CFZ What are your plusses and minuses?

While I understand the tendencies of many to feel down about the offseason thus far, I can see some positives amidst the rubble. I don't think the offseason and free agency have been a total disaster, and I wanted to point out what I feel have been good moves and some that still have me scratching my head and get some opinions on what others think?

Here are my negatives:

1. Trading away Cooper for a bag of magic beans. No sugar-coating it. The Cowboys gave away their best receiver for peanuts, especially when seeing what receivers like Tyreek Hill and Davante Adams fetched in their trades.
2. Announcing to the world that you were 'done' with La'el Collins and ultimately cutting him. I know about the cap savings situation, and I also know that the Cowboys themselves created that cap situation too. They released one of the best right tackles in the league and got nothing for him.
3. Franchise tagging Dalton Schultz. Sorry, but in no universe is Schultz a franchise player worthy of an $11 million cap hit this year. And he's not worth any big money multi-year contract going forward either. Teams like Buffalo are loading up for a championship run and getting guys like OJ Howard to be their #2 TE for a third of what the Cowboys are paying Schultz.
4. Doing nothing thus far to improve a weakened offensive line. They were right to let Williams go, but they should be doing more to potentially upgrade at left guard and possibly center. There are some good options available, stop sitting on your hands!

Here are my positives:

1. Swapping out Randy Gregory at $70 million for Dante Fowler for $3 million. Some try to criticize the Cowboys for 'screwing up' the Gregory deal but I think they did the right thing and not making that deal will ultimately turn out to be a blessing. Fowler is a better player on every level, and certainly less of a suspension risk.
2. The James Washington deal. The team deserves credit for adding a good young receiver to their trio at a bargain price. He wanted to play close to home and the Cowboys wisely signed him. The guy was a former second round draft pick and highly regarded. For some reason, he got lost in the shuffle in Pittsburgh and hopefully that's not the case here.
3. Retaining several defensive players at modest prices. The team was able to keep a good portion of its defense intact with several modest contracts. This is NOT saying that the defense is 'finished' or that it cannot be improved before anyone gets the wrong idea. But continuity is important, especially for a unit in its' first year together in a new system. And the team kept most of what they had, while leaving themselves the option to continue to add and improve in the draft.
4. The new contract for Demarcus Lawrence. I see this as a win-win for player and team. And as someone who wanted Lawrence and his bloated contract gone, I've done a complete reversal after seeing both parties get a deal like this done.

I'd like to hear what others think? Are there some that you disagree with? Are there some positives or negatives that I've missed?

My positives

• Huge cap savings from Collins and Cooper. That extra $20 million the next two years is massive
• We got rid of three guys who motors ran hot and cold. But I feel like you just couldn't count on any of them in crunch time
• I feel Fowler / Armstrong can equal Gregory's production
• Keeping the defense together (minus Gregory)
• I feel we are not as talented today. But this means this team in 2-3 years has potential to become a powerhouse

My negatives

• Team seems less talented on paper
• Can Dak play well without Cooper?
• Letting other teams dictate our moves. A 5th for Cooper? Releasing Collins? Missing out on Gregory?
• Having $27 million in cap ... yet literally signing ONLY two guys to one year deals
• A team full of one year deals = same mass flux of free agents next offseason

No pluses.

Both posts 1 & 2 pretty much spot on with how I feel.

Cooper and Collins gone, makes less talented. however the cap savings may work out for the best in the long run. Maybe not an immediate impact, as the pluses may not be seen for a few years.
fans need to keep that in mind.
It will force them to do the right thing for the OL, in the draft, if a FA is not brought in.

They retained / signed, basically 10 to 12 players but losing Cooper and Gregory and Collins. Most wanted Gregory gone anyway, and it was going to be Cooper or Gallup, not both. Collins did not give much in the past few years. Actually Cooper did not either, not for the contract price anyway.

Adding Washington is a big plus IMO. Doesn't offset Cooper, but still not awful at WR.

Agree Fowler and Armstrong can replace Gregory, and more reliable. Though I think Armstrong may got more than he should have. But maybe he plays better than it also.

Starforever said:

No pluses.

Click to expand...

But there is a pulse.

Plus: Jerry won't be running the team much longer

Minus: Stephen will

Plus: I'm closing in on 60 so my years of following what's become of this team are counting down.

