INDIANAPOLIS – Offseason dialogue heats up at the NFL Combine, including everything from contracts to the CBA to combine participants. One recent conversation ended on a good note to head into the week in Indianapolis.
When Stephen Jones was asked about pending contracts in Dallas, the Cowboys' executive VP and COO of course referenced Dak Prescott and Amari Cooper as his top two priorities. And although he admitted he hasn't had any conversations with Prescott's camp since September, Cooper and his agent are a different story.
In fact, they all caught up at the Super Bowl in Miami in early February. And he found it an important detail to note the tone of the meeting.
"I talked to Amari and his agent at the Super Bowl. It was very upbeat," Jones said.
This is fitting for Amari, who nonchalantly told reporters earlier this season he didn't think he needed to worry about contract situations since his agent would handle it.
Back in December, Cooper said he'd love to stay in Dallas and that it feels like home for him. Even if it's on a one-year deal? We'll have to wait and see; but the front office is willing to find out.
"I agree that players don't like it," Stephen Jones said. "But no we won't have an issue using the tag if we can't come to an agreement."
There's a saying, "no pressure, no diamonds," and the front office in Dallas has seen some diamonds come to fruition pretty quickly with situations like Ezekiel Elliott and DeMarcus Lawrence.
"The way I look at these contracts," Jones said, "when things get momentum they can happen in 24 hours. It's a just a matter of, can you get some traction and headed in the right direction. So sometimes, time is not a good thing. Having a short fuse is a good thing."
Cooper, like Prescott, is a candidate for the franchise tag, or possibly the transition tag. The tricky part is the pending CBA talks that could end if a new deal is reached. A new Collective Bargaining Agreement would eliminate the option for teams to use both tags in one year.
If Prescott is signed to a long-term deal, Cooper makes sense for the franchise tag. However, perhaps those "upbeat" discussions might lead to a new deal all together.
