Back in April, before the NFL Draft, Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones didn't offer too many details regarding the team's plans for free agency. But then the subject turned to Doug Free, one of most promising offensive lineman in the league who is now expected to command millions of dollars on the open market. And Jones' tone changed.
"We want to sign Doug back," he said. "We think he is a very productive offensive tackle for us and he'll be our No. 1 priority when things start up. [Our goal] is to try to get him signed up."
Once the labor dispute is resolved, the Cowboys are expected to have a 72-hour window to do just that before a bidding war for Free's services would begin with the league's other 31 teams. It will be a critical three-day period for the Cowboys, who will have to trim a significant sum of money off their payroll to meet the demands of the new salary cap, which is supposed to be in the neighborhood of $120 million.
If they are able to sign Free early in the process, they will have know how much money they have allocated towards their left tackle and in turn have a better understanding of how many other acquisitions they can realistically make as well how many players they need to cut. But if they can't strike a deal with Free in that 72-hour cycle, then the Cowboys could be forced to operate in the dark.
He is the first domino, after all. And if he doesn't fall, then what happens? Can the Cowboys pursue other veteran players? The scenario is a vexing one for the Cowboys, but potentially advantageous for Free, who stands to benefit from the fact that free agency will proceed at warp speed this year.
He knows the Cowboys will be in a rush to reshape the team. And after excelling at left tackle last season, when he yielded only five sacks in 16 games, he is aware that he is a big piece of the puzzle. At this point, if fact, he may be the biggest.
"We want to sign Doug back," he said. "We think he is a very productive offensive tackle for us and he'll be our No. 1 priority when things start up. [Our goal] is to try to get him signed up."
Once the labor dispute is resolved, the Cowboys are expected to have a 72-hour window to do just that before a bidding war for Free's services would begin with the league's other 31 teams. It will be a critical three-day period for the Cowboys, who will have to trim a significant sum of money off their payroll to meet the demands of the new salary cap, which is supposed to be in the neighborhood of $120 million.
If they are able to sign Free early in the process, they will have know how much money they have allocated towards their left tackle and in turn have a better understanding of how many other acquisitions they can realistically make as well how many players they need to cut. But if they can't strike a deal with Free in that 72-hour cycle, then the Cowboys could be forced to operate in the dark.
He is the first domino, after all. And if he doesn't fall, then what happens? Can the Cowboys pursue other veteran players? The scenario is a vexing one for the Cowboys, but potentially advantageous for Free, who stands to benefit from the fact that free agency will proceed at warp speed this year.
He knows the Cowboys will be in a rush to reshape the team. And after excelling at left tackle last season, when he yielded only five sacks in 16 games, he is aware that he is a big piece of the puzzle. At this point, if fact, he may be the biggest.
