What will become of Dez Bryant and Answers to Other Dallas Cowboys Questions

This week, I’d like to start what will become a regular feature of my columns – question and answer with you, the readers!  Since this is the first time, I’ll supply the questions, but in the future I hope to make this a more interactive discussion by answering the questions that you submit.

What will become of Dez Bryant?

Let’s look at this from a common sense angle. If a guy has a long history of poor decision making, will that change much/at all with some guidance? It’s possible. Now to be fair you could make the argument that a lot of Dez Bryant’s “incidents” to date have been relatively minor and don’t suggest a future involving incidents suspension worthy. This is debatable but it does nonetheless indicate a future involving incidents that have a chance of being suspension worthy and herein lies the risk for the Cowboys. Dez Bryant’s rookie contract was relatively manageable, but do you want to commit serious guaranteed money to someone who has continued this trend of worrying behaviour with him in to the NFL? I think at this point, the only way Dez Bryant stays with the Cowboys beyond his rookie contract would be if no one offers him a big money deal and the Cowboys retain him on a one or two year ‘prove yourself’-type deal. The other scenario in which I could envision him staying would be if he were to break out and finally play up to his potential far more consistently and JJ gave him a mega deal with conduct clauses, similar to the one Marshawn Lynch received from the Seahawks. So overall there are many options Dez Bryant could take here, but at this point the most likely one would be for him to play out his rookie deal and move on in free agency.

Should the Cowboys add a free agent wide receiver?

The best guys left are Plaxico Burress and Braylon Edwards. Burress had a solid year last year notching 8 touchdowns and showing he can still get it done in the redzone even if he no longer has great speed or agility. Edwards struggled with injuries and was eventually cut from the 49ers, but he is just one year removed from a good year with the Jets. The Cowboys currently have Miles Austin, Dez Bryant and a bunch of guys who’ve either done very little in their careers to date or are late round picks or undrafted rookies. Still, the best move for the Cowboys at this point is to sit still. Better players will likely be available on the waiver wire at the end of training camp cuts, and if they’re not then these guys or guys similar will be.

How much of a concern is the Cowboys “patchy” roster?

Some say the Cowboys lack depth, but I don’t think it is as accurate as saying the Cowboys are just patchy. They have the best backup QB in the league, go three deep at RB and have many capable bodies at DE and NT. Victor Butler is one of the better backup 3-4 OLB’s, they go 4 deep at corner, and have 3 different players with a legitimate shot at starting at one of the safety positions. They also have only two proven WR’s, one proven TE, an offensive line that (debatably) has no proven quality guards or centers and no proven depth at tackle. The Cowboys a perfect roster they are not. In this way they are similar to EVERY other NFL team. But in a league where you live and die by the pass, the Cowboys have enough talent at the right positions (namely QB, OT, WR, pass-rusher, CB, and (IMO) safety) to have a chance.

How should the Cowboys handle Romo’s contract situation?

They should consider giving him an extension now. The only reason I say consider (and not go all in) is because Romo’s salary this year is under a million dollars, meaning his cap hit is low. His salary next year is slightly over 13 million, so if not sometime this season, next off season would be a good time to look in to doing it. Romo should be able to play a good few more years yet, and at the end of the 2013 season he will be only 33. Depending on how Romo and the team fare this year, after this season would be a good time to look in to a contract extension for Tony. Although I would not be opposed to doing it now as with all the improvements to the team during the offseason his value could be far higher after the season.

Tweet your questions to @Ben24626 and YOU could be included in the next Q & A session!

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