sbk92
2
- Messages
- 12,134
- Reaction score
- 6
Smart Shopping
Free Agent Additions An Absolute Need, But Wisely
Rob Phillips
DallasCowboys.com Staff Writer
The Redskins beat the original CBA talks deadline and signed Atogwe.IRVING, Texas - If my wise elder Talkin' Cowboys co-host can finally create his personal Twitter account, the NFL owners and players can settle their labor differences, right?
(@spags52. Seriously, anything's possible now. I'm looking into a timeshare on Pluto.)
Well, as of late Thursday the two sides haven't struck a deal as teams' impending free agents await the chance to seek new contracts. The CBA talks are ongoing, if not necessarily warm, and eventually the Cowboys and the rest of the league can start the normal signing period, attempting to ink new free agents and keep their own as they so choose.
Right now, though, no one knows when and under what structural guidelines.
In the meantime, the e-mails have flooded in: "Why didn't the Cowboys sign O.J. Atogwe when they had the chance???"
The fact that Atogwe will wear Redskin maroon and gold next season (if there is a season) will further rankle a segment of Cowboys fans - at least the ones that vent to us. Good player, and probably a clear upgrade at safety. Now they have to boo him two games a year instead of cheer him for 16 (or 18).
Doubtful the Cowboys think he can't play. More likely, they didn't want to pay him a reported $26 million over five years at this point in time, and apparently no other team had that level of interest, either. Atogwe took one known visit - to our nation's capital - after his Feb. 18 release from the Rams.
I get it. You see a flawed 6-10 team and wonder why they're not scrambling to improve now.
Try to be patient.
This labor uncertainty is a unique predicament for all 32 teams. One can rarely accuse Jerry Jones of pinching pennies when it comes to this roster, and he said during Super Bowl week that his team will be as aggressive as their financial flexibility allows them.
"What we don't know is where we'll be with the cap, if we have a cap," Jones said.
It could be months, unfortunately, before the league sets a new salary cap level. What if it's millions below what teams budgeted for?
Jones makes an understandable point, given that the Cowboys had the highest payroll in the league last year and must, probably above all else, re-sign their best young offensive lineman, Doug Free, to a long-term deal.
Top tackles don't come cheap. Consider that a free-agent acquisition of sorts, just like Miles Austin's last year and DeMarcus Ware's in 2009.
Make no mistake, some free-agent movement will be necessary, too. The Cowboys have more needs than a seven-round draft can fill. Who's playing safety? Left guard? Defensive end? How about offensive tackle depth?
That's a full shopping cart. But it has become clear Jones wants to know his exact budget before fully filling out his list. Most teams seem to be taking the same approach; besides Atogwe, modest one-year deals for Jeremy Shockey (Panthers), Shaun Rogers (Saints) and Bob Sanders (Chargers) are about all we've seen.
Sanders on a one-year, incentive-laden deal? Would've sounded good to me. Maybe that's something they should have seriously pursued. Problem is, given his injury history, Sanders' backup is almost as important as he is.
Now granted, the Cowboys essentially made no additions last year, and it hurt them. Jones admitted as much, saying some complacency set in after an 11-5 division title season. No way that can happen this year. Moves will come.
But there is a balance to spending thriftily. Sure, it looks aggressive and proactive to sign multiple free agents the way Dallas did on a single March day in 2005, dishing out $28 million in signing bonuses to veteran cornerback Anthony Henry, guard Marco Rivera and nose tackle Jason Ferguson. Those moves temporarily filled needs, but they weren't the most efficient solutions. Henry played four full seasons, Rivera and Ferguson only two full seasons each due to injuries.
The Cowboys had to go the free agent route because previous drafts hadn't plugged those positions. Believe it or not, they're in much better shape now than then - Ratliff's a Pro Bowl nose tackle and cornerback Mike Jenkins hopefully can bounce back from a down year - but some misses in 2009 have hurt the current overall depth.
The draft is the best way to build and reload, but free agency will have to help yet again.
I say it every year, and I said it again on Thursday's show, probably at the risk of sounding like status quo's the way to go: the Cowboys need upgrades, but they have to be smart about acquiring them. And they may have their eye on some impending unrestricted players who aren't free to negotiate yet.
Depending on how these extended labor talks go, it's still unknown when the Cowboys finally learn what hand they've been dealt and can get started on improving their roster in earnest.
