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Modeled after Insider's #NBAFrontOffice project, our NFL Front Office Insiders are taking a look at the biggest offseason questions facing the league's most compelling teams. In this debut edition, they take over the Dallas Cowboys, looking at whether the team should re-sign and/or use the franchise tag on offensive stars Dez Bryant and/or DeMarco Murray, how it can improve the defense and whether signing Adrian Peterson would be a good idea.
Mark Dominik serves as our general manager, Herm Edwards as our head coach, Louis Riddick as our director of player personnel, and Mel Kiper weighs in with his expertise on the 2015 NFL draft class.
Join the conversation on Twitter via @ESPNInsider with the hashtag #NFLFrontOffice
Part 1: There's a huge risk in signing Bryant to a long-term deal. But as a coach, you want him.
Louis Riddick (director of pro personnel): When it comes to constructing an NFL roster, my top five positions of importance are quarterback, pass-rusher, cornerback, offensive tackle and wide receiver -- in that order. Prioritizing the positions that way helps take some of the emotion out of things when you're forced to make a decision on paying one guy over another.
That's why I think the top priority here has to be to lock up Bryant. He is an elite talent entering the prime of his career at a top-five position. You can't guard him one-on-one, with his size, athleticism and speed. He's the best jump-ball receiver in the red zone in the league. If it's up to me, I'm starting with him and then moving immediately to the defensive side of the football. It's trickier to know what to do with DeMarco Murray, but we can wait on him. Bryant is the one I'd try to sign to a long-term deal. He's a huge component to what we do on offense.
Mark Dominik (general manager): My first choice with Bryant is to use the franchise tag on him. I agree with everything Louis is saying with regard to his talent, so we shouldn't let him go, but he still makes me a little nervous from a maturity and off-field standpoint. Do we really want to tie up a lot of long-term money with him? I'd rather take another year without a long-term commitment in order to protect the franchise in case something were to happen.
However, there are some risks associated with that. One, you never know how a player's agent will react to us using the franchise tag on his client, and that can have an impact on future negotiations. Two, if you hit Bryant with the franchise tag, you have to be prepared for the fact that he's probably going to be unhappy. He won't be going to offseason workouts. Does that send him in another direction?
Ideally, you're signing Bryant to a long-term deal that is incentive-based with little guaranteed money that protects you in case something goes bad off the field. But that can be difficult to pull off.
Herm Edwards (head coach): You're taking a risk either way. I'm not saying Bryant has a lot of off-field issues, because he's straightened his life up. He's done a good job of surrounding himself with people who aren't distracting him the way he was distracted earlier in his career. But he has had some issues in the past, and you never know how that big, long-term contract can change a player. I've seen it happen before. But you also worry as a coach about a guy who is unhappy about his contract, and that's what would happen if he gets franchised. With the franchise tag, he'll be making $10 million to $12 million a year, but that's not what he wants. He wants the long-term contract. He wants to be a Cowboy.
But I'll say this: As a coach, you want him. He lets you do a lot more things offensively just by his presence on the field. Defenses can't play eight-man boxes all game when he's out there, because he can strike at any time. He shifts everything the defense does. He's a difference-maker, and he's matured some. That's the juggling act you're facing with him.
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Part 2: It'd be nice to have Murray back. Getting Adrian Peterson would be nicer.
Dominik: I think we have to weigh the risk of upsetting Bryant and his agent against the risk of something going wrong after we pay him with a long-term deal. Of him and Murray, I think I'd rather give Murray an extension, with the thought that I could likely get him at a discount based on the limited market for running backs and the fact that we have the best offensive line in the league.
Riddick: Murray is a guy I would want to re-sign, but it's a tricky situation. Ideally you want to reward your guys for playing well, but you're paying for future production, not past performance. Are we going to pay him Matt Forte money -- $7.5 million to $8 million per year? I don't know about that. We don't have a ton of future contracts to worry about, even after 2015, but I think our offensive line gives us the luxury of being very fluid at the running back position. That doesn't take away from what Murray did this season, but we know that the line will make the back more than the back will make the line.
If Murray does leave in free agency, we can probably find a replacement we like in the draft.
Mel Kiper (college scouting): This is a strong class of running backs, and when you look to the middle rounds, there are very good options like Duke Johnson out of Miami and Ameer Abdullah out of Nebraska, undersized speed guys who you might be able to pair with a veteran who runs with a little more power. They'd be interesting in the third round. Alabama's T.J. Yeldon was banged up this year but would be a good value on Day 2. You could look at a guy like David Cobb out of Minnesota. He's another midround guy. In the later rounds, David Johnson out of Northern Iowa is a versatile back who is a good runner and also shows good hands out of the backfield.