Minus: I'm closing in on 60 so my days of following what's become of this team are counting down.

ksadler1 said:

Plus: Jerry won't be running the team much longer

Minus: Stephen will

Click to expand...

Jerry groomed Stephen, now he is working on Spaulding.

i liked amari and would rather have him than not.
thats a minus.

but i do like keeping gallup and signing james washington.
ceedee is the replacement for amari.
gallup is the physical dez type.
washington replaces ced wilson.
i like this WR3...i'm excited to see it on the field.
i would still address this in the draft.

i like bringing back armstrong,watkins,LVE,hooker and kearse.
under quinn...i feel good about that side of the ball.
i like keeping DLaw and i like this new deal/extension/whatever.
id rather have lawrence over gregory.
another plus is NOT re-signing gregory to that money.
cant trust him.
bringing in dante fowler i think is an up-grade.
we now have a DE who lines up properly and wont tackle offensive linemen.

i like keeping dalton schultz.
he has developed a good chemistry with Dak and has played better than jarwin.
he is a weapon in this offense.
not worried about the tag $ because i think they work out something before the deadline.

i dont mind releasing lael collins.
cant trust him.
i think i have over-rated his talent.
he hasnt been the same guy since he got his extension.
it is always something.
hurt.
car wreck.
out of shape.
drug test debacle.
cant trust him.
terrence steele earned the spot.
i like our ot group with tyron,steele and ball.
id still address this spot in the draft because you can never have enough.

ive said this adnaseum and if im wrong i'll own it.
the only player we've lost worth a damn was amari.
but honestly...we didnt win anything significant with him.
i think ceedee is talented enough to be WR1...gallup is talented enough to be WR2...and washington is talented enough to be WR3.
i dont think this group shrinks back.
amari will be missed...yet this group will be fine.

as for replacing connor williams.
they either do that during draft weekend or they are going with mcgovern.
that seems obvious by not...yet anyway...signing a vet.
they still might do that.
unless we get our guy RD1 or RD2.

stasheroo said:

While I understand the tendencies of many to feel down about the offseason thus far, I can see some positives amidst the rubble. I don't think the offseason and free agency have been a total disaster, and I wanted to point out what I feel have been good moves and some that still have me scratching my head and get some opinions on what others think?

Here are my negatives:

1. Trading away Cooper for a bag of magic beans. No sugar-coating it. The Cowboys gave away their best receiver for peanuts, especially when seeing what receivers like Tyreek Hill and Davante Adams fetched in their trades.
2. Announcing to the world that you were 'done' with La'el Collins and ultimately cutting him. I know about the cap savings situation, and I also know that the Cowboys themselves created that cap situation too. They released one of the best right tackles in the league and got nothing for him.
3. Franchise tagging Dalton Schultz. Sorry, but in no universe is Schultz a franchise player worthy of an $11 million cap hit this year. And he's not worth any big money multi-year contract going forward either. Teams like Buffalo are loading up for a championship run and getting guys like OJ Howard to be their #2 TE for a third of what the Cowboys are paying Schultz.
4. Doing nothing thus far to improve a weakened offensive line. They were right to let Williams go, but they should be doing more to potentially upgrade at left guard and possibly center. There are some good options available, stop sitting on your hands!

Here are my positives:

1. Swapping out Randy Gregory at $70 million for Dante Fowler for $3 million. Some try to criticize the Cowboys for 'screwing up' the Gregory deal but I think they did the right thing and not making that deal will ultimately turn out to be a blessing. Fowler is a better player on every level, and certainly less of a suspension risk.
2. The James Washington deal. The team deserves credit for adding a good young receiver to their trio at a bargain price. He wanted to play close to home and the Cowboys wisely signed him. The guy was a former second round draft pick and highly regarded. For some reason, he got lost in the shuffle in Pittsburgh and hopefully that's not the case here.
3. Retaining several defensive players at modest prices. The team was able to keep a good portion of its defense intact with several modest contracts. This is NOT saying that the defense is 'finished' or that it cannot be improved before anyone gets the wrong idea. But continuity is important, especially for a unit in its' first year together in a new system. And the team kept most of what they had, while leaving themselves the option to continue to add and improve in the draft.
4. The new contract for Demarcus Lawrence. I see this as a win-win for player and team. And as someone who wanted Lawrence and his bloated contract gone, I've done a complete reversal after seeing both parties get a deal like this done.

