Jones had said Thursday evening that he would speak to Bryant about a variety of issues and expected the wide receiver to get examined by the medical staff. It didn't happen.
The Cowboys owner said he became too busy with the draft and labor issues and couldn't clear his schedule to speak with Bryant. Yet Jones defended Bryant for not being at Valley Ranch. At least 20 players visited the complex to work out Friday, a group which included Tony Romo, Kevin Ogletree, Andrew Sendejo and the bulk of the offensive line.
"We had the good communication that I wanted to have," Jones said regarding his Thursday night conversation with Bryant. "It would have been redundant, that's why we did talk. We had a real good talk yesterday and that's where I like to leave it."
Like other players who are rehabbing, Bryant has been in communication with team officials through a third party. Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said those players are recovering well.
It seemed as if Jones was caught off guard by the discussions surrounding Bryant, his talented yet troubled wide receiver who received a criminal trespass complaint for causing a disturbance at a Dallas mall and who has been sued for nearly $800,000 by three creditors. He's repaid roughly $246,000.
Bryant has said he's enjoyed talking with new wide receivers coach Jimmy Robinson and new strength and conditioning coach Mike Woicik.
Friday was a day for Bryant to visit with those men again but it didn't happen, and now with the lockout being back in play he won't see them at all in the immediate future.
"We don't know what his schedule was since certainly two days earlier he hadn't planned to be here," Jones said. "He might have planned to be on the other side of the country, this was kind of an impromptu day for most of the people to be here."
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Calvin Watkins
Calvin Watkins joined ESPNDallas.com in September 2009. He's covered the Cowboys since 2006 and also has covered colleges, boxing and high school sports.
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Todd Archer joined ESPNDallas.com in November 2010. He's covered the NFL since 1997 and the Cowboys since 2003. He covered the Bengals and Dolphins before arriving in Dallas. A Massachusetts native, Archer lives in the Dallas area with his wife and two children.
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Tim MacMahon joined ESPNDallas.com in September 2009. Tim covers the Cowboys and Mavericks. He has covered the local sports scene from high schools to colleges to pros during his six-year tenure at The Dallas Morning News. MacMahon is a graduate of UNT.
Jean-Jacques Taylor
Jean-Jacques Taylor joined ESPNDallas.com in August 2011. A native of Dallas, Taylor spent the past 20 years writing for The Dallas Morning News, where he covered high schools sports, the Texas Rangers and spent 11 seasons covering the Dallas Cowboys before becoming a general columnist in 2006.
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Ben Rogers joined ESPNDallas.com in November 2009. He is one half of "The Ben & Skin Show," heard weekdays from 9a-12p on 103.3 FM ESPN.
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