The Zack Martin pick in last year's first round definitely gives you a lot of options by solidifying that offensive line, and there are some good backs you could bring in as rookies who could do well.
Dominik: I think with Murray, it depends on the deal. If you can structure it so that you're only paying him if he's on the field and producing, you do it.
Edwards: The injuries scare you with Murray. This is really the only season he's played the whole year, and that's not by accident. He had a lot of carries, and was banged up toward the end. That's really his DNA. So I think we have to ask ourselves not just which backs are in the draft like Mel described, but who else might be available.
What if Adrian Peterson is a free agent? The offense would be scary-good with him in there. I'm taking Peterson over Murray if I have the choice, aren't you?
Dominik: No question.
Edwards: That one ain't even close for me. Peterson is a tone-setter. You get him back there with that line, with a wide receiver in Dez Bryant, a quarterback in Tony Romo, and a tight end in Jason Witten? That's a bad sight for the rest of the league.
Dominik: If we can sign Peterson, I might just go ahead and draft another offensive lineman in the first round, because no one's stopping that offense. (Laughs)
Edwards: This is a guy who hasn't played in a year, so he'll be fresh. And he's angry after being held out. Think about what he's done in his Vikings career without a great quarterback, without a great line, without a great wide receiver. He'd have all of that with Dallas -- and a tight end.
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Part 3: Fixing the defense will start up front.
Riddick: We haven't even talked about the defense yet, which played much better last season but probably overachieved based on their talent. We need to be as strong as we can be down the middle, starting with Rolando McClain. We stole him for nothing last year, and absolutely hit the jackpot based on what he did for us on the field. He's a free agent, and it'd be great to get him re-signed for a reasonable number.
Dominik: I disagree slightly on McClain because I think he's one who can be waited on. There isn't going to be that big of a market, based on his past history with the retirement and all that. He played great this year, but if I lose him, I'm not too worried about him.
As far as the draft goes, I think we could only pick defensive players and not have anyone think twice about it. That's how much of an upgrade we need.
Kiper: The positions to address early are probably defensive end and defensive tackle. Demarcus Lawrence came on at the end of the season and should develop into a good pass-rusher, but the defense needs more than just him. They couldn't get pressure on a gimpy Aaron Rodgers in the playoffs, and that's a big problem.
Malcom Brown out of Texas is a guy who could be a fit with the No. 27 overall pick. He's versatile, can play tackle or end but is probably best as a defensive tackle. He got better every year at Texas and he's a guy who can penetrate and disrupt things behind the line of scrimmage. That's what they need.
You could also look at a guy like Eddie Goldman out of Florida State, Jordan Phillips from Oklahoma, Carl Davis from Iowa. All of those guys are physically gifted defensive tackles. Oregon's Arik Armstead would be a good fit, but he's unlikely to drop that far. With how deep this defensive line class is, though, things should fall well for them to get an impact defensive lineman in the first round.
Edwards: I agree with Mel that they need a defensive tackle. But the best move we made on defense this offseason was not letting Rod Marinelli go.
Dominik: He did a great job with what he had last year.
Edwards: In that defense, he needs a few more linemen so he can play a rotation. An impact 3-technique defensive tackle would help. He also needs a will linebacker, but remember, they're getting back Sean Lee, and he might be able to play there. If not they'll need to find another one. He also needs a strong safety, to help him stop the run.
Dominik: I agree with everything Herm just said. That's why in Tampa I drafted Gerald McCoy, Lavonte David and Mark Barron -- those are the three positions you need to have set if you're going to win with that style of defense.
Edwards: Their cornerbacks could be better, but if they fix up those three spots, Marinelli can live without having top corners, because he'll be able to stop the run.
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Bottom line: Improve through the draft, not free agency ... but Peterson would be a game-changer.
Riddick: We need help on defense, but I think it's important to remember we don't need to be active players in free agency. We need to follow the blueprint of drafting well, rewarding our own players and not looking to make big splashes in free agency. Jeremy Mincey and Tyrone Crawford are players who could deserve new deals after this year, and Lawrence is a guy who will pay off for us in the future. And I think we could use a couple of more corners, even if we do shore up the other spots.
Kiper: You need four corners in the NFL right now, not just two, so we could get younger there. You should be able to find a good one in the first couple of rounds.
I'd also like to take a look at a quarterback we can develop behind Romo, who is getting older and has dealt with injuries. You look at a guy like Bryan Bennett from Southeastern Louisiana, who was an Oregon transfer and has the mobility to make plays on the move, or Garrett Grayson out of Colorado State. Either guy could be found in the later rounds of the draft.
Edwards: That all sounds good, but I still can't stop thinking about signing Adrian Peterson. Get him on that offense and we'll start looking like the old Cowboys right there. We'd really be saying, "How 'bout them Cowboys?!"
