The Dallas Cowboys have restructured Tony Romo's contract once again and now the team has opened up some cap space, which could help with Dez Bryant's contract situation and the team could still be an option for the Adrian Peterson trade if he is traded by the Vikings and this comes as names like Bryce Petty, Todd Gurley and TJ Yeldon could be targets in the draft.
The Cowboys knew when Romo signed his contract that it would be a tough one to navigate and they have restructured the deal multiple times since it was agreed to. According to Pro Football Talk, the Cowboys restructured Romo's deal again this offseason and that helped open up $12.8 million in cap space for the team. PFT reports that the move was not due to a negotiation and it helped the team by converting Romo's base salary to a signing bonus.
Pro Football Talk reports that Romo's salary now will be $1 million for the 2015 season and that enables the team to open up some cap space. The Cowboys just brought back Rolando McClain and the move likely will fuel reports that the team could try and trade for Adrian Peterson. According to ESPN.com, the Vikings have no current plans for trading Peterson, but some reports have the running back looking to get out of Minnesota before the 2015 season.
The Cowboys have long been considered a target for Peterson, but his contract has been the main issue in getting things done. Before Romo's move, Adam Schefter at ESPN.com reported that the Cowboys were not looking to trade for Peterson because of the cap issues with his large contract. Peterson has a $15 million cap hit this season and that is the highest number among running backs. Peterson has a $12.75 million salary for this season and that makes it tough for the Cowboys to bring him in.
The Cowboys signed Darren McFadden this offseason after letting DeMarco Murray leave and the team also may look at the draft for more depth over trading for Peterson. Todd Archer at ESPN.com writes that this draft class is a deep one and players like Todd Gurley, Melvin Gordon, Tevin Coleman, Duke Johnson and Ameer Abdullah are coming out. The team also may look at Bryce Petty or Garrett Grayson as a future replacement for Tony Romo.
Murray led the league in rushing last season and helped the Cowboys rank second overall in rushing yards per game. The team now has McFadden along with Joseph Randle and they are likely to add another back, possibly Peterson or someone in the draft. The Dez Bryant situation likely will not be resolved until the summer and that means there is a chance that he will be holding out for part of camp. Bryant was hit with the franchise tag and while the Cowboys can work out a long term deal with the receiver, so far there has not been much movement.
