Dak - What Is Your Solution?

[TwoCentPlain]

At the beginning of free agency:
I would let Dak become an unrestricted free agent. Let Dak explore the open market and see what his true value is. I would tell Dak that if he likes he can let me match. This is fair to all. Fair to Dak, fair to the team, fair to the fans. Nobody can complain.

I doubt Dak gets an offer since he can't pass a physical and wants $40M/year with the cap around $182M for 2021.
1) Assumption: Dak will get no offers that he likes before the draft.

Now comes the very tricky part and we have to make assumptions and contingency plans. How is Dak's ankle? The second surgery was on the deltoid ligament. Strong ligament where surgery is uncommon and usually only for major injuries where all other options have failed.

Contingency plan A (probability 50% or greater) for Dak not being able to start the season and will be on PUP:
Cowboys sign Dak for 1 year at $15M since he will miss half the season. Best he can get after FA and the draft are over.
Need to concentrate on backup QB first in FA. Look at Dalton, Tyrod Taylor, Fitzpatrick, Trubisky (if cut), Winston, etc. Sign one. Dak comes back after game 8. Consider drafting a QB in a later round. Back to the drawing board trying to sign Dak long term for 2022.

Contingency plan B (probability 25% or less) for Dak not being able to play this year due to leg not healing:
Need to concentrate on backup QB first in FA. Look at Dalton, Tyrod Taylor, Fitzpatrick, Trubisky (if cut), Winston, Bridgewtater (if cut), etc.
Follow BPA on draft day. Consider QB at 10 if Fields falls or Wilson or Lance is BPA at 10. Do not limit 10 to defense. If TE Pitts is BPA then take him. Consider trade down if teams are offering. Maybe sign Dak the following year. Maybe not if we draft a QB in 1st or 2nd.

Contingency plan C (5% or less) for Dak signing a monster contract with another team as an UFA that the Cowboys refuse to match:
Look at Dalton, Tyrod Taylor, Fitzpatrick, Trubisky (if cut), Winston, Bridgewtater (if cut), etc. Sign one or two depending on price.
Consider drafting a QB for need. May have to reach at 10 or can trade down a little and still get Mack Jones.

I would not tag Dak since he would sign it in a second and I would owe him $37M even if he isn't even able to play the whole year. No way I take that risk and handicap the 2021 team with $37M on IR.

 

[iceberg]

Now we're talking. These goofs trying to stronghorn Dak are being dumb.
The cards are in his hand.

i'm not about to fight whether or not he will get paid. he will as long as he can come back from his injury. i just don't see that $ in 1 position helping this team. simply need too much everywhere.

 

[cowboyec]

You arent even in the Tomlinson ball park ,, you are in fantasy football land,, and kind of silly trying to respond, why would we lose any draft picks,, and its not an extension its just signing the average man to a cap killer.
Damn you guys that slobber just are the biggest haters,, and yet most of you blame the rational fans.

you resonded to my post...which was mostly about signing...extendeding...keeping Dak as our QB and a defensive heavy draft as "fantasy"....yet is more down to earth than most other solutions.
and yes....i would TRY to sign Tomlinson.
i didnt say sign him....i said try.
as far as your assessment of me as a slobberer....what the hell does that even mean.
whats your solution genius...
the football world awaits your plan.

 

[Corso]

If we get two firsts for Prescott we could throw in those plus a second for 2021 and a first in 2022 (which would be closer to a second with Wilson).

Wilson behind even a semi healthy o line wins the East at a canter. The defense will be better next season in a simplified system - similar to 2016-2019. We could be a bit of a dark horse in the play offs as he is one of the few elite QB in the league even behind a bad o line.

Dude... that 2 1st's fallacy is negotiable and probably won't be 2 1st's.

But carry on.

 

[Corso]

im pretty sure the tag signing deadline is way before the trade deadline

Oh yeah? Throw me some dates. And then throw me a team that's willing to trade for Dak if he says he's not going to stay for more than that tag year.

 

[Flamma]

Spell it out. Put it in one thread.

To me there is no trade available that will keep the draft picks in hand to rebuild the defense. So it is sign Dak for me. I see him as a consistent player that can get it done if you can give him protection.

All the defense needs is to keep the opponent under 23 PPG. With the TE's, WR's, and running game, Dallas should average more than that.

I say keep Dak and let go of these silly trades. Andy Dalton is not a solution, by the way. If you pay 40m, well so what. You can ditch Zeke next year. Backload the contract if you need to. Dump Jaylon and push some of that money toward Gallup. But get this done and move on.

Now what is your plan? This is not a slander Dak thread, but your idea. I see a great deal of post attacking Dak that offer zero plans for replacing him. But these people are quick to call Dak out, but little on what they would do other than play Madden with ideas that cannot work.

Here is your shot to GM this situation. Let's see what you got.