I'd like to hear what others think? Are there some that you disagree with? Are there some positives or negatives that I've missed?

Click to expand...

This is pretty much spot on. Well done sir!

when we released dez...we didn't have a ceedee lamb or michael gallup.
to me...thats the big difference this time around.
i love amari.
he saved our butts in 2018 and i'll never forget it.
but dez was better.
releasing dez and not addressing that spot was a disaster.
when we drafted lamb...i think we all knew amari's time was on the clock.
if we didnt have ceedee...amari's absence would be dez 2.0.
its not.

I have been very down myself this off season, but I can't deny the one huge plus for me being the NFC. There seemed to be a massive shift of talent out of the conference this year, which will only help the Cowboys.

stasheroo said:

While I understand the tendencies of many to feel down about the offseason thus far, I can see some positives amidst the rubble. I don't think the offseason and free agency have been a total disaster, and I wanted to point out what I feel have been good moves and some that still have me scratching my head and get some opinions on what others think?

Here are my negatives:

1. Trading away Cooper for a bag of magic beans. No sugar-coating it. The Cowboys gave away their best receiver for peanuts, especially when seeing what receivers like Tyreek Hill and Davante Adams fetched in their trades.
2. Announcing to the world that you were 'done' with La'el Collins and ultimately cutting him. I know about the cap savings situation, and I also know that the Cowboys themselves created that cap situation too. They released one of the best right tackles in the league and got nothing for him.
3. Franchise tagging Dalton Schultz. Sorry, but in no universe is Schultz a franchise player worthy of an $11 million cap hit this year. And he's not worth any big money multi-year contract going forward either. Teams like Buffalo are loading up for a championship run and getting guys like OJ Howard to be their #2 TE for a third of what the Cowboys are paying Schultz.
4. Doing nothing thus far to improve a weakened offensive line. They were right to let Williams go, but they should be doing more to potentially upgrade at left guard and possibly center. There are some good options available, stop sitting on your hands!

Here are my positives:

1. Swapping out Randy Gregory at $70 million for Dante Fowler for $3 million. Some try to criticize the Cowboys for 'screwing up' the Gregory deal but I think they did the right thing and not making that deal will ultimately turn out to be a blessing. Fowler is a better player on every level, and certainly less of a suspension risk.
2. The James Washington deal. The team deserves credit for adding a good young receiver to their trio at a bargain price. He wanted to play close to home and the Cowboys wisely signed him. The guy was a former second round draft pick and highly regarded. For some reason, he got lost in the shuffle in Pittsburgh and hopefully that's not the case here.
3. Retaining several defensive players at modest prices. The team was able to keep a good portion of its defense intact with several modest contracts. This is NOT saying that the defense is 'finished' or that it cannot be improved before anyone gets the wrong idea. But continuity is important, especially for a unit in its' first year together in a new system. And the team kept most of what they had, while leaving themselves the option to continue to add and improve in the draft.
4. The new contract for Demarcus Lawrence. I see this as a win-win for player and team. And as someone who wanted Lawrence and his bloated contract gone, I've done a complete reversal after seeing both parties get a deal like this done.

I'd like to hear what others think? Are there some that you disagree with? Are there some positives or negatives that I've missed?

Click to expand...

I agree with every word....

While I understand the tendencies of many to feel down about the offseason thus far, I can see some positives amidst the rubble. I don't think the offseason and free agency have been a total disaster, and I wanted to point out what I feel have been good moves and some that still have me scratching my head and get some opinions on what others think?

Here are my negatives:

Trading away Cooper for a bag of magic beans. No sugar-coating it. The Cowboys gave away their best receiver for peanuts, especially when seeing what receivers like Tyreek Hill and Davante Adams fetched in their trades.

I can understand why you would say this and it might turn out to be true. I think the Cowboys soured on Amari (and Amari may have quietly burned some bridges behind the scenes that we don’t know about, including possibly with Dak.) Rather than believing that the Cowboys messed this up, I think we are seeing a more realistic picture of how the league views Amari.

