Bob Sturm: Still mad that Cowboys didn’t pay DeMarco? A look back at ‘insane’ deals Dallas did hand

[MichaelWinicki]

out...

Question: Are you surprised the Cowboys have taken such a hard line stance on negotiations with Dez and DeMarco? On one hand, I’ve heard people say why now after giving out so many extensions over the years but on the other hand, isn’t it good to see the Cowboys operate this way and being much smarter with their cap?

Bob Sturm: Yes! For sure. Look at the deals they handed out over the years. They gave Marion Barber a 7 year deal for $45m with $16m guaranteed before the 2008 season. That deal was to expire last season! How insane is that contract? DeMarco would have given anything for that offer. In 2009, they gave Roy Williams a 5 yr/$45m deal with almost $20m guaranteed. Insanity! In 2010, it was Miles Austin turn for 7 years, $54m with $17m guaranteed. In 2011, Jay Ratliff was 7/$49m with $17.5m in Guarantees. The Cowboys are realizing that too many of those deals to ok-but-not-elite players causes a top-heavy roster with no depth. Now, they are going in the opposite direction and following the lead of the “smart franchises” and i applaud them.

http://cowboysblog.***BANNED-URL***...ack-at-insane-deals-dallas-did-hand-out.html/

 

[MichaelWinicki]

Stunning that Barber's ridiculous deal wouldn't have ended until last season.

 

[AbeBeta]

Stunning that Barber's ridiculous deal wouldn't have ended until last season.

Only if you subscribe to the fantasy that any long term deal is really going to go the distance.

 

[MichaelWinicki]

Only if you subscribe to the fantasy that any long term deal is really going to go the distance.

And that's another reason why all those deals sucked.

It's also why the Cowboys have gone down a different path with contracts the last couple years.

 

[Frozen700]

Funny.....

Because of us paying bums in the past and getting burned like jackasses. Real proven guys like Dez have to suffer, hell even Murray, who I think is an average back, deserves to get paid vs some of the past players we paid, mainly due to chemistry issues though.

 

[Dday22t]

ehhh.... paying Murray(or any RB) big bucks never would have been a good plan (especially if we want to keep Dez and some of our other OL down the road). If we think current RBs are sub-par drafting another would be the way to go.

 

[sideon]

Never overpay for a RB unless they're of the Peterson & Lynch variety.

 

[MichaelWinicki]

Funny.....

Because of us paying bums in the past and getting burned like jackasses. Real proven guys like Dez have to suffer, hell even Murray, who I think is an average back, deserves to get paid vs some of the past players we paid, mainly due to chemistry issues though.

Playing hardball on contracts is going to cost the team a player or two along the way.

But in the long run it's going to benefit by not giving out bad deals.

Keeping in mind this team can control Bryant for the next two seasons regardless what the Bryant camp wants to believe.

 

[Craig]

If going through normal negotiations instead of showing up and getting a payday equates to sufferring, then yes bryant will suffer.

The reality is that hes just going through negotiations.

 

[CF74]

Not mad about losing Murray, a little disappointed, maybe a tad concerned, but not mad.. Randle and company will get bye...

 

[guag]

Funny.....

Because of us paying bums in the past and getting burned like jackasses. Real proven guys like Dez have to suffer, hell even Murray, who I think is an average back, deserves to get paid vs some of the past players we paid, mainly due to chemistry issues though.

It does kinda suck that now that we're actually good, we're not going to pay for these guys. But then again, one of the big reasons we're good right now (and projected to have a good roster for a while) is because of this philosophy change. I really do hope we make an except for Dez and splurge on him a bit... not Megatron money, but the next plateau down from that would be fine.

 

[guag]

Randle and company will get bye...

Freudian slip?

 

[Frozen700]

Playing hardball on contracts is going to cost the team a player or two along the way.

But in the long run it's going to benefit by not giving out bad deals.

Keeping in mind this team can control Bryant for the next two seasons regardless what the Bryant camp wants to believe.

Yeah I hear you.

Still pretty ******.

 

[Frozen700]

It does kinda suck that now that we're actually good, we're not going to pay for these guys. But then again, one of the big reasons we're good right now (and projected to have a good roster for a while) is because of this philosophy change. I really do hope we make an except for Dez and splurge on him a bit... not Megatron money, but the next plateau down from that would be fine.

Yeah I hear you bro.

 

[MichaelWinicki]

It does kinda suck that now that we're actually good, we're not going to pay for these guys. But then again, one of the big reasons we're good right now (and projected to have a good roster for a while) is because of this philosophy change. I really do hope we make an except for Dez and splurge on him a bit... not Megatron money, but the next plateau down from that would be fine.

