Why the “We like our Guys” mantra is killing this team

[Bobhaze]

How many times have we heard the lazy voice of Stephen Jones answer a softball question on his “radio show” regarding roster changes with the tired phrase, “We like our guys”…?

Why is this such a bad statement from an NFL team’s front office? Because teams winning SBs are usually kings of the “roster churn”- the constant evaluation of its talent to cut free from those that don’t absolutely make your team better and avoid fond connections with players because you like them.

In short, good NFL front office people don’t over-value their own players or they lose their jobs! They have a few years to win playoff games or find a new address. Nothing motivates talent evaluation like job security.

Well, here’s some clear evidence that this Jones front office over-values its own players:

• The NFL average retention of their own drafted players is 23.
• The last 53 man roster of the 2021 Cowboys contained 30 players that had been originally drafted by the Cowboys, including several on their second contracts. That’s a lot more than most teams. And it could have been higher if we hadn’t released Jaylon Smith and his bloated contract this last fall.
• For some comparisons, last year’s SB champs the Buccaneers only had 19 of its 53 man roster retained from its drafts.
• It’s good to have successful draft picks. But you should NOT re-sign marginal players to second contracts that are just ok.

That means that the avg NFL team does not retain as many of its drafted players as the Cowboys do. The Cowboys sign more of their drafted players to second contracts than almost all other NFL teams.

“We like our guys” is a sadly honest statement from the Jones Boys. If your name is Jones and you work in the Cowboys front office, there are no consequences for “liking the wrong guys”.

In Big D- “We like our guys”- Therefore the roster churn is very, very slow. As are the playoff wins.

 

[Typhus]

How many times have we heard the lazy voice of Stephen Jones answer a softball question on his “radio show” regarding roster changes with the tired phrase, “We like our guys”…?

Why is this such a bad statement from an NFL team’s front office? Because teams winning SBs are usually kings of the “roster churn”- the constant evaluation of its talent to cut free from those that don’t absolutely make your team better and avoid fond connections with players because you like them.

In short, good NFL front office people don’t over-value their own players or they lose their jobs! They have a few years to win playoff games or find a new address. Nothing motivates talent evaluation like job security.

Well, here’s some clear evidence that this Jones front office over-values its own players:

• The NFL average retention of their own drafted players is 23.
• The last 53 man roster of the 2021 Cowboys contained 30 players that had been originally drafted by the Cowboys, including several on their second contracts. That’s a lot more than most teams. And it could have been higher if we hadn’t released Jaylon Smith and his bloated contract this last fall.
• For some comparisons, last year’s SB champs the Buccaneers only had 19 of its 53 man roster retained from its drafts.
• It’s good to have successful draft picks. But you should NOT re-sign marginal players to second contracts that are just ok.

That means that the avg NFL team does not retain as many of its drafted players as the Cowboys do. The Cowboys sign more of their drafted players to second contracts than almost all other NFL teams.

“We like our guys” is a sadly honest statement from the Jones Boys. If your name is Jones and you work in the Cowboys front office, there are no consequences for “liking our guys”.

In Big D- “We like our guys”- Therefore the roster churn is very, very slow. As are the playoff wins.

So true Bob, when you say "we like our guys", it just means that you like them enough to pay them a 2nd contract.
Jerry hasnt come to grips yet with the fact that the salary cap has zero heart, zero devotion.

 

[Bobhaze]

The great Tom Landry used to say that he had to avoid getting close to his players because he didn’t want his emotions to get in the way if he had to cut a player in the best interest of the team. Of course that was back in the good old days when a head coach could make those decisions.

 

[Reality]

For me it is more about moving on from players that cannot stay on the field or no longer play like they once did.

Players like Sean Lee, Jason Witten, Jaylon Smith, etc. were kept much longer than they should have been.

The Cowboys need to start realizing that player loyalty does not win Super Bowls, good and reliable players do.

 

[Risen Star]

They like their guys for two reasons.

1) They don't have much choice thanks to their cap management. Paint yourself into a corner and then pretend that corner is where you wanted to be all along.

