Cole Beasley, Cowboys Agree to New Contract: Latest Details, Comments, Reaction

As the Dallas Cowboys continue discussions about how to handle Dez Bryant's future with the franchise, they've locked up one of Tony Romo's other favorite targets to a long-term deal. Wideout Cole Beasley and the Cowboys agreed to a four-year contract Tuesday that could be worth up to $15.1 million.

The wideout confirmed the deal was done to Mike Fisher of Fox Sports:

Rand Getlin of Yahoo Sports first reported the news and passed along a full breakdown of the contract:

Jordan Ross of CowboysHQ.com passed along the wideout's thoughts on playing in Dallas:

Bryant offered his congratulations:

Beasley, 25, was scheduled to become a restricted free agent on March 10. The former undrafted free agent has spent each of his three NFL seasons in Dallas, emerging from special teams maven to reliable slot receiver. He made 37 receptions for a career-high 420 yards and four touchdowns in 2014, playing in all 16 games for the first time in his career.

ESPN's Ed Werder highlighted his value:

Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones said the two sides were eager to find an amenable long-term deal to avoid the restricted free-agent tender process.

"I think Cole's motivated to do it because, you know, if he doesn't get it done he'll have to play out the year with probably a tender and then won't be able to see free agency until next year," Jones said Saturday, per Mark Lane of Fox Sports Southwest. "So, hopefully he's motivated to do it. Certainly we're motivated to do it and would like to lock him up."

Brandon Wade/Associated Press

Beasley's signing comes a day after the team used its franchise tag on Bryant, who would have been an unrestricted free agent. Multiple reports dating back to last season, including this one from NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, have indicated the Cowboys are hesitant to sign Bryant to a huge extension because of off-field issues.

Keeping Beasley won't remove the clouds from the Bryant situation, but it will help assuage concerns about an otherwise mediocre receiving corps. Jason Witten turns 33 in May and is coming off his worst season since he was a rookie. Terrance Williams shows promise as a deep threat but has shown little in the way of consistency.

Beasley is a fine route-runner who can work in the slot and help remove some of the aging Witten's responsibilities underneath. Pro Football Focus measured Beasley as the fourth-most effective slot receiver in the NFL last season.

Follow Tyler Conway (@tylerconway22) on Twitter.