I agree with your first sentence, but that's it. This is not to say the rest is wrong, it's just that your timing is off. Gallup needs an extension now, not next year. Zeke will be here two more years if you want cap relief, not 1 more. If Jaylon continues to bite, he can be gone after 2021. No reason to dump him right now.

The Cowboys are set at one position group, the skilled players on offense. Everywhere else either needs help or is a question mark. Dallas has several DBs that are free agents that need replacing. I think it's Woods, Chido, and Lewis. No biggy, but still need to be replaced. Dallas has 8 players right now up for extension. Most of them starters. If they sign Dak we'll be looking to replace or trade most, if not all of them over the next two drafts. We'd be looking at a minor rebuild. You want to pay a QB 40 million a year just to come for the ride over the next 3 years? The Cowboys are not a very good team right now. And if you sign Dak they're going to get a little worse before they start getting better.

 

[Typhus]

you resonded to my post...which was mostly about signing...extendeding...keeping Dak as our QB and a defensive heavy draft as "fantasy"....yet is more down to earth than most other solutions.
and yes....i would TRY to sign Tomlinson.
i didnt say sign him....i said try.
as far as your assessment of me as a slobberer....what the hell does that even mean.
whats your solution genius...
the football world awaits your plan.

You can try all you want to sign Tomlinson, but your not signing the top FAs if Dak gets payed.
Im just trying to lay out the basics here,, there is no hate or love,, just the facts.

 

[Jinxx13x]

Maybe it is me i just do not understand the huge support to go grab Russell Wilson!

Yes he is a great QB i am not taking anything away from him, But maybe i just look at things a little different.

I have heard lots of chatter on the usual sports talk shows and wether this is true or not who knows, But they keep saying Seattle will want 3 - #1 draft picks at the least ( possibly to help make up for what they gave up to get adams ) I am sorry but Russ has been hit over like 1000 times in his 10 year career and he is 32. It seems based on his choices getting to a major market is important for not only him but his wife Ciarra cool i get that for his brand and her career, i would ask how much longer does he intend to play or is this a move strictly for after football because he intends to walk away soon ( it is worth wondering about ) ? I also understand his contract for a couple years would be team friendly in the short term compared to what it seems Dak is gunning for BUT when it comes time for the new contract what then ?

I just don't see Russ being 3 Number 1's better then Dak who is what 5 or 6 years younger and putting up russell type stats at this point in his career.

I hear the way the organization and all of Daks teammates talk about him and his leadership, it is obvious he is the heart and soul of this team! Dak has improved every year since he entered the league even though the record does not reflect so ! I personally love dak and want him as our QB, i don't worry about our offense when he is at the helm at all and i feel we are never out of a game when he is leading Is russ gonna be that much better in this department ?. The D is where the focus should be although i also understand daks contract might have a huge impact on what we can actually do to fix that !

This is an intriguing scenario and worth exploring - personally I am pro dak and want to ride with him i really like him as a player. You have to admire and respect everything this dude has been through, and overcome, all while keeping his cool while playing at a high level while being thrust into the spotlight in the way he was that first year. IMO he is a winner in football and outside of football and he deserves it !

With either QB its a win win -

But now the things i wonder about are as follows:

1) Has Dak Lost some leverage , did he overplay his hand ?
2) Does Russ really want to be here, or is this the typical use the cowboys as leverage in his negotiations ?
3) If Cowboys were to move on or give final offer which dak refuses would Dak personally regret his decision if he ended up in a smaller market with a larger contract

WOW there is a lot to consider with all this gonna be fun to watch how this plays out !

Cmon Dak lets get this done fair for both sides and move on !

 

[cowboyec]

You can try all you want to sign Tomlinson, but your not signing the top FAs if Dak gets payed.
Im just trying to lay out the basics here,, there is no hate or love,, just the facts.

what is your plan?

 

[Redsfan_83]

Either we sign him, or sign and trade. If we let him play on the tag again that will be it for him as a Cowboy. We cannot franchise him for the 3rd time with a bazillion dollar contract coming his way so there are two solutions I can think of. We will regret signing him to a Mahomes type deal, but can't expect a Wentz/Goff type either. $40 big ones over somewhere between 3-5 years and that's it.

 

[Typhus]

what is your plan?

A "non-exclusive" franchise player must be offered a one-year contract for an amount no less than the average of the top five cap hits at the player's position for the previous five years applied to the current salary cap, or 120 percent of the player's previous year's salary, whichever is greater. A non-exclusive franchise player may negotiate with other NFL teams, but if the player signs an offer sheet from another team, the original team has a right to match the terms of that offer, or if it does not match the offer and thus loses the player, is entitled to receive two first-round draft picks as compensation.

 

[JoeKing]

Spell it out. Put it in one thread.

