Jerry Jones: Kyle Orton doesn't plan to retire from NFL

Time to put the kibosh on those Kyle Orton retirement plans.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones told reporters on Wednesday that the veteran backup quarterback has no intentions to call it quits and hopes to keep playing in 2014 -- just not for Dallas.

The entire situation with Orton was peculiar. The team arguably did the passer a favor by releasing him, allowing Tony Romo's former backup to keep his $3.25 million prorated signing bonus while saving Dallas just $2 million against the cap.

Jones seemed to suggest that Orton -- scheduled to earn $3 million after missing the entire offseason -- planned to report for camp in order to force the team's hand.

"Once he gave an indication that he was not going to retire, and come back with all the other aspects of not having participated in the spring work that we did, then it was decision time on our part," Jones said.


The owner acknowledged that Orton's reluctance to "be on the field" was "alive and well" in the team's decision to move on, but "it's important to understand that we were paying Kyle a lot of money."

Said Jones: "That money can go toward paying (someone) that can help us win in our judgment more than having that much invested in him."

Orton -- if he truly intends to continue his career -- is now free to sign with another club immediately. Any potential suitor, though, will want to be certain that the 31-year-old signal-caller is still committed to the toils of an NFL season.

That wasn't the case in Dallas, leaving the Cowboys one ill-fated snap away from Brandon Weeden guiding the team into battle.