For the sake of argument let’s assume we let Dak walk

[starfan1]

If they let Dak go (via trade - they won't let him just walk) - then I'd do this:

Trade to Carolina - they went hard after Stafford. Get the 8th pick, 2nd rounder and next years 2nd (do not think they would be able to get next year 1st as well as this year 2nd)

Sign Dalton to 1 year deal
Draft Sewell or Slater with 8th pick
Draft Farley or Surtain with 10th pick
In 2nd - draft Mac Jones and then best DT or S available

well at least you have a plan. I got to respect that. May not agree with it but you do have a plan

 

[LACowboysFan1]

All of them except the outlier. It seems you're saying Romo was able to overcome Garrett while Dak couldn't. We all know how Tony's career ended. Why go to the mat for Dak?

Not so much "going to the mat for Dak" as it is keeping Dak is the best option for the Cowboys, especially given Dallas' history of free agent signings, I just want Dak to have a chance to get out from under Garrett's influence before we jettison him for a some cast off quarterback or taking a big chance on a mid-round rookie draft pick....

 

[erod]

Your first mistake is assuming there is much thinking going on at all. Most of the vitriol toward Dak Prescott is emotional not logical.

You have that exactly backwards. And it's not vitriol. It's common football sense.

 

[ABQCOWBOY]

So, for those wanting Dak gone, who is going to replace him? Realistically, there are no "elite" QB's just waiting for us to sign!! I just wish the FO would hurry up and do what they need to do with this whole Dak thing!! It's getting annoying!!

I guess I might consider looking at what Houston might be open to and see if a QB trade can be worked out. That might be an option, IDK.

This scenario looked a lot better when we were picking top 5 and not top 10. However, as we all know, a lot will be determined by who is still there. We don't need to take a guy this year, but it would be better if we could. I think Lawrence and Wilson are definitely gone by the time our pick shows up. Maybe a guy like Lance could be there. I mean, I've said this before, if you like Prescott, then I think you gotta love Lance. I think that if you sign Dalton to a contract for 3 years with a two year option, you are able to draft a kid like Lance and develop him, that's a pretty solid plan going forward.

There will likely be some other options available as well, IMO, but at this point, it's too early to tell who or what those might be.

 

[RonnieT24]

You have that exactly backwards. And it's not vitriol. . It's common football sense[/QUOTE]

Yeah teams that have walked away from franchise QBs in their prime have a stellar record right? It would be different if the QB was playing like crap and the team wanted him gone.. like say.. Philly? Or the coach realized he's an idiot like L.A. Or if the coaching staff realized that he's playing with the yips after his injuries and never really has been able to stay healthy like in San Fran. I guess that could also be said of the situation in Philly. Or maybe a bum shoulder robbed him of his ability to throw like Cam in Carolina. None of those applies to Dak.. He was playing as well as anyone in the league to start the season and all indications are that he will continue to get better. You want him gone, fine.. that's your right as a fan. But calling such a stupid move "common football sense" insults anyone with any football intelligence. If it's so common why are there only a handful of "fans" calling for it?

 

[CouchCoach]

If they've decided to move on and even signing him after another tag year is not feasible, then getting him to agree to a tag and trade would be the next option. If Rodgers, Watson or Wilson is the target, it will take more than just him, if the trade team wants him. Going to take at least a couple of 1's.

They could try the Jets for Darnold or the Dolphins for Tua and it wouldn't take as much draft capital.

The other option is re-sign Dalton, let Prescott walk and go for a QB in this draft. If they would consider giving up 1's for a vet, giving up some picks to move up for Wilson isn't a bad way to go. The only way I would do this is a refusal from Prescott for the tag and trade. And that is dependent on the other team wanting him bad enough to meet his price. The thing about GB, HOU and SEA, they're already set up to pay the QB.

All of this comes down to one thing, where do you think this team really is with regards to making a title run? If you think that won't happen with Prescott if they continue on the same path, then what changes with a new QB and fewer draft picks?

What are the options? Make a run with Prescott and the picks or trade the picks and hope an elite QB can deliver and have they done that with the teams they're presently QBing?

This really seems simple to me because I am basing it on the history of the brain trust. Keep the QB and pay him what you have to and keep trying to build a defense that can al least contend in the playoffs. Giving up draft picks is the last thing they should do.

 

[john van brocklin]

We are not letting Dak walk so why waste brain cells on hypotheticals?

Slow off season, lol

 

[john van brocklin]

Then what...

Draft a QB . Do we try and move up in draft and what do we give up assuming anyone takes the bait or do we settle for whatever falls in our slot??

And how long until he’s developed assuming our Football Idiots draft someone as good as Dak has been.

Do we extend Dalton or go after another aged veteran QB to tie us over until we find a draft pick as good as we got lucky with Dak.

How many years do we wait to become relevant and interesting again?

Im not sure everyone has thought this thru.

Tag and trade him?

