Cowboys’ Bryant, Broncos’ Thomas, Chiefs’ Houston get big deals
Facing a Wednesday afternoon deadline to sign wide receiver Dez Bryant to a long-term deal, the Dallas Cowboys were able to lock up their star pass catcher for the foreseeable future.
The giant wad of cash will be spread out over five years, but Dez will get $45 million of it guaranteed.
For most of us on the outside of Valley Ranch looking in, Wednesday’s deadline for the Dallas Cowboys to get a long-term deal done with Dez Bryant looked like something to be vaguely feared.
Bryant is represented by Roc Nation and, it appears, Jerry Jones is quite impressed with the role they played in helping to get a deal between the two sides wrapped up. But as a matter of fact: The 5,424 receiving yards and 56 touchdowns produced by Bryant during five pro seasons puts him a stride ahead of D.T.’s 5,317 receiving yards and 41 TDs during the same time frame. On Tuesday, he threatened to hold out of training camp if he didn’t obtain the kind of contract he sought from Dallas. “I couldn’t even say nothing but just smile and laugh, because I couldn’t believe it. All I could just think about is that it’s a dream – a dream come true”.
Demaryius Thomas inked a similar deal with the Denver Broncos prior to the deadline.
(USA TODAY) Dez Bryant will be on the field opening day for the Dallas Cowboys.
Bryant has done a lot to earn the contract he wanted and it took months before it materialized. For reference, the best-paid wide receiver in the league is Calvin Johnson whose $113 million contract extension with the Lions back in 2012 doles out $16.1 million per season, as said by CBS Sports. With Peyton Manning under center, the six-year veteran has posted three consecutive seasons of 90-plus receptions, 1,400-plus yards and 10-plus touchdowns.
The deal also ended the contract-related drama that filled the offseason for the Cowboys.
“I knew it was something because I’ve never seen her call me that early”, Thomas said Friday.
With financial security and his mother’s pending freedom, Thomas can focus on adjusting to new coach Gary Kubiak’s offense now.
“We’ll just have to be careful with D.T. when he comes into training camp and really manage him and get him up to speed with what we’re doing mentally but also physically because he didn’t have the OTAs or the minicamps with us”, Elway said.
The two players have different agents – Bryant is represented by Tom Condon and Thomas is represented by Todd France.