Tag: jane slater

Slater: Cowboys have had ‘initial conversations’ with LB Bobby Wagner

The 11-year-vet is leaving the Rams, but played 99% of their defensive snaps last season; a reunion with Dallas DC Dan Quinn is intriguing. | From @ToddBrock24f7

It will no doubt be a busy back-to-work Monday for the Cowboys front office. In addition to possibly negotiating with a few of their own before free agency kicks off on Wednesday, the club will likely be burning up the phone lines and taking advantage of the two-day negotiating window with impending free agents.

Word comes from one of the team’s most reliable insiders that Dallas has reached out to an eight-time Pro Bowler who just happens to have strong connections to a Cowboys coordinator and plays a position at which the team has a legitimate need.

The Cowboys have had “initial conversations” with linebacker Bobby Wagner, according to Jane Slater of NFL Network.

Wagner signed a five-year deal with the Los Angeles Rams last March, but was released in a mutual decision just a couple weeks ago.

Wagner played in Seattle for ten years prior to that, winning a Super Bowl under then-Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn for the 2013 season.

The Cowboys were reportedly interested in reuniting Wagner and Quinn in 2022; Dallas was said to have made contact with the veteran last March but quickly dropped out of the running due to the financials.

Wagner went on to sign with Los Angeles, where he started every game, logged a career-best six sacks, was on the field for a team-best 99% of all defensive snaps, and received his ninth All-Pro nod… all at the age of 32.

But the cap-heavy Rams came to a decision, along with Wagner, to let the former second-round draft pick go, saving the club some money and allowing the veteran to have a say in where he plays next.

A news report late last week stated that Wagner was receiving interest from “several teams,” including the Cowboys, Chargers, and Seahawks.

Seattle general manager John Schneider told a local radio station that he and head coach Pete Carroll had had “a great, awesome, frank conversation” with Wagner about his potential return to the Pacific Northwest.

As for the Cowboys’ possible interest this time around, Slater says that “this is once again a ‘does the money and value make sense’ situation for both parties,” citing a source.

Current Dallas linebacker Leighton Vander Esch is set to hit free agency on Wednesday, and while it’s thought that the Cowboys would like to keep him in-house, it’s also not known what kind of interest he would garner if he were to reach the open market or what the Cowboys would have to offer in order to retain him.

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Report: Cowboys ‘have had zero contact’ with Saints or Sean Payton

NFL Network’s Jane Slater reports that the Cowboys ‘have had zero contact’ with the Saints or Sean Payton while evaluating their coaching staff:

NFL Network’s Jane Slater reports that the Dallas Cowboys ‘have had zero contact’ with the New Orleans Saints or Sean Payton while evaluating their coaching staff, and that head coach Mike McCarthy is believed to be returning for 2023 despite an embarrassing playoff exit last weekend. Rumors have linked Payton to the Cowboys for years — he’s still good friends with owner Jerry Jones, and it’s the last place he coached before coming to New Orleans — but it doesn’t sound like Dallas is looking to make an earth-shaking change in pursuit of Payton.

Not going to lie, this is a little disappointing. Sports are entertainment, and the push-and-pull between Payton and Jones would have fueled plenty of Cowboys-centric drama for years to come. If Dallas is unprepared to part ways with McCarthy and push all their chips in (or, ah, get their ducks in a row) with Payton waiting, we’ll be left looking elsewhere for movement on the former Saints head coach. McCarthy is the first Cowboys coach with back-to-back seasons of double-digit wins, so it does make sense for Dallas to hold onto him in hopes of sustaining that success.

Still, changes are on the way for the Cowboys. At least six assistant coaches have not had their contracts renewed after the season ended and both of their coordinators are involved in head coach searches around the league — it wouldn’t be a shock to see Dan Quinn and Kellen Moore hired by teams also considering Payton for that role. What ripple effects, if any, this all has for New Orleans remains to be seen. Hopefully the Saints can find a way to benefit from whatever happens next.

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Report: Von Miller has ‘very strong interest’ in joining Cowboys

The 8-time Pro Bowler attended Texas A&M and still has a horse farm near Dallas; the Cowboys have money to spend after losing Randy Gregory. | From @ToddBrock24f7

The Cowboys took a massive L in Tuesday’s fiasco involving defensive end Randy Gregory, seeing the Broncos swoop in and steal him away just hours after announcing they had come to terms with the 29-year-old pass rusher.

Yet somehow, after an embarrassing gaffe by the front office (no matter how it went down, really), the Cowboys could- almost inexplicably- be in line to land eight-time Pro Bowl linebacker Von Miller as a consolation prize.

NFL insider Jane Slater reported on Tuesday that the two-time league champion and Super Bowl 50 MVP has “very strong interest” in joining the Cowboys.

Miller, 32, was traded to the Rams in November after 10-plus seasons in Denver. He notched 31 tackles, five sacks, and a forced fumble over eight games with Los Angeles during their title run. But the Texas native and first-round draft pick out of Texas A&M may now be looking to come home to close out his career.

