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Posted by rphillips at 4/4/2011 1:45 PM CDT on truebluefanclub.com
It's a point I purposely left out of last week's column (detailing my skepticism of drafting an offensive lineman in the first round) because I wanted to give props to Brandon in Las Vegas for articulating it so well on Talkin' Cowboys:
If the Cowboys draft, say, USC tackle Tyron Smith at No. 9, they better budget for two big tackle contracts.
No one knows what the ninth pick will make due to the possibility of a rookie wage scale, but it'll be expensive regardless. Last year's ninth pick, Buffalo's C.J. Spiller, signed a five-year deal with $20.8 million in guarantees.
That's not veteran left tackle money, but it's hardly a pittance. And if Smith develops into the blind-side protector everyone expects, he'll eventually require a lot more.
That brings us to the Cowboys' current left tackle, Doug Free, who will be a free agent whenever the new league year begins. He could be restricted, but more likely would be unrestricted as a four-year vet. What's his asking price? Certainly as much as a first-rounder, and quite possibly in the $40 million range. That's just the going rate for a proven left tackle, even if he winds up playing the right side again.
So although the Cowboys are eventually expected to be more active in free agency, one position would eat into a lot of their cap space under this scenario.
It's a point I purposely left out of last week's column (detailing my skepticism of drafting an offensive lineman in the first round) because I wanted to give props to Brandon in Las Vegas for articulating it so well on Talkin' Cowboys:
If the Cowboys draft, say, USC tackle Tyron Smith at No. 9, they better budget for two big tackle contracts.
No one knows what the ninth pick will make due to the possibility of a rookie wage scale, but it'll be expensive regardless. Last year's ninth pick, Buffalo's C.J. Spiller, signed a five-year deal with $20.8 million in guarantees.
That's not veteran left tackle money, but it's hardly a pittance. And if Smith develops into the blind-side protector everyone expects, he'll eventually require a lot more.
That brings us to the Cowboys' current left tackle, Doug Free, who will be a free agent whenever the new league year begins. He could be restricted, but more likely would be unrestricted as a four-year vet. What's his asking price? Certainly as much as a first-rounder, and quite possibly in the $40 million range. That's just the going rate for a proven left tackle, even if he winds up playing the right side again.
So although the Cowboys are eventually expected to be more active in free agency, one position would eat into a lot of their cap space under this scenario.