This is the second team that was willing to move on from Amari. That is telling. Moreover, picture a scenario where the Chiefs said hey we are going to move on from Hill, and are going to cut him if someone doesn’t want him. That really wouldn’t matter, because teams would have lined up for Hill.

Announcing to the world that you were 'done' with La'el Collins and ultimately cutting him. I know about the cap savings situation, and I also know that the Cowboys themselves created that cap situation too. They released one of the best right tackles in the league and got nothing for him.

I don’t think Collins is one of the best tackles in the league and I don’t think his work ethic is what the Cowboys are looking for. In fact, all of the moves to move away from players seems to indicate accountability and a change of culture. In my opinion, that’s a positive.

Franchise tagging Dalton Schultz. Sorry, but in no universe is Schultz a franchise player worthy of an $11 million cap hit this year. And he's not worth any big money multi-year contract going forward either. Teams like Buffalo are loading up for a championship run and getting guys like OJ Howard to be their #2 TE for a third of what the Cowboys are paying Schultz.

Yeah. I wouldn’t have tagged Schultz either. It’s a case of overvaluing a player. In this case, Prescott may have had a hand in this one. It doesn’t really make sense in light of the other moves made by the Cowboys.

Doing nothing thus far to improve a weakened offensive line. They were right to let Williams go, but they should be doing more to potentially upgrade at left guard and possibly center. There are some good options available, stop sitting on your hands!

Yeah, I am sort of with you on this one. I think they see Steele as equal to Collins for a fraction of the cost. I think the Cowboys will probably draft a guard to replace CW. If they draft a G anywhere in the first four rounds, and that’s all they do, the line will probably still be an upgrade over last year.


Here are my positives:

1. Swapping out Randy Gregory at $70 million for Dante Fowler for $3 million. Some try to criticize the Cowboys for 'screwing up' the Gregory deal but I think they did the right thing and not making that deal will ultimately turn out to be a blessing. Fowler is a better player on every level, and certainly less of a suspension risk. Yes. Gregory saved the Cowboys from themselves. We will look back on this one and laugh.
2. The James Washington deal. The team deserves credit for adding a good young receiver to their trio at a bargain price. He wanted to play close to home and the Cowboys wisely signed him. The guy was a former second round draft pick and highly regarded. For some reason, he got lost in the shuffle in Pittsburgh and hopefully that's not the case here. Agreed. Classic low risk, high reward signing. Might be this years version of Kearse.
3. Retaining several defensive players at modest prices. The team was able to keep a good portion of its defense intact with several modest contracts. This is NOT saying that the defense is 'finished' or that it cannot be improved before anyone gets the wrong idea. But continuity is important, especially for a unit in its' first year together in a new system. And the team kept most of what they had, while leaving themselves the option to continue to add and improve in the draft. Agreed. I think the defense will improve year over year when we add players from this draft class to it. One really good DL or LB would be significant upgrade from this draft class. Fowler might be a very cheap upgrade.
4. The new contract for Demarcus Lawrence. I see this as a win-win for player and team. And as someone who wanted Lawrence and his bloated contract gone, I've done a complete reversal after seeing both parties get a deal like this done. I’m not bullish on Tank, but if he is motivated he can at least be a solid player for us. Cutting his cap charge in half is helpful.

I'd like to hear what others think? Are there some that you disagree with? Are there some positives or negatives that I've missed?

stasheroo said:

While I understand the tendencies of many to feel down about the offseason thus far, I can see some positives amidst the rubble. I don't think the offseason and free agency have been a total disaster, and I wanted to point out what I feel have been good moves and some that still have me scratching my head and get some opinions on what others think?

Here are my negatives:

1. Trading away Cooper for a bag of magic beans. No sugar-coating it. The Cowboys gave away their best receiver for peanuts, especially when seeing what receivers like Tyreek Hill and Davante Adams fetched in their trades.
2. Announcing to the world that you were 'done' with La'el Collins and ultimately cutting him. I know about the cap savings situation, and I also know that the Cowboys themselves created that cap situation too. They released one of the best right tackles in the league and got nothing for him.
3. Franchise tagging Dalton Schultz. Sorry, but in no universe is Schultz a franchise player worthy of an $11 million cap hit this year. And he's not worth any big money multi-year contract going forward either. Teams like Buffalo are loading up for a championship run and getting guys like OJ Howard to be their #2 TE for a third of what the Cowboys are paying Schultz.
4. Doing nothing thus far to improve a weakened offensive line. They were right to let Williams go, but they should be doing more to potentially upgrade at left guard and possibly center. There are some good options available, stop sitting on your hands!

