Dallas Cowboys: Morris Claiborne's Deal Needs to Get Done Prior to Training Camp

The star of the Cowboys' offseason has been the team’s first-round draft pick, Morris Claiborne. Dez Bryant has been grabbing headlines due to his recent arrest, but most have eyes have been trained on seeing how Morris Claiborne will develop and perform.

Unfortunately sports fans, we may have to wait a little longer. Claiborne has a wrist injury that has kept him off the field, and now his contract may keep him off even longer.

According to Claiborne, he is not going to hold out. He says that he’ll be ready no matter the situation.

"

“I'm not in no hurry. You hear a lot of talk about people saying I'm holding out. No, I'm not holding out. I'm going to camp signed or not signed. It don't matter.”

"

An interesting comment from Claiborne.

The hope is that by the time camp starts on July 30, he will be an official member of the team by having an official contract.

Besides wanting to see Claiborne and having him get acclimated to the team and its players, Claiborne needs to learn the playbook and immerse himself into defensive coordinator Rob Ryan’s defensive scheme.

Claiborne will be one of the team’s starting cornerbacks—probably on the right side—and, if he’s not there to perform and learn the team’s defensive scheme, how will he be effective to start the season?

The money isn’t the issue for rookies now, due to the parameters set by the new collective bargaining agreement. One significant issue holding up rookie contracts is guaranteed money that a team is obligated to pay.

Claiborne’s agent, Bus Cook, is close to reaching a deal with the team but the two sides must agree on that part of the contract.

What will be key for the Cowboys' secondary is a fast start. Dallas begins the season by visiting the Giants, the Seahawks, home to the Bucs and then the Bears. The Giants have Eli Manning, the Seahawks have Matt Flynn, Tampa has Josh Freeman and Chicago has Jay Cutler.

An exploitation of Dallas’ weak defensive backfield is possible by all four teams. Having Claiborne there and fully prepared with all defenses, such as knowing the playbook, is paramount.

Safety Abe Elam had communication issues last season because Ryan’s defensive scheme was too complicated. While Ryan has vowed to make his defense more simple, I have concerns that Claiborne’s contract situation will serve as a distraction from him totally learning the Cowboys defense.

This may all be wrong and Claiborne may turn out to be okay. That’s my sincere hope, as Dallas needs all of the help in the secondary that they can get.

But, Cook and team owner Jerry Jones need to get this deal buttoned up before training camp starts to avoid distractions and to allow Claiborne to go through the proper learning channels.

If not, Claiborne may end up falling behind.

-JH