Cowboys rumor from NFL Combine doesn't bode well for Dallas in free agency

Cowboys rumor from NFL Combine doesn't bode well for Dallas in free agency originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Dallas Cowboys already have an uphill climb in trying to re-sign their own free agents and improving the roster through free agency, but they might be making things even harder on themselves.

According to Essentially Sports' Tony Pauline, the Cowboys, who are a whopping $55 million over the cap, have gotten into some heated discussions with multiple agents while discussing contracts for their own players and external free agents.

Pauline says the heated exchanges with agents were considered "verbal fights," and kicker Brandon Aubrey was one of the players who was the subject during some of these "loud verbal disagreements."

Here's the full report from Pauline:

The Dallas Cowboys have been having discussions on both, and according to a source familiar with the discussions, it’s been a struggle at times. The source said that Cowboys front office personnel got into loud verbal disagreements, verbal fights as they were described, with four different agents over the topic of contract extensions or potential free-agent contracts. One player mentioned was three-time Pro Bowl placekicker Brandon Aubrey, who is reportedly looking for a deal that would pay him $10 million annually.

This doesn't bode well for the Cowboys.

It's never a good idea for a team to anger the agents of players they're interested in to the extent that the Cowboys seem to be doing here, as that could lead to those players and agents swearing off Dallas entirely.

When it comes to Aubrey, the good news is he's a restricted free agent, so the Cowboys have some control over him.

ESPN's Todd Archer reports that the Cowboys are offering Aubrey more than the $6.4 million annual average the Kansas City Chiefs are giving Harrison Butker, which is the highest in the NFL among kickers.

But Archer adds that Aubrey is seeking closer to $10 million per season, which means there is a massive gap between the two sides.

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