to Beckham informed CBS Sports’ Josina Anderson the wideout would be ready to contribute in the playoffs, after acclimating with a team during the coming weeks (Twitter link).

Beckham’s health also will have a major impact on his earning potential. The ACL tear hijacked what would have been a lucrative free agency pact, and although Beckham wants a multiyear commitment in the $20MM-per-year range, that price range has long seemed unrealistic. The Rams offered an incentive-laden deal months ago; that displeased the recent rental Ram. Beckham is planning to make his decision this week, though if the money is not at the level he wishes, would he shut this process down and reassess for 2023?

Beckham attended the NBA game with Micah Parsons and Trevon Diggs and is continuing meetings with Cowboys brass and the team’s leadership council, which includes Dak Prescott and 10 other veterans. Cowboys players have long lobbied for Beckham, but his wild-card status remains. Neither the Giants nor Bills worked out Beckham, but the New York teams put him through medical testing. The Cowboys are also not planning to audition Beckham, increasing the uncertainty regarding his readiness. Although Beckham is believed to have been cleared last month, Tuesday’s latest pushes back against that clearance translating to immediate availability.

“Well, I’m not confident at all,” Jones said of Beckham’s status without seeing him work out, via Audacy.com. “And so that’s the issue. Now, we all realize that issue of health, that issue of availability is here every time. Just this one is very obvious and very pointed toward his injury that occurred last year in the Super Bowl. We’ve got a good bead on that. We’ve got a great read on his career. It’s not like a draft pick coming at you. We’ve got a lot of history here and you take a good look on everything — not only the obvious, which is his performance, but also any issue regarding health.”

“We’ve got to come in with our eyes wide open and it has to be addressed and that’s where you see if you can make a deal or not.”

News of Beckham’s return timetable being pushed to January would further point to the eight-year veteran considering a punt on the 2022 season and making a free agency push for 2023. A thin wideout market is expected to take shape, barring cap casualties. While OBJ would still carry injury concerns, teams flush with cap space would undoubtedly be interested. Though, losing an age-30 season would be a damaging blow.

As we near the end of the free agency tour for veteran wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., some reports are conflicting but, overall, we’re getting a clear picture of what the next few days will hold. After two visits up in the New York area, Beckham will head to the Lone Star State before making a decision, as expected.

A couple of days ago, a report came out claiming a “source familiar with (Beckham’s) plans” said the 30-year-old might be adding visits to his schedule following the three known destinations. That report, from Ralph Vacchiano of FOX Sports, is contradicted by more recent reports concerning the plans for his decision. It was reported this morning that Beckham plans to return home after his visit with the Cowboys to “discuss his future with his family,” according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

Beckham has had two visits already, spending two days with the Giants before heading straight up to Buffalo. Beckham is expected to head to Dallas on Monday. He’ll meet with the team during the day before being accompanied to the Dallas Mavericks game against the Phoenix Suns on Monday night, according to Jon Machota of The Athletic. After his night at the basketball game, Beckham is scheduled to meet with Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and the team’s leadership group on Tuesday.

Rapoport’s report on the matter divulges that Beckham intends to make his decision by the middle of the week after the discussion with his family. That leaves a tight window after his reported itinerary with the Cowboys, provided by Machota, but doesn’t necessarily conflict with it. If that’s the plan, it means Beckham will likely head home on Tuesday after meeting with Prescott and the Cowboys. If mid-week is considered Tuesday to Thursday, that gives Beckham the rest of Tuesday and Wednesday to have his discussions before announcing Thursday at the latest.

Right now, the Cowboys are the reported favorite to land the recovering receiver. It still is not entirely clear what Beckham’s recovery timeline will be, which has been a main focus in his visits so far. Each candidate only has five regular season games remaining on the schedule, but Beckham made a point of choosing suitors who would continue playing when the regular season is over. There’s still a hope that we will see Beckham arrive just in time to make a run in the postseason, much like he did with the Rams last year.