Cowboys decline 5th year option for Elam

[big dog cowboy]

Largely expected? No, completely expected.

 

[baltcowboy]

I think every team in the league took steps to address their needs. I think all of them will take additional steps to do so between now and opening day. I don’t think the Cowboys have done anything to leap frog the top teams in the conference.

Pretending they have is the opposite of being a fan.

The Cowboys suffered a bunch of injuries last season to all of their key players and was a weird block punt away from making the playoffs with Cooper Rush at quarterback. The team has improved the offensive line, secondary, and pass rush through the offseason. With some luck they will make the playoffs. That is pretty much what you hope for, a chance.

 

[gimmesix]

There is hopeium and then there’s the good stuff. You’ve got your hands on the good stuff. Nicely done.

Well, if we had Diggs, I'd feel pretty good about it. Bland and Diggs have both been All-Pros and Revel dropped in the draft because of injury. However, without Diggs, offenses will probably pick on Carson, Elam or whoever else we throw out there.

The thing that should provide some hope is that the scheme Eberflus uses doesn't need great corners, although they are always preferred. Frankly, I'd still re-sign Gilmore since Diggs is liable to miss time.

 

[gimmesix]

The Cowboys suffered a bunch of injuries last season to all of their key players and was a weird block punt away from making the playoffs with Cooper Rush at quarterback. The team has improved the offensive line, secondary, and pass rush through the offseason. With some luck they will make the playoffs. That is pretty much what you hope for, a chance.

Yes, but the teams we are hoping to catch have also improved. That's why using the draft to try to catch up is a pipe dream. Every team uses the draft. Every team drafts good players and bad players. Free agency is where you catch up.

Philly had a down year in 2023 when it was expected to be a contender. Instead of just hoping to catch back up, the Eagles let their RB walk and went and got a better one in FA, and they won the Super Bowl.

Some rate the Eagles' draft this year as better than ours, but even if it wasn't, it won't be worse enough for us to make up ground that way. We needed to add a few quality free agents to make that leap.

 

[Whyjerry]

Yeah if healthy a Bland, Diggs, Revel, Carson, Izzi, and Elam secondary is not bad.

I expect a big year from Bland because he could be in line to be the highest paid cornerback in the league if he plays well.

5th rounder. Remarkable.

 

[conner01]

I thunk the secondary will be fine. I think they’ve handled that position the best you can ask for this year. Run defense though….like the linebackers….that line though….

We do have better depth on dline this year than last. Not sure about the talent but we were playing gholston a ton of reps and that hurt his effectiveness. We should be able to at least keep the DT’s fresher

 

[conner01]

Yes, but the teams we are hoping to catch have also improved. That's why using the draft to try to catch up is a pipe dream. Every team uses the draft. Every team drafts good players and bad players. Free agency is where you catch up.

Philly had a down year in 2023 when it was expected to be a contender. Instead of just hoping to catch back up, the Eagles let their RB walk and went and got a better one in FA, and they won the Super Bowl.

Some rate the Eagles' draft this year as better than ours, but even if it wasn't, it won't be worse enough for us to make up ground that way. We needed to add a few quality free agents to make that leap.

Washington and eagles both got better for sure

 

[gimmesix]

Soma one year rental for Diggs. Until Revel is ready.
Still not a bad trade.

My biggest concern with Revel is whether he's one of those players who always is injured (like Sean Lee). In addition to tearing his ACL after the second game of last season, he broke his nose and had a skull fracture in a car accident his sophomore year of high school, broke his collarbone his junior year and injured his hand in the preseason of his first year at East Carolina and dealt with injuries for the first half of that season.

It's like injuries seem to just find some players.

 

[Jfconrow]

Don’t come to Dallas in FA or a trade in the offseason unless you have guaranteed money. They are only bringing you in because there is a need at your position and they have every intention of drafting your position. This year they actually traded draft picks which is more then the 1yr 2m contract they normally dish out, but I expect they will still cut or trade the vet.

 

[KingCorcoran]

Well, if we had Diggs, I'd feel pretty good about it. Bland and Diggs have both been All-Pros and Revel dropped in the draft because of injury. However, without Diggs, offenses will probably pick on Carson, Elam or whoever else we throw out there.

The thing that should provide some hope is that the scheme Eberflus uses doesn't need great corners, although they are always preferred. Frankly, I'd still re-sign Gilmore since Diggs is liable to miss time.

“if we had”, “feel pretty good”, “dropped in the draft”, “should provide”, “doesn’t need great corners”…the 2025 NFL season. Here we go!

 

[baltcowboy]

Yes, but the teams we are hoping to catch have also improved. That's why using the draft to try to catch up is a pipe dream. Every team uses the draft. Every team drafts good players and bad players. Free agency is where you catch up.

Philly had a down year in 2023 when it was expected to be a contender. Instead of just hoping to catch back up, the Eagles let their RB walk and went and got a better one in FA, and they won the Super Bowl.

