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Dallas' top five free agent options
Matt Mosley started his career at the Dallas Morning News, where he covered the Dallas Cowboys. He was the first full-time NFL blogger at ESPN.com. Mosley can be heard weekdays as part of Galloway and Co. on ESPN Radio 103.3 FM. Follow Mosley on Twitter: @MattMosley
IRVING — As we hopefully inch closer to an agreement that would lead to an actual NFL season, let's take a quick look at what the Dallas Cowboys have to accomplish in free agency. For the purpose of this column, let's pretend that owner Jerry Jones' resident salary capologist and son Stephen will be creative enough to clear space for some of the biggest names in free agency.
And the Cowboys will have to move quickly in this process. A high-level executive from the AFC told me Tuesday morning that he's prepared for the free agency period to start within 24 hours of the two sides reaching an agreement. I believe that teams will have at least three days to prepare for free agency, but these things are hard to predict since we're breaking new ground.
I now submit for your viewing pleasure the Cowboys' dream wish list for free agency, within reason. And we'll start out with a familiar face:
1. Doug Free, Cowboys left tackle: I know all the reasons given for why the Cowboys didn't get him locked up before becoming an unrestricted free agent, but I'm not sure all of them are valid. The Cowboys didn't want to place the franchise tag (likely $10 million for 2011) on a player when they didn't have to. At the point when they were making that decision, it wasn't known which system would be implemented in a new collective bargaining agreement. If the 2010 rules were adopted, Free would've been a restricted free agent, which would've given the Cowboys a lot more leverage.
Do you pay $10 million to a player who will likely play right tackle once first-round pick Tyron Smith is ready to take over on the left side (likely in 2012)? Well, my answer to that question would be yes. But it's easy to say that now that we know the likely structure of the new CBA. Stephen Jones said before the draft that re-signing Free would be the team's biggest priority — and I still believe that to be the case. Now the Cowboys will likely have to sit back and watch other teams set a market for Free. And after looking over the list of unrestricted free agents, I believe you can make an argument that Free's the best left tackle. There's probably no scenario in which the Cowboys re-sign Free and then add a top-flight cornerback such as Nnamdi Asomugha, but again, we've suspended reality for the most part.
2. Nnamdi Asomugha, Raiders cornerback: The Cowboys would have to release veteran cornerback Terence Newman to make something like this work. I can tell you with absolute certainty that Dallas sees Asomugha as a huge long shot, and the Cowboys know he could end up with the Philadelphia Eagles. But let's get past that for a moment and think about Asomugha playing across from Mike Jenkins. You would have arguably the best corner in the league locking down one half of the field.
Right now, the Cowboys are giving me an "only in our dreams" response to Asomugha queries, but things can change in a hurry. If someone convinced Jerry Jones that Asomugha was truly the missing piece to the Cowboys being a Super Bowl contender, he would move mountains to make it happen. But I don't think anyone can make that argument right now.
3. Cullen Jenkins, Packers defensive end: The Cowboys have an obvious need at defensive end they didn't address in the draft. They'll try to re-sign unrestricted free-agent Stephen Bowen, but there's a good chance that Marcus Spears and Jason Hatcher will be on other rosters next season. Jenkins could step in immediately and be part of a solid rotation with Bowen and Igor Olshansky. He had seven sacks last season on a Super Bowl team and he's the player this defensive line has been missing. It would be interesting to see what Rob Ryan could do with such a talented player. The darkhorse name would be Giants defensive tackle Barry Cofield. He quietly had an excellent 2010 season and I believe he's one of the best-kept secrets in this year's free-agent crop.
4. Michael Huff, Raiders free safety: I know everyone's talking about Browns safety Abram Elam, but Huff's the better candidate. There's at least one Cowboys scout who always argues against former University of Texas players, but Huff's talent will override any bias. And he's already been working out with a lot of the Cowboys players. This move just makes too much sense not to do it.
5. Quintin Mikell, Eagles strong safety: Incumbent Gerald Sensabaugh will be seeking a big pay day, and the Cowboys should let him get that elsewhere. Mikell is a smart player who's been held back by inexperienced players with the Eagles. When Mikell played next to Brian Dawkins, he was on his way to being an outstanding player. If the Cowboys put him next to a player like Huff, Mikell would flourish. And Jerry Jones would love the opportunity to pluck a player from the hated Eagles' roster.