2) They have a very high opinion of themselves. So naturally they love the job they're doing with personnel.

I guess there's a 3rd reason too. They don't have a clue who can and can't play. If they did they'd know their DL is hot garbage and got them eliminated in the last two playoff games.

 

[john van brocklin]

How many times have we heard the lazy voice of Stephen Jones answer a softball question on his “radio show” regarding roster changes with the tired phrase, “We like our guys”…?

Why is this such a bad statement from an NFL team’s front office? Because teams winning SBs are usually kings of the “roster churn”- the constant evaluation of its talent to cut free from those that don’t absolutely make your team better and avoid fond connections with players because you like them.

In short, good NFL front office people don’t over-value their own players or they lose their jobs! They have a few years to win playoff games or find a new address. Nothing motivates talent evaluation like job security.

Well, here’s some clear evidence that this Jones front office over-values its own players:

• The NFL average retention of their own drafted players is 23.
• The last 53 man roster of the 2021 Cowboys contained 30 players that had been originally drafted by the Cowboys, including several on their second contracts. That’s a lot more than most teams. And it could have been higher if we hadn’t released Jaylon Smith and his bloated contract this last fall.
• For some comparisons, last year’s SB champs the Buccaneers only had 19 of its 53 man roster retained from its drafts.
• It’s good to have successful draft picks. But you should NOT re-sign marginal players to second contracts that are just ok.

That means that the avg NFL team does not retain as many of its drafted players as the Cowboys do. The Cowboys sign more of their drafted players to second contracts than almost all other NFL teams.

“We like our guys” is a sadly honest statement from the Jones Boys. If your name is Jones and you work in the Cowboys front office, there are no consequences for “liking the wrong guys”.

In Big D- “We like our guys”- Therefore the roster churn is very, very slow. As are the playoff wins.

Would like to hire you as GM of the Cowboys
Are you interested?

 

[Reality]

They like their guys for two reasons.

1) They don't have much choice thanks to their cap management. Paint yourself into a corner and then pretend that corner is where you wanted to be all along.

2) They have a very high opinion of themselves. So naturally they love the job they're doing with personnel.

I guess there's a 3rd reason too. They don't have a clue who can and can't play. If they did they'd know their DL is hot garbage and got them eliminated in the last two playoff games.

I think all of the issues you pointed out are side effects of the real problem which is they are more concerned with preventing the perception they made mistakes than they are correcting those mistakes.

The world still knows they made a mistake when they move on years later, but by holding on to them that long they get to claim they were good players otherwise they would not have kept them.

 

[ICP]

I would agree, especially when you look at the past 26+ years

 

[mugsybows]

Ive always seen it as complacency and to an extent lazyness from Stephen. He is almost the anti jerry, he doesn’t like to spend in free agency and if there is a player out there that would surely help us in an area of need he’ll go sign a bargain basement guy instead. I feel like he is cheap. Broaddus tweeted the other day he’s ultra conservative so maybe it’s that. I feel like Stephen thinks to win in this league its all about getting hot at the right time. While I’ll agree that works for some I honestly don’t think it’ll ever work for the cowboys. I think the cowboys would have a better shot getting to the dance the way the rams did versus the way the bengals did.

Also something about Stephen rubs me the wrong way, I feel like he is more concerned with making money than spending it on the team. He just never seems like heartbroken after a season loss like jerry is. In fact he usually just goes out on the radio and delivers his famous one liners. Im not a big stephen jones fan and Im not looking forward to when he takes over after Jerry.

 

[Cattle_Rancher]

Yeah they liked Jaylon and EE and now the cap sucks in part cause of how much they liked those two.

 

[GimmeTheBall!]

How many times have we heard the lazy voice of Stephen Jones answer a softball question on his “radio show” regarding roster changes with the tired phrase, “We like our guys”…?

Why is this such a bad statement from an NFL team’s front office? Because teams winning SBs are usually kings of the “roster churn”- the constant evaluation of its talent to cut free from those that don’t absolutely make your team better and avoid fond connections with players because you like them.

