The Dallas Cowboys signed defensive end Greg Hardy to a one-year, $11.3 million deal on Wednesday. Dallas took some criticism for the decision to sign Hardy, who was involved in a domestic violence incident last year. Team owner Jerry Jones was dispatched with a statement to defend the team's decision in the face of public criticism.
Jerry Jones defends Cowboys’ decision to sign Greg Hardy
Jones made a statement about Dallas’ controversial move to sign the star defensive end.
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Jones, who called domestic violence "intolerable" back in September in the wake of the Ray Rice video tape being leaked, apparently has a different stance these days, per Pro Football Talk.
“This agreement involved an important element of our defensive scheme, specifically the pass rush, at a position that we felt we needed to address this off season,” Jones said in a statement issued with the announcement that defensive end Greg Hardy has signed a contract.
”We entered this free agency period with the idea of utilizing key resources to help us on the defensive side of the ball. . . .
“We have spent a great deal of time over the last two days in meeting with Greg directly and gaining a solid understanding of what he is all about as a person and as a football player. A thorough background review of him, involving many elements of our organization, has been ongoing for the last few weeks.
“Obviously a great deal of our study was dedicated to the issue of domestic violence, and the recent events that associated Greg with that issue. We know that Greg’s status remains under review by the National Football League.
“Our organization understands the very serious nature of domestic violence in our society and in our league. We know that Greg has a firm understanding of those issues as well.”
Hardy was arrested in the spring of 2014 after he threatened to kill his then-girlfriend before dragging her across the floor and throwing her on a couch full of assault weapons. He managed to appear in one game last season before landing on the commissioner's exempt list because of the domestic assault incident.
He was convicted in a bench trial, but the charges were dismissed when the case was appealed to a jury after the victim failed to show up to court and could not be located. Hardy is still subject to league discipline under the new personal conduct policy, and the NFL is currently investigating the case.
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