Jerry Jones speaks out on what Dez Bryant can do for his next team
This whole free agent thing hasn’t gone the way Dez Bryant anticipated.
The wide receiver, who was was released by the Dallas Cowboys before the NFL draft, figured it wouldn’t be hard to find a job, specifically in the NFC East.
Bryant’s market, however, has been limited.
He reportedly turned down a multi-year deal from the Baltimore Ravens, only to find that many other teams apparently won’t even offer him the league minimum.
It almost seems like Bryant’s biggest fan might be the guy who cut him in the first place.
Cowboys scouting director Will McClay stated what seems obvious: Bryant is no longer the explosive wideout who came out of Oklahoma State.
“It was a collective deal,” McClay said recently on ESPN 103.3 FM, according to the Fort Worth Star Telegram. “The (inability) to win one-on-one, to win down field. There was inconsistency as well as some huge things in his play. So what’s best moving forward for Dez Bryant the Cowboys, we just made that decision. It’s a production-based business.”
Dallas owner Jerry Jones didn’t exactly agree with his top scout.
“I don’t feel that way,” Jones said Wednesday at the Cowboy’s annual golf tournament, per NBC Sports. “That’s not to disagree at all with Will, but I wish and want Dez to have the opportunity to compete in the NFL. I think he can, and I think he will.”
Now keep in mind that Bryant hasn’t topped the 1,000-yard mark since 2014.
He hasn’t had a 100-yard receiving game in his last 23 regular season appearances.
With a scheduled salary of $12.5 million for this upcoming season, Dallas’ choice to cut ties with him wasn’t particularly difficult.
Still, the owner remains a fan, and Jones thinks Bryant is capable of changing his game to adapt to the toll injuries have taken on his body.
“He’s certainly got the right stuff and the real question is: As every player in his career deals with injury or deals with the length of his career,” Jones said. “I think he’s very capable mentally as well as physically to do the kinds of things that you have to to adjust as you move on through your career.”
“But certainly I think he can take some of the things he’s seen Jason (Witten) do and incorporate of that type of attitude and work ethic in what he’s doing and get a chance to be back out there,” he added.
Jones has no doubt not only that his former star will find work soon, but that he has an “excellent opportunity” to shine.
“I think that every evaluation that I’ve seen, Dez has an excellent opportunity to make a contribution and a significant contribution to a team,” he said. “Our time was the time and the right time as far as our relationship but that doesn’t preclude him from being productive for another team.”
The obvious question (besides where Bryant will land) is — if Jones loved Bryant so much, why did he take the star off his helmet?
There’s never a dull moment with these Cowboys.
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