In short, good NFL front office people don’t over-value their own players or they lose their jobs! They have a few years to win playoff games or find a new address. Nothing motivates talent evaluation like job security.

Well, here’s some clear evidence that this Jones front office over-values its own players:

• The NFL average retention of their own drafted players is 23.
• The last 53 man roster of the 2021 Cowboys contained 30 players that had been originally drafted by the Cowboys, including several on their second contracts. That’s a lot more than most teams. And it could have been higher if we hadn’t released Jaylon Smith and his bloated contract this last fall.
• For some comparisons, last year’s SB champs the Buccaneers only had 19 of its 53 man roster retained from its drafts.
• It’s good to have successful draft picks. But you should NOT re-sign marginal players to second contracts that are just ok.

That means that the avg NFL team does not retain as many of its drafted players as the Cowboys do. The Cowboys sign more of their drafted players to second contracts than almost all other NFL teams.

“We like our guys” is a sadly honest statement from the Jones Boys. If your name is Jones and you work in the Cowboys front office, there are no consequences for “liking the wrong guys”.

In Big D- “We like our guys”- Therefore the roster churn is very, very slow. As are the playoff wins.

I like our chaps.
it is Dak and Swervelein/special teams that keep us back,

 

[GimmeTheBall!]

For me it is more about moving on from players that cannot stay on the field or no longer play like they once did.

Players like Sean Lee, Jason Witten, Jaylon Smith, etc. were kept much longer than they should have been.

The Cowboys need to start realizing that player loyalty does not win Super Bowls, good and reliable players do.

 

[CowboyoWales]

They like their guys for two reasons.

1) They don't have much choice thanks to their cap management. Paint yourself into a corner and then pretend that corner is where you wanted to be all along.

2) They have a very high opinion of themselves. So naturally they love the job they're doing with personnel.

I guess there's a 3rd reason too. They don't have a clue who can and can't play. If they did they'd know their DL is hot garbage and got them eliminated in the last two playoff games.

Yep, because of the CAP we're unlikely to compete for FA's with other teams on the open market.

 

[Blackrain]

It sure is and not just with players.

Keeping coaches that don't perform is just as bad if not worse.
If McCarthy had that team properly prepared and could manage the clock we would have been on to Green Bay.

Just get rid of all the bonehead penalties and we would have advanced to the next round. The 49ers were trying their best to give us that game. But McCarthy did not have them prepared

 

[CowboyoWales]

It sure is and not just with players.

Keeping coaches that don't perform is just as bad if not worse.
If McCarthy had that team properly prepared and could manage the clock we would have been on to Green Bay.

Just get rid of all the bonehead penalties and we would have advanced to the next round. The 49ers were trying their best to give us that game. But McCarthy did not have them prepared

It's so easy to blame MM as if he's the excuse for the losses, but as the OP states we need to acknowledge where we are rather than finding the one element to blame. The problem covers:
Dak is a (v) good bus driver that is good at making percentage plays,
An O-Line that has a glaring weakness at LG (and may need upgrade at C)
A coaching staff that needs to devise the approach that fits the roster and not vice versa.

 

[Aerolithe_Lion]

One of the issues with having a GM who also cuts the checks, has personal relationships with players, and is an owner who’s asked to make decisions that impact the team’s marketing is that Jerry Jones is a sentimental fool.

We saw it in how he handled Dez, how he handled Jason Garrett, how he handles Zeke, and we’ll see it moving forward with how Dak’s career plays out.

 

[Blackrain]

It's so easy to blame MM as if he's the excuse for the losses, but as the OP states we need to acknowledge where we are rather than finding the one element to blame. The problem covers:
Dak is a (v) good bus driver that is good at making percentage plays,
An O-Line that has a glaring weakness at LG (and may need upgrade at C)
A coaching staff that needs to devise the approach that fits the roster and not vice versa.

Very true it is easy to blame McCarthy because it's his job to get the most out of the talent we have and keep them from shooting themselves in the foot.