Here are my positives:

1. Swapping out Randy Gregory at $70 million for Dante Fowler for $3 million. Some try to criticize the Cowboys for 'screwing up' the Gregory deal but I think they did the right thing and not making that deal will ultimately turn out to be a blessing. Fowler is a better player on every level, and certainly less of a suspension risk.
2. The James Washington deal. The team deserves credit for adding a good young receiver to their trio at a bargain price. He wanted to play close to home and the Cowboys wisely signed him. The guy was a former second round draft pick and highly regarded. For some reason, he got lost in the shuffle in Pittsburgh and hopefully that's not the case here.
3. Retaining several defensive players at modest prices. The team was able to keep a good portion of its defense intact with several modest contracts. This is NOT saying that the defense is 'finished' or that it cannot be improved before anyone gets the wrong idea. But continuity is important, especially for a unit in its' first year together in a new system. And the team kept most of what they had, while leaving themselves the option to continue to add and improve in the draft.
4. The new contract for Demarcus Lawrence. I see this as a win-win for player and team. And as someone who wanted Lawrence and his bloated contract gone, I've done a complete reversal after seeing both parties get a deal like this done.

I'd like to hear what others think? Are there some that you disagree with? Are there some positives or negatives that I've missed?

Click to expand...

Schultz I would agree to an extent but NE really screwed up the TE market last year when they vastly overpaid Henry and Smith in FA. Schultz has a role but I would agree he is not a franchise type player. DO they still have the transition tag? If so I would have considered that before the franchise.

As for Cooper and Collins I agree, but with this FO, I will borrow a military term SNAFU

Positives
Fowler Just looking at his stat line it's obvious he's an upgrade against the run and watching his highlights it's obvious he can still get to the backfield in a hurry.


Washington Should be able to step in until Gallup is back and an upgrade to Wilson



Losing Gregory I think they're treating edge rusher a little more serious since they lost
Randy. Videos of Quinn working out Sam Williams give me hope.

After getting pushed around on both sides of the ball in the wild card game it looks like they're trying to build the trenches

Negatives
The same, we haven't gotten the better deal in a trade since Jimmy Johnson was coach.

I know he's pretty good but we spent more money on a punter I think 3yr $9 million than a lot of the free agent DTs WRs we signed. I wonder what round Araiza from San Diego St. will get drafted.

Plusses:
I loved getting rid of losers like La'el Collins and Randy Gregory. We were able to dive out of a bad contract and Randy prevented us from inking another one. Good riddance to 6 sack Randy and overrated La'el, who is not only dumber than a box of rocks, but also never even made a Pro Bowl appearance. I still strongly believe that had the Joneses not telegraphed their moves, La'el could've netted us some extra draft capital or maybe even an impact defensive player.

Cutting Blake Jarwin. Hated the extension at the time. Still hate it. Hope the lad can overcome what he's dealing with and play elsewhere.

Cutting Greg Z. Watching this guy kick field goals and extra points was an emotional rollercoaster. Probably took a few months off of my life watching him kick. Good cap savings too.

Negative attention on the Jones family. I know they love all attention, but any time the media starts going after them, it makes me all warm inside.

I know many yawned at the additions, but I'll gladly take Washington and Fowler at veteran's minimum.

Keeping Dan Quinn.

Retaining DLaw to a larger deal to spread cap money across more years.

The division collectively is still so awful, that it's possible we could win it in 2022 with a worse team than last year. History is not on our side though.

Minuses:
Jerry still owns the team and for whatever reason, still allows his son to lead negotiations. Eventually, FA's and their agents won't even answer calls from us at our current trajectory.

Jerry himself creating a bizarre situation for his own HC, hyping up DQ and Sean Payton for whatever reason.

You traded a WR that you spent a #1 pick on for a pick that you're basically going to spend on a practice squad player. You also paid good money for a WR that tore his ACL in January and probably won't even be ready at the start of the season.

