With Dez Bryant being one of the most discussed topics among Cowboys fans right now, I decided to write a two-part series regarding his future as a Dallas Cowboy. Last Saturday, I wrote a case in favor of Dez remaining on the team for 2018, but is that the best option for the team?
Since signing a $70M contract after 2014, Bryant hasn’t been the guy he was supposed to be.
Over the last three years, it’s really, really tough to consider him among the top wide receivers in the NFL. Even though some fans are reluctant to admit it, the truth is Bryant no longer belongs in the same tier as Julio Jones, Antonio Brown and Odell Beckham Jr.
He isn’t elite.
He’s still very talented, sure. He’s actually a good football player.
However, with Dez the question becomes: Is he $16.5M good? That’s the amount of money he’ll get paid if he doesn’t take a pay cut before next season.
It’s not about him being good enough to be a starter in the NFL, because he is. But a player who gets paid like that must justify the cap space he occupies. Bryant doesn’t do that.
The “He was better when Tony Romo was the quarterback” is indeed, true. That doesn’t mean that Dak Prescott is the problem, though. His play style is just different from Romo’s. Looking at players like Larry Fitzgerald and DeAndre Hopkins play great with mediocre quarterbacks is more than enough to debunk that argument.
Dak Prescott may get to a point in his career in which he plays more aggressive. Someday, he may be willing to throw contested balls he wouldn’t before. For now though, Dez might not be the guy who’ll become Dak’s best friend.
If Bryant is willing to take a pay cut, it’d be a different story.
Maybe he was asked at a time when emotions were running high, but his response when asked if he would take a pay cut was plain and simple: “Hell no.”
We often complain about the way the front office handles free agency in a quiet way, but that has a lot to do with how much cap space they can work with. Is it time for them to adopt a tougher approach? One in which, if a player simply isn’t justifying his salary on the field, he’s gone?
The task of retaining DeMarcus Lawrence, Anthony Hitchens and David Irving is not an easy one at all. $18M in cap space won’t cut it. The Dallas Cowboys will have to make moves in order to keep guys who contributed a lot to this football team, and who could be the foundation of a very good defense in the coming years.
They can restructure a ton of players, or part ways with some guys, who’ll free up around two or three million. Releasing Dez Bryant would save the Cowboys $8.5M in 2018. At a point, Stephen Jones & Co. must look at parting ways with one of the most iconic players in franchise history as a real possibility.
As a young Dallas Cowboys fan, Dez has been one of my favorite players to watch. Ultimately though, it comes down to the fact that he’s getting paid more than what he’s worth.
I wonder if they have the guts to do it? If they do, then they have the money for Lawrence, Irving and Hitchens. That is 3 for 1, maybe 4 if they can also sign Zack Martin long term. Hanna gives us another 3.5 and Mayowa another 3 million. There are also 10 picks in the next draft for Dallas, assuming 4 compensatory picks. WRs could be one of the high picks, with Dez and Butler no longer here. Still, there are questions on that move? Is Noah an alternative for one of those two? Can they find an WR in the draft that can be used effectively THIS year? The percentages aren’t there for that. It will be interesting to watch how this all rolls out..
That’s the correct question. Who knows if they will be willing to do it. Stephen Jones has made comments that sound like they’re taking a tougher approach to this situation, but who knows. Thanks for reading!
Money isn’t going to be an issue to get done what they want to get done. Whether it’s through restructures, releases, and extensions, they’ll be able to make the math work even at Dez’s hefty number.
we can’t release him, we still need him. no way can a rookie wr come in here and take the #1 role. we don’t have any others who can step up into that spot. but i also think dez is not a #1, he needs to be told that he will play out of the slot and design some plays for him to work the middle of the field. short crossing routes, corner routes from the slot, drags, slants, etc……put this dez situation on the coaching staff not dak and dez.
unless we make a play for jarvis landry?
I spent the first half of 2017 bitching that Dez wasn’t given more routes across the middle. He’s a tough, physical receiver, and not a burner, so that should be his sweet spot. Well, they finally started giving middle routes, and Dez became a drop machine (including several tipped INTs). So idk.
I got to agree with Bryson here. It’s an interesting point, to be honest. We can say “No rookie can come in here and take the #1 role” when really, I’m not sure Dez is doing so himself. Thanks for reading
I don’t know what was up with Dez. I’m gonna chalk it up to a down year. I think he’s still the guy that can be who he was at the end of 2016. Those drops were not Dez like.
i don’t think we can blame all the drops on dez, he did drop passes but if the ball is 2′ behind or above and he tries to make a play, then how is that on him? yes there were some that hit him right in the hands and he dropped them but i think it comes from frustration, losing focus. he does have things to work on. hopefully he realizes that and does so…..i hope he/they can work to restructure his contract.
I only call it a drop if it hit the palms of his hands. Too much “just happens” otherwise. But my point was that if he’s in the middle a lot, he’s involved more but has what seems like a lot of key drops, and if he’s outside more, he’s not as involved in the game, but doesn’t have the key drops. And by key, I just mean on plays for first down and a TD. Just speculation from memory though. It’s frustrating.