We are getting closer to figuring out the Dallas Cowboys’ offseason strategy plans.
Monday is the deadline for the Cowboys — and every other NFL team, for that matter — to receive the franchise tag. All indications point toward Dez Bryant being the recipient of it, with the team telling his agents that it planned to do so (per ESPN.com’s Todd Archer) short of some kind of Hail Mary contract extension before then.
So what then of Murray? Well, it appears that the Cowboys are willing, for now, to let Murray find out what his market value might be in free agency. Cowboys vice president Stephen Jones told Fox Sports Southwest as much.
“[Murray] is probably going to, you know, get some peace and see what’s out in the market and then we’ll talk and see,” Jones said. “I do believe deep down he’d love to stay in Dallas.”
And that’s the thing: This doesn’t close the door on Murray’s return to Dallas anymore than it guaranteed Bryant will be back. Even if the Cowboys franchise Bryant, it’s not a 100 percent certainty he’ll return — until he signs the would-be one-year tender offer of $13 million, which pretty much locks him down.
Bryant might not be too keen about that, and Murray honestly might not be blown away by the offers on the free-agent market in what could be a depressed field for a running back who just went off for more than 1,800 yards on the ground, sad as that might sound to him.
There’s also still a chance both men end up back with the Cowboys. Jones said they’ve played this game before.
“We’ve had some really good football players go into free agency: Jay Novacek and Darren Woodson and, you know, they still sign with the Cowboys,” he said. “So, just because you’re a free agent doesn’t mean you’re not necessarily going to end up back in Dallas.”
The rubber hits the pavement March 7, which is when the Cowboys and other teams can start actively (and legally) negotiating with free agents. Three days later, on March 10, the free-agency period begins.
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Eric Edholm is a writer for Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Eric_Edholm
