Archer: Stephen Jones - Cowboys think world of Dez

Cotton

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Stephen Jones: Cowboys think world of Dez
February, 17, 2015

By Todd Archer | ESPNDallas.com

INDIANAPOLIS -- Dez Bryant caused something of a stir Tuesday when he tweeted he wasn't sure if the Dallas Cowboys are as dedicated to him as he is to them.



Bryant's tweet was in response to a fan, but it came not long after Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones said the team is leaning toward using the franchise tag on the Pro Bowl receiver.

"Well, he's not feeling the right vibes then," Jones said. "We feel strongly about him. We worked hard to do a long-term deal with him and we'll continue to work hard at it. If we don't get one, then [the franchise tag] justs show him how much we care about him [that] we don't want to expose him."

While the final figures will not be in until the 2015 salary cap is set, the franchise tag for wide receivers figures to be around $13 million.

Bryant wants the security of a long-term deal that brings more guaranteed money, not just a one-year tag.

If Bryant -- or any player in his situation -- wants to be upset with management, they need to turn their attention to the NFL Players Association for not fighting harder to get rid of the franchise tag in the most recent collective bargaining agreement.

The team is simply using a tool that was agreed upon by two sides in negotiations.

If the team ends up tagging Bryant, he can choose to sit out of the voluntary offseason program and organized team activities without penalty. If he signs the tender, he would only need to show up for the mandatory June minicamp.

Earlier Tuesday, Jones said he did not have any worries about Bryant's reaction if the receiver was tagged.

"I think Dez will be a pro and he'll play," Jones said.

There is a downside for the team having to commit a significant amount of salary-cap space in one year to one player. In a multi-year deal, the player's first year cap figure would be low because a high percentage of the money comes in the form of a signing bonus that gets prorated over the length of the deal or, at most, five years.

In the Cowboys' case, having Bryant at $13 million does not take away their ability to shop in free agency, but it might limit all the shopping they would want to do. (Quick aside -- even if they had all the money in the world, they have learned that spending money does not guarantee victories.) The Cowboys put the franchise tag on Anthony Spencer in 2012 and '13, paying him $19.4 million. He produced a career-high 11 sacks in 2012 and was named to the Pro Bowl. In 2013, he played in one game before needing microfracture knee surgery.

"It's not like it's a bad deal for the player," Jones said. "They get a lot of money guaranteed Day 1 and it's certainly not a terrible deal. But who knows? We've still got weeks to go here before we make that decision so a lot of things can happen. But I can say this: We sure think the world of Dez."
 

Stars

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Just silly little games. I don't blame Dallas if they tag him, and I don't blame Dez for getting a jab in.
 

dallen

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It's all posturingl. People on other sites are freaking out about it though. :lol
 

Texas Ace

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You had to know this wouldn't be done quickly being as he's getting a massive contract.

When it's a contract of this size, it takes some back and forth just to even get into the same neighborhood with one another. He might get tagged initially, but he'll have a contract before the season comes around.
 

Carp

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Dez made a mistake with that Tweet. He is playing the victim card big time. I don't like it.
 

NoDak

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Dez made a mistake with that Tweet. He is playing the victim card big time. I don't like it.
Made a mistake how? It's not like it will cost him any money, or that the team won't try just as hard to get him signed.

A mistake in public perception? He didn't say anything inflamatory towards anybody. BFD.
 

Carp

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Made a mistake how? It's not like it will cost him any money, or that the team won't try just as hard to get him signed.

A mistake in public perception? He didn't say anything inflamatory towards anybody. BFD.
Maybe made a mistake is the wrong choice of words. It is immature, something a 12 year old girl does on Twitter talking about her boyfriend.
 

vince

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Maybe made a mistake is the wrong choice of words. It is immature, something a 12 year old girl does on Twitter talking about her boyfriend.
I agree. He makes it sound like the Cowboys don't like/appreciate him as much as they should. Definitely comes off as a little selfish and immature, especially since he's going to get paid big eventually.
 

Chocolate Lab

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I agree. He makes it sound like the Cowboys don't like/appreciate him as much as they should.
He probably does think that. I'm sure he feels like the Cowboys don't trust him off the field and he resents that, just like he bristled at the "Dez rules" reports a year or two ago.
 

Cotton

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He probably does think that. I'm sure he feels like the Cowboys don't trust him off the field and he resents that, just like he bristled at the "Dez rules" reports a year or two ago.
I can understand why he would be a little defensive. He has busted his ass to turn his off the field life around, and probably feels that hard work is not being appreciated.

Different people require different types of encouragement. Dez may be the type that he needs that reassuring pat on the back to feel his work has paid off.
 

BipolarFuk

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Let him walk or tag him....who gives a shit.

There hasn't been a Super Bowl Champion in the salary cap era with a WR taking up a huge chunk of cap space.
 

Genghis Khan

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Let him walk or tag him....who gives a shit.

There hasn't been a Super Bowl Champion in the salary cap era with a WR taking up a huge chunk of cap space.
There hasn't? I would imagine the Colts spent a large chunk of their cap on Harrison/Wayne, and the Rams probably spent a lot on Holt/Bruce, just to name 2 off the top of my head.
 

boozeman

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There hasn't? I would imagine the Colts spent a large chunk of their cap on Harrison/Wayne, and the Rams probably spent a lot on Holt/Bruce, just to name 2 off the top of my head.
Ah bullshit. All it takes is an "elite" CB to shut them down and stuff.
 

Texas Ace

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Let him walk or tag him....who gives a shit.

There hasn't been a Super Bowl Champion in the salary cap era with a WR taking up a huge chunk of cap space.
:lol

Are you out of your mind?

And how exactly would we be closer to winning a SB by letting him walk?
 

BipolarFuk

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We'll never compete for a Super Bowl with two players accounting for 50%+ of the salary cap. Sturm or someone wrote an article on it.
 

Cotton

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We'll never compete for a Super Bowl with two players accounting for 50%+ of the salary cap. Sturm or someone wrote an article on it.
There is no damn way the two of them would account for half the cap. Romo will be 27 mill and Dez would be what about 13 mill or so. That's less than 1/3 of the cap. But keep your hate face on. It's like your schtick and stuff.
 

BipolarFuk

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There is no damn way the two of them would account for half the cap. Romo will be 27 mill and Dez would be what about 13 mill or so. That's less than 1/3 of the cap. But keep your hate face on. It's like your schtick and stuff.
I don't remember what the numbers were, but the gist of it was when you have huge money tied up in two or three players then it cripples your ability to field a championship team.
 

boozeman

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:lol

Are you out of your mind?

And how exactly would we be closer to winning a SB by letting him walk?
Hey, you just go out and draft a guy that isn't a diva, yet can produce.

I get where he's going with this, ala the Patriots and Seahawks without name WRs, but they also have better organizations and head coaches than we have or will ever have.

The handicap to defeat our own challenges is to kill it with talent. We certainly are not going to overachieve as a regular condition.
 

boozeman

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I don't remember what the numbers were, but the gist of it was when you have huge money tied up in two or three players then it cripples your ability to field a championship team.
If you have a team worth a shit, you are going to have a top three-four guys chewing up the cap. It is inevitable.

There is this thing called team building.

You do it right, the absolutes you are talking about don't matter. There is no formula, otherwise everyone would copy it.
 
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