Free Agent Additions An Absolute Need, But Wisely
Rob Phillips
DallasCowboys.com Staff Writer
The Redskins beat the original CBA talks deadline and signed Atogwe.IRVING, Texas - If my wise elder Talkin' Cowboys co-host can finally create his personal Twitter account, the NFL owners and players can settle their labor differences, right?
(@spags52. Seriously, anything's possible now. I'm looking into a timeshare on Pluto.)
Well, as of late Thursday the two sides haven't struck a deal as teams' impending free agents await the chance to seek new contracts. The CBA talks are ongoing, if not necessarily warm, and eventually the Cowboys and the rest of the league can start the normal signing period, attempting to ink new free agents and keep their own as they so choose.
Right now, though, no one knows when and under what structural guidelines.
In the meantime, the e-mails have flooded in: "Why didn't the Cowboys sign O.J. Atogwe when they had the chance???"
The fact that Atogwe will wear Redskin maroon and gold next season (if there is a season) will further rankle a segment of Cowboys fans - at least the ones that vent to us. Good player, and probably a clear upgrade at safety. Now they have to boo him two games a year instead of cheer him for 16 (or 18).
Doubtful the Cowboys think he can't play. More likely, they didn't want to pay him a reported $26 million over five years at this point in time, and apparently no other team had that level of interest, either. Atogwe took one known visit - to our nation's capital - after his Feb. 18 release from the Rams.
I get it. You see a flawed 6-10 team and wonder why they're not scrambling to improve now.
Try to be patient.
This labor uncertainty is a unique predicament for all 32 teams. One can rarely accuse Jerry Jones of pinching pennies when it comes to this roster, and he said during Super Bowl week that his team will be as aggressive as their financial flexibility allows them.
"What we don't know is where we'll be with the cap, if we have a cap," Jones said.
It could be months, unfortunately, before the league sets a new salary cap level. What if it's millions below what teams budgeted for?
Jones makes an understandable point, given that the Cowboys had the highest payroll in the league last year and must, probably above all else, re-sign their best young offensive lineman, Doug Free, to a long-term deal.
Top tackles don't come cheap. Consider that a free-agent acquisition of sorts, just like Miles Austin's last year and DeMarcus Ware's in 2009.
Make no mistake, some free-agent movement will be necessary, too. The Cowboys have more needs than a seven-round draft can fill. Who's playing safety? Left guard? Defensive end? How about offensive tackle depth?
That's a full shopping cart. But it has become clear Jones wants to know his exact budget before fully filling out his list. Most teams seem to be taking the same approach; besides Atogwe, modest one-year deals for Jeremy Shockey (Panthers), Shaun Rogers (Saints) and Bob Sanders (Chargers) are about all we've seen.
Sanders on a one-year, incentive-laden deal? Would've sounded good to me. Maybe that's something they should have seriously pursued. Problem is, given his injury history, Sanders' backup is almost as important as he is.
Now granted, the Cowboys essentially made no additions last year, and it hurt them. Jones admitted as much, saying some complacency set in after an 11-5 division title season. No way that can happen this year. Moves will come.
But there is a balance to spending thriftily. Sure, it looks aggressive and proactive to sign multiple free agents the way Dallas did on a single March day in 2005, dishing out $28 million in signing bonuses to veteran cornerback Anthony Henry, guard Marco Rivera and nose tackle Jason Ferguson. Those moves temporarily filled needs, but they weren't the most efficient solutions. Henry played four full seasons, Rivera and Ferguson only two full seasons each due to injuries.
The Cowboys had to go the free agent route because previous drafts hadn't plugged those positions. Believe it or not, they're in much better shape now than then - Ratliff's a Pro Bowl nose tackle and cornerback Mike Jenkins hopefully can bounce back from a down year - but some misses in 2009 have hurt the current overall depth.
The draft is the best way to build and reload, but free agency will have to help yet again.
I say it every year, and I said it again on Thursday's show, probably at the risk of sounding like status quo's the way to go: the Cowboys need upgrades, but they have to be smart about acquiring them. And they may have their eye on some impending unrestricted players who aren't free to negotiate yet.
Depending on how these extended labor talks go, it's still unknown when the Cowboys finally learn what hand they've been dealt and can get started on improving their roster in earnest.