Would Cowboys sign Johnny Manziel? Jerry Jones won't rule it out

We remember how close Johnny Manziel came to joining the Dallas Cowboys in the draft two years ago. Is it bound to happen now that Manziel has been released by the Cleveland Browns.

Maybe. But not so fast.

MMQB's Peter King caught up with Cowboys owner Jerry Jones at the owners meetings in Florida this week and asked him how real the possibility might be. Jones suggested that Manziel's off-the-field issues trump everything in his mind before the Cowboys even would consider it.

"What's got to get out of my mind is my concern for him, just his well being," Jones told MMQB. "I can get past the football thing. I know a lot of people don't think I can, but I really can.'

That last part is a bit confusing, but what Jones seems to be saying is that Manziel's struggles with the Browns on the field can be explained. But as it stands, both Texas law officials and the NFL are investigating into a domestic-violence incident involving his ex-girlfriend, Colleen Crowley, and both charges and an NFL suspension could be forthcoming.

We're not putting words in Jones' mouth, but he almost suggested that the Cowboys certainly would be interested in giving Manziel a second chance once they get a better idea what kind of obstacles, legal and otherwise, he's facing and how long he might have to miss if the NFL levies a suspension.

"Anybody should be rooting for and concerned about his getting his life together," Jones said. "I have the same impression of when he came out of [Texas] A&M about what his potential is as a football player. But you can be the smartest mathematician, you can be the greatest politician ... but if you can't get it straight with your life, you don't get those chances. I'm more concerned with that, and with that in mind I am not thinking about where it is to football and the Cowboys."

It's clear that Jones believes that there's still magic in the former Heisman Trophy winner who grew up 100 miles down the road from Dallas, but whether it comes out again in the NFL is another story.

"We have an old adage: If you see them do it a couple times, they can do it," Jones said. "Now, will they have the discipline and the will to get out there and do it day in and day out, and do like a Peyton Manning and make a career out of doing that every day? That hasn't been shown."

Manziel recently hired agent Drew Rosenhaus to represent him, and he and the Cowboys have done countless deals over the years and are said to have a good working relationship. They even came together on the Greg Hardy deal a year ago, with Hardy's suspension creating some difficulties for his NFL market.

Can Jones help himself? We don't know that yet, but it almost feels like this pairing is bound to happen at some point. If Manziel shows he can handle the responsibility of a second chance.