Dez Bryant and the Dallas Cowboys are currently locked in negotiations over the receiver's contract. He will be on the roster in 2015 thanks to the franchise tag, but both sides say that they want to get a long-term deal in place before the July 15 deadline so that Bryant's contract will not distract anyone when the games start to count.

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There have been rumors about both sides to this point, which is not unusual for contract negotiations, even if it is a bit contentious since both sides say they want the same thing. There are rumors of discord in Bryant's camp, and other reports hint at Dallas trying to lowball its best player. Until a deal gets done, it appears that Bryant will be holding out, which could mean a couple of things, according to the Dallas Morning News.

When asked whether Bryant's actions are the result of a kind of maturity that is manifesting as negotiating prowess or some kind of greed, Cowboys reporter Tim Cowlishow answered, "Proper answer is probably yes. It's unfortunate that so many players end up with such a tangled web of handlers and 'helpers.'"

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Dez has definitely gotten more mature, and it could be a simple case of wanting to make sure that he is set for life from the only huge contract he is guaranteed to have (obviously he figures to get another in five or six years, but injuries happen).

However, many will still paint him as a greedy player trying to squeeze every last penny out of his franchise.

The reality is probably somewhere in between, but it is hard to fault a player for wanting to make sure that he is properly compensated during his playing career, which - even in the best-case scenario - will only last for 15 or so years.