The 2015 season isn’t officially over, but it’s safe to say the end is near. That said, it’s time to stop focusing mainly on the rest of the season and start thinking about next year. Now is the time where players show the staff that they have a reason to be here. Over the offseason, the Dallas Cowboys will have a ton of decisions to make. One of those decisions will be what to do with Greg Hardy.
In terms of a football player, Hardy is an absolute animal on the football field. He has a lot of temper problems and he is no stranger to making it known that he’s frustrated. Nevertheless, Hardy is a guy that can get double-digit sack numbers using his combination of sheer strength speed, and athleticism.
Off the field, Hardy comes with a history of baggage, as many of you know. We all know about the story with his ex-girlfriend Nicole Holder being thrown on assault rifles laid across a sofa. That’s not the only thing that concerns me. Hardy is extremely immature. He changed his Twitter profile to express how he is still a good person, only to have it taken down after a meeting with head coach Jason Garrett.
In 2014, the Cowboys were a real solid football team and I believe a large reason because of that came from the fact that they weren’t involved in the media. Dallas was very balanced last year. They kept quiet and they played phenomenal football. This year, with all of the injuries and the Hardy drama, the Cowboys’ locker room has to be a mess, and it’s shown in basically every game since Week 5, which was Hardy’s first game on the roster.
In 2016, Randy Gregory will join Tyrone Crawford and Demarcus Lawrence in the starting lineup across the defensive line. Gregory has been a bit of a project, but he’s improved each game over the past few weeks. With Gregory finding a groove with his game and Lawrence expected to continue to develop and Crawford already being the stud that he is, the Cowboys may simply not need Hardy at all.
If Hardy gets signed long-term, the Cowboys will not only be committing a lot of money, but they will also be taking on the risk that he has another mental breakdown and given how often that has happened this season, I wouldn’t bank on that not being the case. The Cowboys need less noise, the Cowboys do not need Greg Hardy.
I won't belabor my Greg Hardy feelings too much since I've shared my thoughts in several threads, so I'll keep this one brief.
I strongly believe Hardy has been affected substantially by the media and fan outrage/hatred that has been spewed at him all season. I'm positive he's been drinking (even if only at home), and I'm positive this stuff kills him inside just like it would any one of us. I'm sure all of that has led to the problems we've been seeing this season and probably also the inconsistencies we've seen on the football field.
Look at how his former Panthers teammates spoke about him. Called him a good teammate and a great guy. They were shaking his hand and hugging him throughout the game and post game. I think that tells you a lot about what you can expect from Hardy. I sure know the Cowboys weren't giving Jay Ratliff that same treatment after he left… and I bring Ratliff up because he displayed that same/similar "passion" while he was with the Cowboys that led to quite a few unacceptable situations.
I'd still just hate to see them take all this harassment… all this flack for signing Hardy this offseason only to let him walk in free agency. Some other team WILL sign him, and the most-likely scenario is that he'll finish out his career and be known as one of the NFL's great pass-rushers. But he'll do that for some other team that will receive not even 1/4 of the criticism the Cowboys did for signing him.
If he comes cheap, I hope the Cowboys double-down.
Absolutely! Once this guy goes thru it i think he comes out the other side a better person and player. I wanna see him back one more year minimum.
If they know they're going to let him walk then they should cut him TODAY. Don't give him a paycheck for Washington or any other game this year. That's $5 million or more that you could carry over to next year's cap, and extra developmental reps to give young guys like Gregory, Russell, and Edwards.
I wouldn't mind him being gone but if he is brought back i'd only wish for it not to be as big a distraction as it was this year. We don't have any say in that though and from the beginning I believe the media would start in on him again and Jerry for not letting him go. We'd begin the season with a big distraction once again…and the rest of the team would have to bear up under that from day 1 through no fault of their own. They have NO say just like we don't in whom Jerry, Stephen etc. decide to cut or bring back.
I would love Hardy to be back next year. if not for the Media and two faced commentators no one would have A problem with Hardy Anyone who has taken 10 minutes to research the story and listen to the 911 tape you would know Hardy was Railroaded by the media and handled the Situation how it was supposed to been handled. Hardy is the Victim of a $$$ hoe he is not Ray Rice what so ever. Now I never stand up or defend any man who beats on Women and would beat A mans ass if I seen him hitting on A women but in this case I stand behind Hardy
911 tape can be heard here http://www.tmz.com/videos/0_x2dnk4f5/
Welcome Will!
I've been pretty vocal around these parts in support of Hardy, so it's nice to see someone else with a similar perspective. Everything I've read about the situation makes me believe that Hardy's incident was a mutual physical fight between two consenting adults.
That doesn't mean Hardy isn't/wasn't wrong for beating her up, but I don't believe this is a case of some angry guy storming into the house and slapping around his girl just because he feels like it. America is so polarized on domestic abuse that we generally won't entertain the idea that sometimes two adults of opposite genders can get angry and fight each other.
Beyond all that, I think Greg Hardy and Dez Bryant are not all that dissimilar. They are emotional, passionate, and yes, aggressive football players. It just so happens that when Hardy behaves that way, the media jumps all over him because of the domestic violence incident.
Time and success cures everything. I believe Hardy CAN be a great football player and a decent human-being and I would love for the Cowboys to re-sign him on the cheap. I'm not desperate for it… if they let him go then I'm not going to cry about it but I think they should keep him.
Ya ONE MORE YEAR. SIGN HARDY FOR ONE MORE YEAR. ILL BET WE HAVE A GOOD YEAR.