The Facts: The spot HC Jason Garrett finds himself in at the moment is precarious. And that might be why he spent his NFL Scouting Combine press conference walking a fine line, between stressing how important free agents Dez Bryant and Murray were to his team while admitting how hard it might be to keep both. Garrett called his star WR and RB “cornerstone players,” but had a quick addendum. “The business of the NFL is real, though,” Garrett said. “Each of these guys have a business opportunity.”

Diehards Line: As previously noted, the Cowboys appear inclined to use the franchise tag to keep Bryant if they can’t reach a long term deal, even if that might not be Bryant’s preference and could cause him to stay away from offseason workouts. But Garrett went out of his way to hail the character of the wide receiver, saying: “We love Dez Bryant and we want him on our football team.” Likewise, Garrett gushed about Murray’s durability, when asked about the perceptions of the declining value of veteran running backs. Even after Garrett mentioned the investment the Cowboys made in offensive linemen, and said “the runner isn’t the only part of running the football,” he made it clear he thought Murray was special. ... Meanwhile, Garrett said talks were ongoing with both sides, and the goal remained to keep them both. But he also talked like a man who knew keeping one was going to make keeping the other harder.