Cowboys Owner Wants To Keep Dez Bryant

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones wants Dez Bryant to be a member of the Cowboys next offseason (via Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram). Of course, it remains to be seen if Dallas can accomplish that with the wide receiver’s $16.5MM cap hit looming large. Dez Bryant

The reason we don’t discuss contract is that it is implies there is an issue with the contract,” Jones said. “That is not fair to imply that there is anything until we sit down and announce we have done something one way or another. It takes two. It takes him and us to do anything with his contract. I’m going to leave it at that. You have asked me as I sit here do you want him on the team next year, and my answer is yes.”

Jones indicated that the Cowboys will meet with Bryant and/or his reps before free agency starts on March 14. We shouldn’t expect the Cowboys to pitch Bryant on an extension, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Rapoport’s “understanding” is that the Cowboys will ask Bryant to take a pay cut or adjust the contract in some other fashion for the upcoming year. Still, moving on seems like the last resort for the Cowboys, he says.

Bryant is due a $12.5MM base salary this season. If the wide receiver is not amendable to an outright pay cut, the team look for him to slash his base pay with an equal raise in incentives. If Bryant can come close to reprising his 2014 season (88 receptions for 1,320 yards and 16 touchdowns), then he’ll be well worth the money. If he falls closer to his last three seasons (an average of 50 catches for 678 yards and six scores), then the Cowboys will want to pay him appropriately.

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