The Dallas Cowboys restructured Tony Romo's contract to save salary cap space and that could open up the Adrian Peterson trade once again and this comes as the team is dealing with Dez Bryant and his contract situation and with the draft coming up, names like Todd Gurley, Tevin Coleman, TJ Yeldon, Bryce Petty and Melvin Gordon could be potential targets for the team.
The Cowboys came into the offseason with very little cap space and after cutting some players, the team now has re-worked Romo's deal to get some more space. According to Yahoo Sports, Romo restructured his deal to help free up $13 million and that could help the Cowboys add Adrian Peterson. The Cowboys were considered one of the top destinations for Peterson, but with their cap space and the signing of Darren McFadden, many started to think the team was out of it.
According to Ian Rapoport from NFL Network, the Cowboys are still an option for Peterson and the re-working of Romo's contract helps if the team wants to make a deal. The Vikings have repeatedly said they want Peterson back and have no plans to trade him, but as Andrew Brandt of the MMQB says, what that really means is that they haven't found a trade they like yet. Rapoport says the Cowboys should not be "ruled out" yet and they could be in the mix for Peterson. According to Pro Football Talk, Todd Gurley is meeting with the Cowboys this week.
Peterson has a cap number near $15 million and is getting paid over $12 million and that could make it tough for the Cowboys to bring him in. The Vikings want Peterson back, but he has told sources that he is "uneasy" about returning after the way the team put him on the exempt list last season. The Dez Bryant contract situation also is part of things, as the Cowboys have him on the franchise tag and could try and workout a long term deal.
Right now the two sides are not close and there is a chance the Cowboys will want Bryant to stay on the one year franchise tag deal over signing him long term now. Bryant could potentially hold out through the summer if he doesn't want to do that. The team has also set a meeting before the draft with Tevin Coleman.
Romo's deal opens up nearly $13 million for the team and the Cowboys basically turned his salary into a signing bonus. The team just added Rolando McClain and they also have the draft coming up, so Peterson to the Cowboys is not a sure thing yet. Todd Archer at ESPN Dallas writes earlier in the offseason after the signing of McFadden that Jerry Jones was likely to go after some talent in the draft at running back.
The Cowboys let DeMarco Murray leave because they did not want to spend too much money on him and that is why some think that Peterson will be out of the mix. Either way, the team is likely to look at running backs in the draft, as the class has some strong names this year. Gurley could be a first round pick out of Georgia, while Melvin Gordon, Ameer Abdullah, TJ Yeldon and Duke Johnson as well as Tevin Coleman are considered strong prospects.