Some rate the Eagles' draft this year as better than ours, but even if it wasn't, it won't be worse enough for us to make up ground that way. We needed to add a few quality free agents to make that leap.

The Eagles didn’t have any key players injured last season. That had lots to do with them winning more than anything. Detroit literally lost their entire defense by the time they lost to Washington. Injury luck had most to do with the Eagles winning the Superbowl if you want to be honest. Detroit had the better team on paper. The Eagles drafted an off ball linebacker that has a bum shoulder safety. They lost lots of their depth. They are still a good team but let’s not overstate them.

 

[KingCorcoran]

The Eagles didn’t have any key players injured last season. That had lots to do with them winning more than anything. Detroit literally lost their entire defense by the time they lost to Washington. Injury luck had most to do with the Eagles winning the Superbowl if you want to be honest. Detroit had the better team on paper. The Eagles drafted an off ball linebacker that has a bum shoulder safety. They lost lots of their depth. They are still a good team but let’s not overstate them.

The Eagles aren’t the issue. The Cowboys are. How about Cowboys fans stop with the “yes, but” and understand the Eagles will have to fight tooth and nail to finish in front of the Commanders. The Cowboys and Giants are here because every division has four teams.

 

[gimmesix]

“if we had”, “feel pretty good”, “dropped in the draft”, “should provide”, “doesn’t need great corners”…the 2025 NFL season. Here we go!

Those qualifiers are all we're left with. I'd like to be able to say we absolutely improved our team, but I don't know if I can say that. What we gained may not be significantly better than what we lost and in some cases, it may be worse.

Take a player like Erik Kendricks. We got him last year because he was on his last legs, so he was cheap. This year, we let him walk away and then essentially replaced him with a first-round bust. So we have to hope that Kenneth Murray proves that Tennessee was wrong to trade him and a seventh for just a sixth-round pick.

We could easily be worse at that position whether it is Murray or Jack Sanborn starting at it. I like Sanborn, but he was a UDFA player who Chicago wouldn't even tender as an RFA. Both of those guys may be starting, so good luck to us. Hopefully, we get lucky.

 

[gimmesix]

The Eagles didn’t have any key players injured last season. That had lots to do with them winning more than anything. Detroit literally lost their entire defense by the time they lost to Washington. Injury luck had most to do with the Eagles winning the Superbowl if you want to be honest. Detroit had the better team on paper. The Eagles drafted an off ball linebacker that has a bum shoulder safety. They lost lots of their depth. They are still a good team but let’s not overstate them.

Yes, injuries have a lot to do with it. The Eagles' injuries the previous year contributed to their decline. Our injuries last year contributed to ours. However, we were on the outside looking in the previous years so there is no reason to believe that we caught up to a team that won the Super Bowl.

Repeating is hard, and the Eagles lost some starters and depth (and their offensive coordinator), so I don't necessarily believe they are going back to the Super Bowl. I'm just saying we didn't make the moves needed to become a Super Bowl contender. We face an uphill climb because we don't use free agency for game-changers. Philly does and it helped the Eagles return to the big game. I don't believe that is overstating it.

 

[KingCorcoran]

Yes, injuries have a lot to do with it. The Eagles' injuries the previous year contributed to their decline. Our injuries last year contributed to ours. However, we were on the outside looking in the previous years so there is no reason to believe that we caught up to a team that won the Super Bowl.

Repeating is hard, and the Eagles lost some starters and depth (and their offensive coordinator), so I don't necessarily believe they are going back to the Super Bowl. I'm just saying we didn't make the moves needed to become a Super Bowl contender. We face an uphill climb because we don't use free agency for game-changers. Philly does and it helped the Eagles return to the big game. I don't believe that is overstating it.

The likelihood of Philadelphia returning to the Super Bowl is not great. If Jalen Hurts, less than two years older than Milton, continues to develop they will be in the mix. Washington got their new stadium, but they’re not letting up. Injuries the previous season is every fanbase’s excuse and hope. All teams completely healthy do you believe the Cowboys are better than Philly or Washington? I don’t.

 

[gimmesix]

The likelihood of Philadelphia returning to the Super Bowl is not great. If Jalen Hurts, less than two years older than Milton, continues to develop they will be in the mix. Washington got their new stadium, but they’re not letting up. Injuries the previous season is every fanbase’s excuse and hope. All teams completely healthy do you believe the Cowboys are better than Philly or Washington? I don’t.

I don't see anything we've done as being enough to overtake the Eagles. I think Washington benefitted last year from our injuries, but the Football Team has made some moves to add talent at some of their weak areas. While we were adding receivers like Jonathan Mingo, they were trading for receivers like Deebo Samuel.

I don't think that Hurts will ever be more than a Dak-level QB, but Philly has shown that it will build a strong-enough team around him to support what he is. I won't be surprised if the Eagles take a small step back due to some of their losses (even though they did get replacements in FA and the draft), but if they do, I believe they'll do whatever it takes to fix that the next year. I don't have that expectation here.