A Cowboy for life!
Or, merely a Cowboy through 2019?
As excruciating and dramatic as the negotiations were between the Cowboys and Dez Bryant were last week, in all likelihood it won’t be the last contract the receiver signs. With the ink not dry on this deal it feels ridiculously premature to start fretting over the next one, but the relief we all felt last Wednesday won’t be eternal.
The five-year, $70 million will certainly keep Dez happy and allow his team to be contenders in 2015. And it will keep him with a star on his helmet through 2019. But then what? Bryant will only be 31 in 2019. Maybe not in the prime of his career for a receiver, but still a star worth … resigning?
Tony Romo is 35 and playing as well as ever. Jason Witten is still productive at 33. Cardinals’ receiver Larry Fitzgerald is still regarded as a Top 10 receiver at 32. With the way Bryant takes care of himself physically, it seems likely that he'll continue playing at high level into his 30s.
So, with any luck, we’ll have another summer of drama come 2020. And that one, guaranteed, will be a Cowboy-for-life opportunity.
A native Texan who was born in Duncanville and graduated from UT-Arlington, Richie Whitt has been a mainstay in the Metroplex media since 1986. He’s held prominent roles on all media platforms including newspaper (Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Dallas Observer), radio (105.3 The Fan) and TV (co-host on TXA 21 and numerous guest appearances, including NBC 5). He lives in McKinney with his wife, Sybil, and two very spoiled dogs.