 

[john van brocklin]

Your first mistake is assuming there is much thinking going on at all. Most of the vitriol toward Dak Prescott is emotional not logical. Logic would dictate that if your offense averages 2TDs less without a guy you want to do everything in your power to keep that guy. Remember a few years ago when the defense was decent with Sean Lee on the field but gave up like 15 points and 100 yards more per game with him out? The numbers were staggering.. just as they were with Dak and without him last season. I understand not wanting the team to screw itself into the group with the cap signing him to a bad contract. But I will never understand not wanting a guy back who was leading the most prolific offense in NFL history through 4+ games when he went down. Or parroting these same old canards about "lacking accuracy" and "trouble reading defenses" yadda yadda yaddda.. The notion that a guy can be putting up the kind of career passing numbers, completing a high percentage of his passes while having the 3rd or 4th best TD/INT ratio IN NFL HISTORY without those skills is beyond ludicrous. I think Dak has already proven those idiotic pre-draft scouting reports 100% wrong. Maybe it's time to put them to bed. Sign the dude and draft some defense.. End of story.

I like your logic, just don't trust the GM to build a decent team around Dak.

 

[CouchCoach]

Tag and trade him?

That gets tricky because he has to not only agree to the destination but the terms of the new agreement. The question remains. Just how many teams are willing to pay Prescott what he wants?

 

[CouchCoach]

I like your logic, just don't trust the GM to build a decent team around Dak.

Bingo! Yahtzee! Ollie ollie oxen free!!! Shazam!!! Gomer Pyle Shazam!!!!

The sticking point for me all throughout this journey. The assumption not paying Prescott builds a better team. Not only unfounded but proven to be historically dead wrong.

 

[blumayne38]

And you’re taking into consideration our dysfunctional organization ability to find a better QB. Which must be part of the thought process .

Finding a better QB will be the process even if Dak was to get extended. That should always be the case, and the process.

 

[CyberB0b]

I go long term. The cap is certainly going down, so our strategy of extending people and kicking the can down the road is going to come home to roost in the next few years. Sign Gilbert and roll with him for a couple of years while we let the albatross contracts like Zeke, Jaylon and Tyron Smith, Lawrence, and Collins fall off the books. Continue to draft BPA and then get serious about a QB in a couple of years, when we have a young, cheap, and talented team full of premium draft picks, since we won't be winning very many games.

 

[Diehardblues]

Bingo! Yahtzee! Ollie ollie oxen free!!! Shazam!!! Gomer Pyle Shazam!!!!

The sticking point for me all throughout this journey. The assumption not paying Prescott builds a better team. Not only unfounded but proven to be historically dead wrong.

Yep

And why our dilemma with our dysfunctional organization and their agendas are so different from other franchises .

It’s difficult to use normal strategy and thinking as you’d want to use when assessing the situation .

Our franchise this era has been so QB dependent it’s difficult to imagine our ownership building a team that’s relative and interesting without one.

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

Use a stop-gap veteran like Dalton and draft a QB, possibly trading up to get the best one possible. It's a risk, but every choice in the NFL is a risk, including paying a handsome price to keep Dak. Either way, you could succeed or crash and burn. It's always a calculated risk.

so you are saying we should go in a rebuilding mode? Dalton sucks, so that helps us to get to top 5 pick.....and you do know 4 out of 5 first round QBs fail in the NFL....so its a huge risk....

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

The gap with and without dak isn’t very big. It’s not the end of the world if Dallas decides to move on. That same could have been said with Romo era.

totally disagree. the gap without Dak was evident for us to see. it was grand canyon sized.

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

If we pay Dak big, do we have money left over to fill all the other gaps we have? Cap is decreasing this year. Will it increase the following year? The NFL is betting on everyone who stopped watching this past year because of Covid to return. It's my experience that when someone fills their time with something else, it's hard to go back to what you're used to. It'll be interesting to see if the NFL returns to what it was. I don't think it will but we'll see.

are you suggesting to fill in the gaps with FAs and build through FA? has that every worked?

 

[Reverend Conehead]

so you are saying we should go in a rebuilding mode? Dalton sucks, so that helps us to get to top 5 pick.....and you do know 4 out of 5 first round QBs fail in the NFL....so its a huge risk....

I think that would be better than overpaying for Dak. Having Dak with a lousy defense will get us several seasons of between 6 and 10 and 8 and 8. That's not the goal. I would rather rebuild with a focus on putting together a high-end defense.

 

[Diehardblues]

I go long term. The cap is certainly going down, so our strategy of extending people and kicking the can down the road is going to come home to roost in the next few years. Sign Gilbert and roll with him for a couple of years while we let the albatross contracts like Zeke, Jaylon and Tyron Smith, Lawrence, and Collins fall off the books. Continue to draft BPA and then get serious about a QB in a couple of years, when we have a young, cheap, and talented team full of premium draft picks, since we won't be winning very many games.

But the Cap is only going fine fir one season . The league is expected to add 17th game as soon as 2021 season and the new Network TV contracts and Collective Bargaining agreement in 2023 which has raised the cap significantly every time.

There’s no indication Jethro and Son are prepared to ditch the current talent they’ve accumulated for a total rebuild of sorts. McCarthy was brought in to win now.

 

[RonnieT24]

I like your logic, just don't trust the GM to build a decent team around Dak.

But do you trust the same GM to build a decent team without Dak AND find a QB as good or better?