Nope.

Not for one moment would I "splurge".

You get into that habit and it's easy to rationalize "splurging" for every decent player who's contract is up.

I'm interested in another brief period of high-performance like the 2006-2009 time period only to face a 4 year rebuilding.

I'm interested in keeping this club competitive for a playoff spot for the next 10 years and that starts with investing in the pieces that will most likely ensure that, QB, OL & DL.

Romo's old there's no getting around that. But the OL and DL are not and have to be maintained... even if it comes at the expense of some positions like WR or LB.

 

[Nightman]

Worrying about the cap is such a waste of time. Even if a team is against the cap one year, they can be easily out of the fire the next.

The problem with all those contracts is that the players ALL played much worse after signing them. Fans scream when you let drafted players go and scream when you re-sign them. No one has a crystal ball.

The reason we are better is because of Romo and drafting better, not perfect but better.

But what good is drafting better if we let guys like Murray and Dez walk?

That just means we can't miss in the draft and that is a high wire act.

My plan is to draft great players, re-sign the ones that are going to get better, let the young guys go who you aren't sure about and definitely don't re-sign the guys that are going to get injured or just flat out stop performing. Only use FA to sign guys who will give you a bargain basement deal and hope all those one year deals work out. I definitely wouldn't use my cash advantage to my benefit. I would try and emulate small market teams like GB.

 

[MichaelWinicki]

Worrying about the cap is such a waste of time. Even if a team is against the cap one year, they can be easily out of the fire the next.

The problem with all those contracts is that the players ALL played much worse after signing them. Fans scream when you let drafted players go and scream when you re-sign them. No one has a crystal ball.

The reason we are better is because of Romo and drafting better, not perfect but better.

But what good is drafting better if we let guys like Murray and Dez walk?

That just means we can't miss in the draft and that is a high wire act.

My plan is to draft great players, re-sign the ones that are going to get better, let the young guys go who you aren't sure about and definitely don't re-sign the guys that are going to get injured or just flat out stop performing. Only use FA to sign guys who will give you a bargain basement deal and hope all those one year deals work out. I definitely wouldn't use my cash advantage to my benefit. I would try and emulate small market teams like GB.

Nothing wrong with emulating GB.

Murray wasn't going to get better and is probably going to start on his down-hill slide this season.

Dez has probably leveled off, which of course is a pretty high threshold of performance hence the tag being used... But 3 years from now, his down-hill slide will be underway.

 

[guag]

Nope.

Not for one moment would I "splurge".

You get into that habit and it's easy to rationalize "splurging" for every decent player who's contract is up.

I'm interested in another brief period of high-performance like the 2006-2009 time period only to face a 4 year rebuilding.

I'm interested in keeping this club competitive for a playoff spot for the next 10 years and that starts with investing in the pieces that will most likely ensure that, QB, OL & DL.

Romo's old there's no getting around that. But the OL and DL are not and have to be maintained... even if it comes at the expense of some positions like WR or LB.

I can definitely respect this. But I just feel like there are certain guys, once-in-a-decade guys who are the heart & soul of the team, who may need to be exceptions.

Obviously a franchise QB in Romo is one of these exceptions.

I think a top wide receiver in the league, with the heart, dedication, and leadership that Dez has, in another exception.

But I realize opinions on this will differ. And when I say "splurge", I don't mean throw 15, 16, or 17 million at the guy. I personally think 13 mil a year, maybe 14 would be fair (depending on the guaranteed money).

Also, I should mention that when I say "once-in-a-decade", I don't mean that Dez is the best WR in the decade, but he's once-in-a-decade for the Cowboys.

 

[Nightman]

Nothing wrong with emulating GB.

Murray wasn't going to get better and is probably going to start on his down-hill slide this season.

Dez has probably leveled off, which of course is a pretty high threshold of performance hence the tag being used... But 3 years from now, his down-hill slide will be underway.

GB does it their way because the have different finances. They also got real lucky with the Favre to Rodgers transition.

DAL has unlimited cash and can afford to eat some of those deals with huge bonuses and constant restructures.

Letting Murray go did not make the team better. After going 12-4, creating a hole over cap space is worse than overspending.

Dez is the type of player to re-sign and the 10/114m/20m guaranteed was insulting. He is not the type of WR that will fall off quickly. He is not a top end speed guy. But he can still overpower CBs and outrun FSs.

 

[CF74]

Freudian slip?

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