The next stop on the wild journey of perennial All-Pro safety Earl Thomas may be a place he is most familiar; the great state of Texas and the Dallas Cowboys.
After a rather tumultuous one-year tenure in Baltimore, Thomas now finds himself available to potentially land back in the Lone Star state -- the same soil that produced the seven-time Pro Bowler. The Orange, Texas, native spent his college years at the University of Texas in Austin, leaving as the 14th overall pick of the Seattle Seahawks in the first round of the 2014 draft.
And since his time in Seattle came to an end after the 2018 season, Dallas has been at the top of lists of potential suitors for Thomas and remains there regardless of the latest developments in his exit from the Ravens. However, at this juncture, there is only one person truly wielding the decision-making power that will decide if Thomas suits up for the Cowboys, and it is not Earl Thomas. That person, as we all know, is the one and only Jerry Jones.
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According to ProFootballTalk, Jones made an appearance Tuesday on 105.3 The Fan and made it perfectly clear that he is not ruling out adding Thomas to his franchise. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported the Cowboys were not expected to vye for Thomas' services, but Jones reportedly said Rapoport "doesn't know what he is talking about."
Although there appears to be no sense of urgency in bringing Thomas on board, there almost certainly remain a few considerations that must be addressed before any contract can be offered, such as getting an understanding of what exactly happened with Thomas' disorderly exits from both Seattle and Baltimore.
Knowing what fulfillment(s) will be required for Dallas to sign Thomas are yet to be determined. However, if he is granted access to Jerry's world, Thomas is a definitive upgrade for the Cowboys at the safety position having accumulated 713 tackles, 30 interceptions and a Super Bowl championship in his 10-year career.
Jones has never shied away from signing controversial players in the past; see Terrell Owens, Charles Haley and, most notably, Greg Hardy. That is known. What isn't known is whether the juice of Thomas is worth the squeeze of bringing him into an organization vying for Super Bowl contention in an already COVID-determined 2020 season, with new head coach Mike McCarthy in his first season with the Cowboys.
With week one of the 2020 NFL season kicking off in less than a month, this saga is certain to reach its end much sooner than most would expect.
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Cowboys owner Jerry Jones doesn't rule out signing Earl Thomas originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