To me there is no trade available that will keep the draft picks in hand to rebuild the defense. So it is sign Dak for me. I see him as a consistent player that can get it done if you can give him protection.

All the defense needs is to keep the opponent under 23 PPG. With the TE's, WR's, and running game, Dallas should average more than that.

I say keep Dak and let go of these silly trades. Andy Dalton is not a solution, by the way. If you pay 40m, well so what. You can ditch Zeke next year. Backload the contract if you need to. Dump Jaylon and push some of that money toward Gallup. But get this done and move on.

Now what is your plan? This is not a slander Dak thread, but your idea. I see a great deal of post attacking Dak that offer zero plans for replacing him. But these people are quick to call Dak out, but little on what they would do other than play Madden with ideas that cannot work.

Here is your shot to GM this situation. Let's see what you got.

I agree with you but the incompetence in the FO won't get it done. They will lose Dak and have little to show for it.

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

Tag and trade Prescott.
Trade for Wilson - his hit to the salary cap is friendly over the next 3 years.

We effectively bring in a cheaper and far Superior QB. Try to save our #10 pick if possible.

but we have to give up several 1st round draft pick for wilson, and those are premium picks to fix the defense.

plus, Wilson's hit on the cap is 36M per year over the next 3 years....so assuming if Dak's deal is 40M, you think 4M is going to get you what? some nice back up DT in FA!!!! it ain't as cap friendly as you make it out to be...

and wilson, without that vaunted defense has been 1-3 in the playoffs....not so stellar......so in your opinion, damn the defense, give up resources to get Wilson and not really any cap relief

brilliant!!!

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

No one will take him for 37 million hence the dilemma.

I can easily see 5 or 6 teams lined up to pay 40M.....

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

We have defensive needs. So sign a stiff QB to 40 million a year.

Too dense, indeed.

so are you saying we should build the defense through FA? when was the last time that worked out?

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

We need DT, OL(maybe two), LB(one possibly two),CB,and S.Oh yeah and they may all need to start! So let us pay Dak 40 million and then see where we are. When was the last time a high priced QB won a superbowl? I am actually asking.

when was the last time a high priced QB won a superbowl...eli manning, Mahomes, Brees on his previous contract.....you do understand that the cap goes up, but average salary remains the same and cap hits are manipulated like nobody's business.

 

[Corso]

so are you saying we should build the defense through FA? when was the last time that worked out?

over 25 years ago.

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

Sign Dak to a 4 or 5 year deal - its a QB driven league and going with a rookie means we are rebuilding, in which case we should just dump everyone, trade all our commodities and start over....

trade Martin - I am sure I will get an earful for this suggestion, but you don't win championships because you have the best guard in the league....I bet none of you here can name the 8 starting guards on the championship teams in 2020, 2019,2018 teams without googling it....he costs too much....I love the guy. future HOFer, but hey, we can draft a guard in mid rounds
Cut Jaylon - he is at this point very over priced for what he brings to the team
Cut Tyron Smith after june first, depending on if we draft a LT in the first round. if not, Tyron stays. he has missed games over the past few seasons and his back ain't getting beter
Cut zeke after 2021, dead cap money is too much.

Draft defense, defense, defense, except if we get a LT in the first round, that's the only offensive player I would want to draft.

I really don't want to sign any FAs this year.....let Quinn install his system, see what we have in our draftees and then we can decide which positions we need to fill via FA

we have to hit on at least two defensive players this draft to have a chance over the next few years, once cap gets back to where it was supposed to be, then we can go after FAs..

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

over 25 years ago.

LOL, yeah, its a once in a generation thing

 

[buybuydandavis]

Spell it out. Put it in one thread.

To me there is no trade available that will keep the draft picks in hand to rebuild the defense. So it is sign Dak for me. I see him as a consistent player that can get it done if you can give him protection.

All the defense needs is to keep the opponent under 23 PPG. With the TE's, WR's, and running game, Dallas should average more than that.

I say keep Dak and let go of these silly trades. Andy Dalton is not a solution, by the way. If you pay 40m, well so what. You can ditch Zeke next year. Backload the contract if you need to. Dump Jaylon and push some of that money toward Gallup. But get this done and move on.

Now what is your plan? This is not a slander Dak thread, but your idea. I see a great deal of post attacking Dak that offer zero plans for replacing him. But these people are quick to call Dak out, but little on what they would do other than play Madden with ideas that cannot work.

Here is your shot to GM this situation. Let's see what you got.

Trade doesn't seem an option for a high quality QB. What Stafford cost was crazy. And I like him.

I've been thinking that the QB market has been a bubble, but really, if the latest boost in the tv contract with Disney is indicative of where the cap is going, Signing Dak for Mahomes money would be fine. Just do it.

A lot of the contracts we've been moaning about will look pretty good with a big bump in cap.