People forget that when Thomas leaves in free agency, the hawks will get a 3rd rd draft pick (compensatory ).
So whatever a team offers in a trade has to be more than that. Otherwise even he sits and leaves they get a 3rd
I think our offer will ultimately be more than a third. We offered a third on draft day because draft picks have more value during the draft.
I don't think Dallas wants to offer a second, though, so I think there will be some moving parts involved. It could be a third-round pick and a player or a third and sixth or a second with Seattle giving back something like a fifth (which would be my least favorite).
As I've said in other threads, I don't expect movement on this until near the end of camp (when Dallas better understands its commodities), but Thomas holding out could up the timetable.
Unlike some, I don't think money is a real issue. Dallas can make Thomas the highest-paid safety and set up his contract similar to others, where his hits won't really be that big his first couple of years and if he's playing at a high level they can restructure. Essentially that would allow them to push big money down the road until cutting him costs at least similar to keeping him. (Other contracts signed after his will be structured in a way that they can be restructured to absorb any dead money.)