If we totally forget the time management on the last play and just concentrate on the penalties involving not waiting till the ball was snapped One of the most basic fundamentals of football.

If your coach can't impress that upon the players going into a playoff game you have to seriously doubt that he will ever be able to take you anywhere near a super bowl.

Dak turns into a bus driver when he has to overcome pre-snap penalties and his center ending up in his lap.

 

[NoLuv4Jerry]

I think all of the issues you pointed out are side effects of the real problem which is they are more concerned with preventing the perception they made mistakes than they are correcting those mistakes.

The world still knows they made a mistake when they move on years later, but by holding on to them that long they get to claim they were good players otherwise they would have kept them.

I thought there was a glimmer of hope when the coaches were allowed to cut Jaylon Smith.....then they forced an injured Zeke on the field and force fed him the ball...and I was left feeling "back to business as usual"

Think about it....Jaylon Smith is not even a NFL player....let alone a starter on a team with postseason aspirations. And with that as the backdrop....these coaches were FORCED to play him to justify the investment. Heck I am old enough to remember Jerry Jones heavily insinuating Jaylon would play near the end of his rookie year and be a difference maker on defense. That is classic Jerry "I am smarter than you and I got the secret sauce to prove it"

I remember saying to myself "a guy, who has never made it through 1 NFL practice, has never put on the pads in the NFL, who has never tackled 1 player in the NFL....is going to "limp" off the trainers table and come save this defense"? I also remember how so many fans ate up the notion of Jaylon Smith donning a cape and being our late season addition to put us over the top. This is the kind of hypnosis Jerry has put many of this fanbase in...that they actually thought this was possible.

 

[Blackrain]

I thought there was a glimmer of hope when the coaches were allowed to cut Jaylon Smith.....then they forced an injured Zeke on the field and force fed him the ball...and I was left feeling "back to business as usual"

Think about it....Jaylon Smith is not even a NFL player....let alone a starter on a team with postseason aspirations. And with that as the backdrop....these coaches were FORCED to play him to justify the investment. Heck I am old enough to remember Jerry Jones heavily insinuating Jaylon would play near the end of his rookie year and be a difference maker on defense. That is classic Jerry "I am smarter than you and I got the secret sauce to prove it"

I remember saying to myself "a guy, who has never made it through 1 NFL practice, has never put on the pads in the NFL, who has never tackled 1 player in the NFL....is going to "limp" off the trainers table and come save this defense"? I also remember how so many fans ate up the notion of Jaylon Smith donning a cape and being our late season addition to put us over the top. This is the kind of hypnosis Jerry has put many of this fanbase in...that they actually thought this was possible.

It's nice Jerry finally stopped gambling our second round pick on injured players.

 

[CowboyoWales]

Very true it is easy to blame McCarthy because it's his job to get the most out of the talent we have and keep them from shooting themselves in the foot.

If we totally forget the time management on the last play and just concentrate on the penalties involving not waiting till the ball was snapped One of the most basic fundamentals of football.

If your coach can't impress that upon the players going into a playoff game you have to seriously doubt that he will ever be able to take you anywhere near a super bowl.

Dak turns into a bus driver when he has to overcome pre-snap penalties and his center ending up in his lap.

No, Dak is a bus driver period. That's not a derogatory term, it's what he's good at, though i'd agree that the penalties and subsequent long yardage does hinder the running game and puts him in positions that he's forced to throw for over 15 yrds which he's not comfortable in doing (as the Defense plays cover).

Im sure MM and KM don't advocate in 'holding' at any time, however, if you're beaten you'll do anything to try and mitigate and minimize the effects = holding, if they didnt hold or try and get the pre-snap advantage Dak is probably going down.

If I had a criticism of MM (other than time management- that wasnt the reason for the 49er's defeat, we were highly unlikely to get a TD even if we got the play off.....it's just what Dak does) it would be that he doesnt tell KM to dumb down the plays and play simple.

Then again players on the field have to take some responsibility for what they do....LG was a nightmare in 2021 regardless of who played there, possibly exacerbated by a C that has enough on this plate to try and offset one on one blocking.