Modeled after Insider's #NBAFrontOffice project, our NFL Front Office Insiders are taking a look at the biggest offseason questions facing the league's most compelling teams. In this debut edition, they take over the Dallas Cowboys, looking at whether the team should re-sign and/or use the franchise tag on offensive stars Dez Bryant and/or DeMarco Murray, how it can improve the defense and whether signing Adrian Peterson would be a good idea.
Mark Dominik serves as our general manager, Herm Edwards as our head coach, Louis Riddick as our director of player personnel, and Mel Kiper weighs in with his expertise on the 2015 NFL draft class.
Join the conversation on Twitter via @ESPNInsider with the hashtag #NFLFrontOffice
Part 1: There's a huge risk in signing Bryant to a long-term deal. But as a coach, you want him.
Louis Riddick (director of pro personnel): When it comes to constructing an NFL roster, my top five positions of importance are quarterback, pass-rusher, cornerback, offensive tackle and wide receiver -- in that order. Prioritizing the positions that way helps take some of the emotion out of things when you're forced to make a decision on paying one guy over another.
That's why I think the top priority here has to be to lock up Bryant. He is an elite talent entering the prime of his career at a top-five position. You can't guard him one-on-one, with his size, athleticism and speed. He's the best jump-ball receiver in the red zone in the league. If it's up to me, I'm starting with him and then moving immediately to the defensive side of the football. It's trickier to know what to do with DeMarco Murray, but we can wait on him. Bryant is the one I'd try to sign to a long-term deal. He's a huge component to what we do on offense.
Mark Dominik (general manager): My first choice with Bryant is to use the franchise tag on him. I agree with everything Louis is saying with regard to his talent, so we shouldn't let him go, but he still makes me a little nervous from a maturity and off-field standpoint. Do we really want to tie up a lot of long-term money with him? I'd rather take another year without a long-term commitment in order to protect the franchise in case something were to happen.
However, there are some risks associated with that. One, you never know how a player's agent will react to us using the franchise tag on his client, and that can have an impact on future negotiations. Two, if you hit Bryant with the franchise tag, you have to be prepared for the fact that he's probably going to be unhappy. He won't be going to offseason workouts. Does that send him in another direction?
Ideally, you're signing Bryant to a long-term deal that is incentive-based with little guaranteed money that protects you in case something goes bad off the field. But that can be difficult to pull off.
Herm Edwards (head coach): You're taking a risk either way. I'm not saying Bryant has a lot of off-field issues, because he's straightened his life up. He's done a good job of surrounding himself with people who aren't distracting him the way he was distracted earlier in his career. But he has had some issues in the past, and you never know how that big, long-term contract can change a player. I've seen it happen before. But you also worry as a coach about a guy who is unhappy about his contract, and that's what would happen if he gets franchised. With the franchise tag, he'll be making $10 million to $12 million a year, but that's not what he wants. He wants the long-term contract. He wants to be a Cowboy.
But I'll say this: As a coach, you want him. He lets you do a lot more things offensively just by his presence on the field. Defenses can't play eight-man boxes all game when he's out there, because he can strike at any time. He shifts everything the defense does. He's a difference-maker, and he's matured some. That's the juggling act you're facing with him.
-
Part 2: It'd be nice to have Murray back. Getting Adrian Peterson would be nicer.
Dominik: I think we have to weigh the risk of upsetting Bryant and his agent against the risk of something going wrong after we pay him with a long-term deal. Of him and Murray, I think I'd rather give Murray an extension, with the thought that I could likely get him at a discount based on the limited market for running backs and the fact that we have the best offensive line in the league.
Riddick: Murray is a guy I would want to re-sign, but it's a tricky situation. Ideally you want to reward your guys for playing well, but you're paying for future production, not past performance. Are we going to pay him Matt Forte money -- $7.5 million to $8 million per year? I don't know about that. We don't have a ton of future contracts to worry about, even after 2015, but I think our offensive line gives us the luxury of being very fluid at the running back position. That doesn't take away from what Murray did this season, but we know that the line will make the back more than the back will make the line.
If Murray does leave in free agency, we can probably find a replacement we like in the draft.
Mel Kiper (college scouting): This is a strong class of running backs, and when you look to the middle rounds, there are very good options like Duke Johnson out of Miami and Ameer Abdullah out of Nebraska, undersized speed guys who you might be able to pair with a veteran who runs with a little more power. They'd be interesting in the third round. Alabama's T.J. Yeldon was banged up this year but would be a good value on Day 2. You could look at a guy like David Cobb out of Minnesota. He's another midround guy. In the later rounds, David Johnson out of Northern Iowa is a versatile back who is a good runner and also shows good hands out of the backfield.
