Dez Bryant, Cowboys Rhetoric Heats Up, But Will Negotiations?

The war of words between the Cowboys and Dez Bryant (or maybe more specifically Bryant's agent) is getting a little hotter. Yesterday, it was Bryant's agent Tom Condon and Stephen Jones. Today we're hearing from Dez himself and Jerry Jones. But are we hearing anything that sounds like the sides are working on a deal? Not really.

Tom Condon:

"There haven't been any conversations," Condon said. "The only offer that we ever received from the Cowboys was the same offer that they gave to Dez prior to the time that he played the last year of his rookie contract.

"Since then we've had conversations, but nothing with regards to any negotiations. ... His average per year in salary is probably 20 percent of what he would get on the open market. He understands the significance of this and what this means to the rest of his life. He's resolute in his determination."

"In my conversations with him, he's indicated he's willing to do [miss regular-season games]," Condon said.

Stephen Jones:

"It's been well-documented that both Fitzgerald and Megatron both got their deals based on their rookie contracts because they were high draft picks and the franchise tag dictated that," Jones said. "But since then all receivers, the top ones, have pretty much been paid in the $11.5-12.5 million range, and there's a big disparity there.

"I don't think anyone quite knows what that market is, and that makes it difficult. I think once we figure out what that is, then there's a way for us to get something done with Dez. But until that happens, it's what teams think versus what players and their representatives think. There's a wide gap right now."

"At the end of the day it's a business, and when the time comes and there's something that we can do that makes sense for both sides, I know that'll happen - because they're motivated to do it, we're motivated to do it," he said. "But right now there's just too big a divide."

Dez Bryant:

Opinions and assumptions create a lot of noise.... Facts create silence

— Dez Bryant (@DezBryant) June 17, 2015

Everybody voicing opinions..13 mil is cool but Where is my security? I'll wait ...5 years without complaining..So how am I selfish? #family1

— Dez Bryant (@DezBryant) June 17, 2015

Jerry Jones:

Jerry Jones on Dez Bryant: "I have no doubt that he'll be leading the way against the Giants."

— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) June 17, 2015

Jerry Jones: It's a mistake to think there haven't been some type of negotiations recently regarding Dez Bryant and a long-term contract

— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) June 17, 2015

Jerry Jones on Dez Bryant wanting long-term security: "I would like nothing more than to have long-term security with Dez."

— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) June 17, 2015

So there you have it.  I think the key statements in the whole thing are the ones from Stephen Jones. He's the man in charge of the checkbook and he seems to be as diciplined in this case as he was in the DeMarco Murray Affair. I always thought the Cowboys and Dez would reach a long-term deal before the July 15th deadline. Now, I'm not so sure. The Cowboys may be willing to let this thing play out. It could come down to will Dez actually hold out. We won't know until later this summer.