Suspended Greg Hardy vows to reward Cowboys owner Jerry Jones

— -- Greg Hardy wants nothing more than to reward Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones for ignoring the backlash and investing in the embattled free-agent defensive end.

"What I am going to do is make sure Jerry's happy," Hardy told WFAA-TV in Dallas --  his first public comments since joining the Cowboys -- during the team's annual golf tournament last week. "[Because] he took a chance on me."

Hardy missed all but one game last season because of a domestic violence issue and has subsequently been suspended 10 games this season by the league for violating the NFL's personal conduct policy. He remains on the commissioner's exempt list and his appeal will be heard by the league May 28.

He was initially found guilty of a domestic violence charge by a North Carolina judge, but the charges were dismissed when the accuser did not make herself available for a jury trial. Hardy has since asked for his record to be expunged and has relinquished all of the weapons from the case to the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's office.

Hardy promised to be on his best behavior with the Cowboys, though his tweets have raised the ire of the front office and coach Jason Garrett on more than one occasion since joining the team.

"Be me again. Be a considerate, nice guy. Help people. Keep a lot of love in my heart," Hardy said. "Stay out of trouble ... keep everybody else happy. Keep my fans happy. ... And keep smiles on faces."

Hardy had 26 sacks in his last two full seasons with the Carolina Panthers, and had one in the only game in which he appeared in 2014. As a team, the Cowboys had just 28 sacks last season.

"My success is already ensured," Hardy said. "I'm a Pro Bowl defensive end. Just got to keep doing what I'm doing."

ESPN Cowboys reporter Todd Archer contributed to this report.