The bizarre need from this FO to "keep the band together" and re-sign losers that couldn't get it done the year before, in convincing fashion.

I know Bryan Anger was the best punter last season that we've had since probably McBriar, but we are spending 20M just at RB and P next season. Yikes.

The Joneses have not improved this team a single iota since the offseason began. Several nice guards were signed to reasonable contracts that I would've loved to have in Dallas.

IDL is still a major liability. I'm not sure how many times we have to get run all over in the playoffs for the FO to act.

jrumann59 said:

Schultz I would agree to an extent but NE really screwed up the TE market last year when they vastly overpaid Henry and Smith in FA. Schultz has a role but I would agree he is not a franchise type player. DO they still have the transition tag? If so I would have considered that before the franchise.

Click to expand...

I think they easily had the opportunity to pull that tag and sign someone else for a lot less money. Austin Hooper signed with the Titans for $6 million and Buffalo got OJ Howard for $3 million. Anyone want to argue that signing either or both would be better and cheaper than $11 million for Schultz? Bad use of resources on full display.

As for Cooper and Collins I agree, but with this FO, I will borrow a military term SNAFU

Click to expand...

They can't keep their mouths shut. The entire world has to know what the Cowboys are planning to do, weeks before they do it. You hear Cowboys moves well in advance, the Adams and Hill deals you found out the day they happened. That's what separates the well run front offices from ours.

stasheroo said:

While I understand the tendencies of many to feel down about the offseason thus far, I can see some positives amidst the rubble. I don't think the offseason and free agency have been a total disaster, and I wanted to point out what I feel have been good moves and some that still have me scratching my head and get some opinions on what others think?

Here are my negatives:

1. Trading away Cooper for a bag of magic beans. No sugar-coating it. The Cowboys gave away their best receiver for peanuts, especially when seeing what receivers like Tyreek Hill and Davante Adams fetched in their trades.
2. Announcing to the world that you were 'done' with La'el Collins and ultimately cutting him. I know about the cap savings situation, and I also know that the Cowboys themselves created that cap situation too. They released one of the best right tackles in the league and got nothing for him.
3. Franchise tagging Dalton Schultz. Sorry, but in no universe is Schultz a franchise player worthy of an $11 million cap hit this year. And he's not worth any big money multi-year contract going forward either. Teams like Buffalo are loading up for a championship run and getting guys like OJ Howard to be their #2 TE for a third of what the Cowboys are paying Schultz.
4. Doing nothing thus far to improve a weakened offensive line. They were right to let Williams go, but they should be doing more to potentially upgrade at left guard and possibly center. There are some good options available, stop sitting on your hands!

Here are my positives:

1. Swapping out Randy Gregory at $70 million for Dante Fowler for $3 million. Some try to criticize the Cowboys for 'screwing up' the Gregory deal but I think they did the right thing and not making that deal will ultimately turn out to be a blessing. Fowler is a better player on every level, and certainly less of a suspension risk.
2. The James Washington deal. The team deserves credit for adding a good young receiver to their trio at a bargain price. He wanted to play close to home and the Cowboys wisely signed him. The guy was a former second round draft pick and highly regarded. For some reason, he got lost in the shuffle in Pittsburgh and hopefully that's not the case here.
3. Retaining several defensive players at modest prices. The team was able to keep a good portion of its defense intact with several modest contracts. This is NOT saying that the defense is 'finished' or that it cannot be improved before anyone gets the wrong idea. But continuity is important, especially for a unit in its' first year together in a new system. And the team kept most of what they had, while leaving themselves the option to continue to add and improve in the draft.
4. The new contract for Demarcus Lawrence. I see this as a win-win for player and team. And as someone who wanted Lawrence and his bloated contract gone, I've done a complete reversal after seeing both parties get a deal like this done.

I'd like to hear what others think? Are there some that you disagree with? Are there some positives or negatives that I've missed?

Click to expand...

Great points!
I get aggravated when we unnecessary shoot ourselves in the foot.
The way they've handled the Cooper and Collins situation was unprofessional.
They basically killed their trade values by announcing to the world their intent to cut them.

I think the OP is spot on, except he and all the replies thus far don't mention resigning Anger. Special teams are easy to overlook, but he did outstanding last year and I'm glad to see we're keeping him.