Cowboys executives Jerry Jones and Stephen Jones have each said this week that they’d like to get a deal worked out with Greg Hardy to keep the veteran defensive end with the team beyond the 2015 season. While those comments could simply be interpreted as a public show of support for Hardy, the Cowboys are expressing a similar sentiment privately, having reached out to Hardy’s representatives to make it clear they have no issues with the pass rusher on or off the field, a source tells Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.
A report from NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport on Monday indicated that there was some confusion about Hardy’s absence from practice last Thursday, but Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com says the 27-year-old’s whereabouts was no mystery for the team. According to Mortensen, Hardy first sent a text message to the Cowboys’ head athletic trainer, Jim Mauer, at 5:30am to communicate an illness. David Moore of the Dallas Morning News has since published a similar report.
While the Cowboys insist no one was caught off guard by Hardy’s absence from practice, it’s hard to know for sure — after all, neither Hardy’s camp nor the Cowboys would be eager to confirm such a report, so it’s in everyone’s best interest to shoot down Rapoport’s report, whether or not it’s accurate. In any case, it’s clear that the Dallas organization isn’t upset about Hardy’s missed practice, or any of his other actions.
Here’s more on Hardy, along with a few other items from around the NFL’s East divisions….
- Hardy and his agents “would love” to begin talks on a long-term extension with the Cowboys, according to Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Twitter link), who admits that probably goes without saying.
- In an engaging feature for ESPN, Elizabeth Merrill speaks to former Bills head coach Doug Marrone about his decision to leave Buffalo following the 2014 season.
- Mike Rodak of ESPN.com explains why he has a hard time envisioning the Bills seriously pursuing quarterback Ryan Mallett, who was released by the Texans today.
- The NFL officially filed its appeal of Judge Richard Berman’s ruling that overturned the league’s four-game suspension of Patriots quarterback Tom Brady several weeks ago, as Christopher Price of WEEI.com details. Within the filing, the NFL insisted Roger Goodell and the league acted within the parameters of the CBA, insisting that “the district court’s decision cannot stand.” The Deflategate saga figures to drag on well into 2016.
The Cowboys are really running up the tone-deaf score with these Hardy overtures. It’s difficult to predict at this point, with just about every other organization being extremely PR-conscious. Hearing about a pursuit to keep him around makes sense, but having each of the Joneses publicly court him now is a bit different.