Miles Austin isn't going anywhere.
Jerry Jones pledged as much yesterday in an appearance on 103.3 ESPN Radio, hinting that the team wanted to lock the Monmouth product up to a long-term deal.
"We're just not going to have Miles Austin any place but with the Dallas Cowboys," Jones said, per the Dallas Morning News. "We need him."
There's little doubt that, as the roster stands, Dallas needs Miles Austin. Just imagine, for a moment, that the Jets had nabbed Austin last off-season--on second thought, don't. It's a grotesque picture.
The good news for Dallas, in this light, is the absence of a collective bargaining agreement--which makes Austin a restricted free agent. Had a CBA been negotiated, making Austin an unrestricted free agent, the team would likely have to slap the franchise tag on him, keeping him in Dallas for 2010 at a cost of nearly $10 million.
As it stands, Dallas has until March 5--the beginning of the free agency period--to tender Austin, which seems the most likely scenario. The Pro Bowler will likely warrant the most valuable tender available for RFAs, at $3.168 million and with first- and third-round compensatory picks, should Austin depart for another team.
Let's just hope it doesn't come to that.