Matt Mosley started his career at the Dallas Morning News, where he covered the Dallas Cowboys. He was the first full-time NFL blogger at ESPN.com. Mosley can be heard weekdays as part of Galloway and Co. on ESPN Radio 103.3 FM. Follow Mosley on Twitter: @MattMosley
IRVING — As we hopefully inch closer to an agreement that would lead to an actual NFL season, let's take a quick look at what the Dallas Cowboys have to accomplish in free agency. For the purpose of this column, let's pretend that owner Jerry Jones' resident salary capologist and son Stephen will be creative enough to clear space for some of the biggest names in free agency.
And the Cowboys will have to move quickly in this process. A high-level executive from the AFC told me Tuesday morning that he's prepared for the free agency period to start within 24 hours of the two sides reaching an agreement. I believe that teams will have at least three days to prepare for free agency, but these things are hard to predict since we're breaking new ground.
I now submit for your viewing pleasure the Cowboys' dream wish list for free agency, within reason. And we'll start out with a familiar face:
1. Doug Free, Cowboys left tackle: I know all the reasons given for why the Cowboys didn't get him locked up before becoming an unrestricted free agent, but I'm not sure all of them are valid. The Cowboys didn't want to place the franchise tag (likely $10 million for 2011) on a player when they didn't have to. At the point when they were making that decision, it wasn't known which system would be implemented in a new collective bargaining agreement. If the 2010 rules were adopted, Free would've been a restricted free agent, which would've given the Cowboys a lot more leverage.
Do you pay $10 million to a player who will likely play right tackle once first-round pick Tyron Smith is ready to take over on the left side (likely in 2012)? Well, my answer to that question would be yes. But it's easy to say that now that we know the likely structure of the new CBA. Stephen Jones said before the draft that re-signing Free would be the team's biggest priority — and I still believe that to be the case. Now the Cowboys will likely have to sit back and watch other teams set a market for Free. And after looking over the list of unrestricted free agents, I believe you can make an argument that Free's the best left tackle. There's probably no scenario in which the Cowboys re-sign Free and then add a top-flight cornerback such as Nnamdi Asomugha, but again, we've suspended reality for the most part.
2. Nnamdi Asomugha, Raiders cornerback: The Cowboys would have to release veteran cornerback Terence Newman to make something like this work. I can tell you with absolute certainty that Dallas sees Asomugha as a huge long shot, and the Cowboys know he could end up with the Philadelphia Eagles. But let's get past that for a moment and think about Asomugha playing across from Mike Jenkins. You would have arguably the best corner in the league locking down one half of the field.
Right now, the Cowboys are giving me an "only in our dreams" response to Asomugha queries, but things can change in a hurry. If someone convinced Jerry Jones that Asomugha was truly the missing piece to the Cowboys being a Super Bowl contender, he would move mountains to make it happen. But I don't think anyone can make that argument right now.
3. Cullen Jenkins, Packers defensive end: The Cowboys have an obvious need at defensive end they didn't address in the draft. They'll try to re-sign unrestricted free-agent Stephen Bowen, but there's a good chance that Marcus Spears and Jason Hatcher will be on other rosters next season. Jenkins could step in immediately and be part of a solid rotation with Bowen and Igor Olshansky. He had seven sacks last season on a Super Bowl team and he's the player this defensive line has been missing. It would be interesting to see what Rob Ryan could do with such a talented player. The darkhorse name would be Giants defensive tackle Barry Cofield. He quietly had an excellent 2010 season and I believe he's one of the best-kept secrets in this year's free-agent crop.
4. Michael Huff, Raiders free safety: I know everyone's talking about Browns safety Abram Elam, but Huff's the better candidate. There's at least one Cowboys scout who always argues against former University of Texas players, but Huff's talent will override any bias. And he's already been working out with a lot of the Cowboys players. This move just makes too much sense not to do it.
5. Quintin Mikell, Eagles strong safety: Incumbent Gerald Sensabaugh will be seeking a big pay day, and the Cowboys should let him get that elsewhere. Mikell is a smart player who's been held back by inexperienced players with the Eagles. When Mikell played next to Brian Dawkins, he was on his way to being an outstanding player. If the Cowboys put him next to a player like Huff, Mikell would flourish. And Jerry Jones would love the opportunity to pluck a player from the hated Eagles' roster.