The Zack Martin pick in last year's first round definitely gives you a lot of options by solidifying that offensive line, and there are some good backs you could bring in as rookies who could do well.
Dominik: I think with Murray, it depends on the deal. If you can structure it so that you're only paying him if he's on the field and producing, you do it.
Edwards: The injuries scare you with Murray. This is really the only season he's played the whole year, and that's not by accident. He had a lot of carries, and was banged up toward the end. That's really his DNA. So I think we have to ask ourselves not just which backs are in the draft like Mel described, but who else might be available.
What if Adrian Peterson is a free agent? The offense would be scary-good with him in there. I'm taking Peterson over Murray if I have the choice, aren't you?
Dominik: No question.
Edwards: That one ain't even close for me. Peterson is a tone-setter. You get him back there with that line, with a wide receiver in Dez Bryant, a quarterback in Tony Romo, and a tight end in Jason Witten? That's a bad sight for the rest of the league.
Dominik: If we can sign Peterson, I might just go ahead and draft another offensive lineman in the first round, because no one's stopping that offense. (Laughs)
Edwards: This is a guy who hasn't played in a year, so he'll be fresh. And he's angry after being held out. Think about what he's done in his Vikings career without a great quarterback, without a great line, without a great wide receiver. He'd have all of that with Dallas -- and a tight end.
-
Part 3: Fixing the defense will start up front.
Riddick: We haven't even talked about the defense yet, which played much better last season but probably overachieved based on their talent. We need to be as strong as we can be down the middle, starting with Rolando McClain. We stole him for nothing last year, and absolutely hit the jackpot based on what he did for us on the field. He's a free agent, and it'd be great to get him re-signed for a reasonable number.
Dominik: I disagree slightly on McClain because I think he's one who can be waited on. There isn't going to be that big of a market, based on his past history with the retirement and all that. He played great this year, but if I lose him, I'm not too worried about him.
As far as the draft goes, I think we could only pick defensive players and not have anyone think twice about it. That's how much of an upgrade we need.
Kiper: The positions to address early are probably defensive end and defensive tackle. Demarcus Lawrence came on at the end of the season and should develop into a good pass-rusher, but the defense needs more than just him. They couldn't get pressure on a gimpy Aaron Rodgers in the playoffs, and that's a big problem.
Malcom Brown out of Texas is a guy who could be a fit with the No. 27 overall pick. He's versatile, can play tackle or end but is probably best as a defensive tackle. He got better every year at Texas and he's a guy who can penetrate and disrupt things behind the line of scrimmage. That's what they need.
You could also look at a guy like Eddie Goldman out of Florida State, Jordan Phillips from Oklahoma, Carl Davis from Iowa. All of those guys are physically gifted defensive tackles. Oregon's Arik Armstead would be a good fit, but he's unlikely to drop that far. With how deep this defensive line class is, though, things should fall well for them to get an impact defensive lineman in the first round.
Edwards: I agree with Mel that they need a defensive tackle. But the best move we made on defense this offseason was not letting Rod Marinelli go.
Dominik: He did a great job with what he had last year.
Edwards: In that defense, he needs a few more linemen so he can play a rotation. An impact 3-technique defensive tackle would help. He also needs a will linebacker, but remember, they're getting back Sean Lee, and he might be able to play there. If not they'll need to find another one. He also needs a strong safety, to help him stop the run.
Dominik: I agree with everything Herm just said. That's why in Tampa I drafted Gerald McCoy, Lavonte David and Mark Barron -- those are the three positions you need to have set if you're going to win with that style of defense.
Edwards: Their cornerbacks could be better, but if they fix up those three spots, Marinelli can live without having top corners, because he'll be able to stop the run.
-
Bottom line: Improve through the draft, not free agency ... but Peterson would be a game-changer.
Riddick: We need help on defense, but I think it's important to remember we don't need to be active players in free agency. We need to follow the blueprint of drafting well, rewarding our own players and not looking to make big splashes in free agency. Jeremy Mincey and Tyrone Crawford are players who could deserve new deals after this year, and Lawrence is a guy who will pay off for us in the future. And I think we could use a couple of more corners, even if we do shore up the other spots.
Kiper: You need four corners in the NFL right now, not just two, so we could get younger there. You should be able to find a good one in the first couple of rounds.
I'd also like to take a look at a quarterback we can develop behind Romo, who is getting older and has dealt with injuries. You look at a guy like Bryan Bennett from Southeastern Louisiana, who was an Oregon transfer and has the mobility to make plays on the move, or Garrett Grayson out of Colorado State. Either guy could be found in the later rounds of the draft.
Edwards: That all sounds good, but I still can't stop thinking about signing Adrian Peterson. Get him on that offense and we'll start looking like the old Cowboys right there. We'd really be saying, "How 'bout them Cowboys?!"
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