Dallas Cowboys facing free agency questions. Will Byron Jones fit in their plans?
The Dallas Cowboys have a number of players heading for free agency, headlined by quarterback Dak Prescott and wide receiver Amari Cooper.
Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones called signing Prescott to a long-term extension as the “top priority” and coming to terms with Cooper is “No. 2.”
It’s unclear where cornerback Byron Jones fits in the pecking order after that. And if there’ll be enough interest on both sides to make a deal work.
Cowboys vice president of player personnel Will McClay acknowledged the conundrum during the Senior Bowl on Wednesday.
Asked about Jones, McClay said: “He’s a starting-caliber NFL corner. He’s a really good player and we have to figure out his financial value and if it fits for us.”
In the same interview, McClay acknowledged that it’d be a “tough deal” to reach contract extensions with Prescott, Cooper and Jones. All will surely want the most money they can get, whether it’s on the open market or from the Cowboys.
Jones, a first-round pick in 2015, earned Pro Bowl honors in 2018 but did not play at that level in 2019. He has only two career interceptions and five career takeaways — takeaways are an area that Stephen Jones stressed as a priority to improve this offseason as well.
Byron Jones’ last interception came in 2017 as a safety.
At the end of the day, signs point toward Jones landing elsewhere in 2020.
“It’s the NFL. You’ve got your quarterback you have to pay. You have a receiver. You have good players,” McClay said. “When you have good players, you have to figure out how to pay them or how to survive. So that’s what we do in the front office is try to figure how to work those contracts and get the best possible team with those guys. We’ve got to go through that whole process.
“Every year is a challenge when you go through that. That’s the way the NFL is made. You’ve got the salary cap. You can’t keep everybody, so we go through and find out what’s valuable for us, who will fit within our parameters and then we want to try to fill the holes in free agency and draft free.”
Along with Prescott, Cooper and Jones, other free agents include tight end Jason Witten, defensive end Robert Quinn, defensive lineman Michael Bennett, defensive tackle Maliek Collins, receiver Randall Cobb, linebacker Sean Lee and safety Jeff Heath.
The only thing for certain, as far as McClay is concerned, is that Prescott will be the quarterback going forward. The organization remains all-in on Prescott and is committed to ensuring he’s the long-term answer.
“We expect Dak to be our quarterback,” McClay said. “If one of the GMs says we’re going to get it done, he signs the check, so we’ll get that done. We’re excited about that and we realize the value of him as a player.”
This story was originally published January 22, 2020 at 4:49 PM.
