Two days after releasing four-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Jay Ratliff, Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones said it was just time for the move to be made, that cutting ties with Ratliff now was the best option for all parties involved.
“I have a long history of having an appreciation for guys who give it up and work and play through pain, and I do with Jay,” Jones said, per the Dallas Morning News. “So it is disappointing that that great career of his has to end. As it turns out, all great players have to have a time. Now, his career has maybe not ended, but I know he gave us great effort. He’s a tremendous competitor. "
“I don’t look at anything but positives, I really don’t. We needed him when we had him, and we need him now that we don’t have him. But that’s the reality of it. We do, as I certainly would, wish him the very best and a speedy rehab and hope for him that he has more career,” said Jones.
In the wake of Ratliff’s release--which came only after the former All-Pro missed nearly a calendar year of action with a string of injuries--many have called the five-year, $40 million contract extension given to Ratliff in 2011 the worst deal Jones has ever handed out. Jones disagrees.
“Well, if I had a legal pad and could show you all the decisions I’ve made ever,” Jones said, “it’s not the worst one I’ve ever made.”
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