“The interest from Von Miller is certainly there,” Slater said on-air.

DeMarcus Ware, who played alongside Miller in Denver and also starred in Cowboys over his illustrious career, teased as much on his Instagram account.

“Just talked to Von Miller,” Ware said in a Tuesday post. “Micah Parsons, DeMarcus Lawrence, and Von Miller. Sounds good to me.”

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CbIpOmLgolA/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Whether Ware is simply playfully stirring up a fanbase who’s smarting after the Gregory debacle, trying to make something legitimately happen, or hinting at an actual news scoop remains to be seen. (For what it’s worth, Miller responded to Ware’s post with the ever-popular “wide eyes” emoji, and Ware came back with an offer to join the club “to mentor the guys this year.”)

Parsons himself is keeping an eye on the free agency market, too. He posted a tweet mentioning Miller and former Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner, who had also been mentioned by some observers as a target for the Dallas front office.

Wagner reportedly considers Dallas among his “secondary” options, as a reunion with Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn would be welcome, but another unidentified team is said to be the front-runner.

With the news of Gregory’s sudden U-turn out of Dallas, though, Miller has suddenly become a name worth watching, with the club “doing due diligence,” as per Slater.

“We’re working on it,” Slater’s source said when she asked about the possibility of putting a star on the three-time All-Pro’s helmet.

“Let’s put it this way,” she tweeted. “Earl Thomas, Bobby Wagner and Jamal Adams NEVER yielded these responses.”

One thing is for sure. The Cowboys can’t say they don’t have the money to pursue a player of Miller’s caliber. As Randy Gregory can attest, they apparently have a now-unspoken-for $70 million to play with.

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Dez Bryant says he ‘would do some damage’ in Cowboys offense

Dez Bryant sits down with The Boys & Girl Podcast and explains how he’s building the best verision of himself yet. Wants back in Dallas.

Dez Bryant is looking to return to the NFL in 2020. Every day there are more in-the-lab social media posts by Bryant as he attempts to get back from a gruesome achilles injury suffered days after signing a contract with the New Orleans Saints in 2018.

In an interview with The Boys & Girl Podcast hosted by NFL Network reporter Jane Slater and producer Bobby Belt, Bryant and his personal wide receiver coach David Robinson sat down after one of Bryant’s numerous workouts in attempts to return to the league this upcoming season.

Slater and Belt didn’t hold back, asking Bryant hard hitting questions. When asked about the naysayers who think Bryant may be a little slow and that time may be passing him by, Bryant said, “My message is this right here, first and foremost, I’ve never been a speed guy, so I just block that out. I’ve been running routes, my routes have improved tremendously thanks to this guy over here (Robinson), specially getting in and out of my breaks.”

Bryant went on to say he’s not listening to anyone who hasn’t played the game. Bryant has been commented on by current NFL players like Baltimore Ravens safety Earl Thomas and Arizona Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson and those are the opinions he’s focused on because he considers them elite defensive backs still out on the field.

Slater has documented some of Bryant’s gloomier days, such as his release from the organization which drafted him and his catastrophic injury that cut his time with the Saints short.

“Mentally, I felt like I had a lot of mixed emotions. I had just been recently cut from the Cowboys. I wasn’t really trying to play football that year but I’ll save that for another time. I just wasn’t where I needed to be, mentally. I appreciate coach Payton for bringing me in and believing in me and I appreciate those guys that were there because they showed me crazy love, the best 48 hours of my life, it’s up there.” Bryant explained.

Bryant went on to mention two very crucial people who bring out the best in him. Both Robinson and Team APEC president Bobby Stroupe have played significant roles.

“Bobby is tremendous. He’s exactly what I need just like D-Rob.” Bryant explained. “He’s going to make you feel like doing it when you don’t want to do it. You need those type of guys around you.”

Belt asked the key question that’s been on everyone’s mind lately as far as a preference on where Bryant would like to play.

He envisions himself with the Cowboys because of the weapons they have on offense. “They have a loaded offense. Man, I’ve never been able to play with that much talent.” Bryant explained. “Not to be selfish but I know if I was placed in a position like that, I would do some damage”. Bryant is all for playing with the Cowboys this season but he is also prepared for other options.

“If it’s not for Dallas, Cowboy fans, hey, I want to play ball. So I’ll see who opens the doors for me. I’m just trying to come in, do whatever they tell me to do, be the best version I can and help in any type of way. If that’s me giving giving water to the quarterbacks, to the running backs, telling the other receivers certain things, I don’t mind, I miss the game.”

This is obviously a hungrier and more humble Bryant. There have been conversations with Stephen Jones and the Cowboys front office as of late but Bryant understands the business side of being in the NFL. Whichever team decides to give 88 this chance, he believes that they’re getting the best version of him yet.

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