If you're a Dallas Cowboys fan then you know that wide receiver Dez Bryant and owner Jerry Jones are at a bit of a stand still over contract negotiations at the moment. Bryant has yet to sign his franchise tag tender (which will pay him just south of $13 million this year) in hopes of getting a long-term extension hammered out before the July 15 deadline.
But Jones, after refusing to budge on a bigger deal for running back DeMarco Murray earlier this offseason, is clearly playing a bit of hardball. Despite the apparent lack of progress, Bryant is one of the game's preeminent wide receivers and an extension should come to fruition eventually. But what will that deal actually look like? It's a question that was posed to ESPN Cowboys reporter Todd Archer in his weekly mailbag.
#cowboysmail in your eyes, what is ideal contract for 88 and Cowboys?
— skilly (@skillyskud) June 19, 2015
"Teams and agents can really make contracts say whatever they want," Archer wrote. "So let's call Bryant's potential deal nine years for $117 million. Does that make everybody happy? That's $13 million per season on average. But that doesn't mean Bryant will earn $117 million. No. Heck, he might not get half that. The key to any contract is the first three years and the guaranteed money. The Cowboys are willing to pay Bryant $12.8 million this year under the franchise tag and another $15 million in 2016 if need be. To me, Bryant has to make at least $28 million in the first two years of this deal if that's what the tags would pay. Now, what about that third year? I'm sure that's part of the hang up. I would put Bryant's guarantee in the $36-38 million range. Maybe Tom Condon is looking for more. If I'm the Cowboys, I'm not going to Calvin Johnson's $50 million guarantee. That's too big of a jump from the other receiver deals out there. But to me those would be the parameters (three years, $38 million). After that the two sides can just go about filling in the blanks and making the back side of the deal some sort of funny money."
Stephen Jones recently made some comments regarding the "wide gap" between the two sides and seemed reluctant to top $12.5 million in annual salary. Though that would still put Bryant among the top five highest paid wide receivers in the game, it may not be enough. Bryant has already threatened to sit out Week 1's game against the New York Giants and seems determined to get his version of a contract. Whether or not his resolve holds (and either his demands come down or Dallas' offer goes up) remains to be seen.
