To say that Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones took Dez Bryant's threats about missing games seriously is an understatement. At least that's what we're led to believe after hearing Jones recount his Tuesday night negotiations with Bryant's agents and advisors.
"We had an extremely, we had a long night last night," Jones said on a conference call Wednesday, less than an hour after Bryant inked a five-year, $70 million deal. "Stephen (Jones) and I were involved with his advisers until as late as 3 a.m. ... and we felt like we were feeling pretty positive about this last night at about 3 a.m."
Coming into Wednesday morning, Jones was encouraged. He was happy about the way Jay-Z's Roc Nation, the marketing arm of Bryant's team, stepped in. He was also happy about the deal.
Though Jones and Bryant didn't talk numbers during their last face-to-face encounter on the Cowboys' practice field to close out minicamp, Jones walked away with the understanding that it was more than just a casual chat. He left with an understanding of what was coming down the pike.
A few weeks -- and stern phone calls from Bryant to Cowboys management -- later, Jones ended up keeping his greatest offensive weapon.
"I take everything Dez says as genuine," Jones said of the phone calls between Bryant and the Cowboys, where Bryant hinted at missing training camp and possibly regular-season games. "I read the same things you write or read, I read that, but I also have many more times that I'm talking and communicating and I'm just careful and I know he is. We are not careless with our words with each other."
For weeks now, Jones has been proving that the Cowboys are in win now mode, and even if he won't admit that 2015 is Super Bowl or bust, it certainly has that feeling.
In terms of how the deal got done, Jones was firm in his assertion that the Denver Broncos and Demaryius Thomas had nothing to do with it. There were several reports hinting to the fact that the NFLPA could file collusion charges leading up to Wednesday, when the pair signed nearly identical long-term deals. No charges were formally filed, though.
"We did not, under any type of interpretation, we did not in any way have collusion," Jones said. "I didn't know until just a second ago watching on television the player that Denver had signed. And so there was none between the Cowboys and Denver at all."
*The latest Around The NFL Podcast discusses recent news from around the league, including the new contracts for Dez Bryant and Demaryius Thomas. *
