Paying the wrong guys leaves you treading water

[thunderpimp91]

I refer back to my original post.

Four guys are paid like top five players in the league at their positions. If they're not playing like it then you made a mistake by paying them.

How many players give consistent top 5 production year in and year out? That standard just isnt realistic. I think DLaw & Cooper are worth the contracts. You lose Dlaw, Coop, and Dak right now are you're essentially Washington.

 

[ArtClink]

Dallas has four players who are in the top five paid at their positions: Dak, Zeke, DLaw, and Amari. Do any of them look like top five players at their positions?

Being able to distinguish good players from great ones is essential to making smart personnel decisions in the salary cap era. The Cowboys front office has made this mistake too often since their last SB, and we've seen the results.

Setting the market by overpaying Zeke even before his contract was up was a huge mistake. Besides Pollard is the better RB and has averaged more yards per carry than Zeke this year. Paying Zeke a huge contract has ripple effects for years to come but that’s what happens when you don’t have a cold hearted SOB as your gm. Instead Jones gets attached and overpays his favorite players. Belicheck would have let Zeke walk after his rookie contract expired.

 

[perrykemp]

I know it's armchair QB'ing, however, in retrospect the widsom of trading a 1st pick for Cooper THEN making him the highest paid WR in the NFL, and THEN spending another 1st round pick on Lamb when they already had Gallup was too much investment into 1 position. I

 

[john van brocklin]

Paying the best guy you have at a particular position like he's the best in the league at his position won't get you to a super bowl, either.

Sometimes, you have to take your lumps and start over. Or you can do what the Cowboys have been doing for 25 years.

Yep treading water...
If we did not keep having great drafts we would be a perennial .500 club.

 

[cityochamps]

Yeah Zeke and Dak are not living up to their contracts. Who saw that coming? I don’t even blame Amari, Dak can’t get the ball to him.

Not saying Dak is not at fault also but It would help Amari and us if he could shoot for that academy award every now and then, he was clearly interfered with yesterday in the end zone the ref had a hard time seeing it but I bet a good acting job could have sold that one

 

[Montanalo]

There are really only three positions that typically warrant large, long-term contracts-- QB, LT and DE. You could argue that only QB is paid, at least partially, on potential as opposed, to production.

Almost all over positions and, especially RB, are fungible. While I struggle to wrap my head around $40 million, Dak was fundamentally paid market price for someone with his production.

At the time, both the DLaw and Zeke contracts appeared way over the top... and, I still believe that. In hindsight, they should have both walk and replaced them through the draft.

 

[Hardline]

Ok so let's just not re-sign our best players to market contracts? Good lord our fans just lose their minds after losses.

Our best players don't compare with the rest of the leagues best players. I wouldn't factor in their contracts when signing players here.
The Cowboys need to have their own pay scale.

 

[TheDude]

"Knowing" you'll fail is a bit of a stretch... I'm all for some Dak bashing, but we are going a little too far here. It's not like the guy is completely hopeless and can never win another game. He is capable of so much more, hes just not performing right now. I'd rather be mediocre with the potential to strike fire down the stretch than be mediocre and have a ceiling of mediocre.

As mentioned, he is 5-0 against the Danny Dimes, Taylor Heinickes, Jaylon Hurts. Dak has always been the guy that has to hit the guy open in the zone or busted play deep. He used to have above avg legs. He is not an anticipatory qb, not accurate, and holds the ball too long.

He is a 10-15mm per year middling qb. Manning won a SB bis last year when he was worse than Dak, but that defense was top 4 all time. You can't spend all the money on a middling qb, a crap RB and underused WR and have multiple games where you can't crack 10 points by the 4th qtr

 

[thunderpimp91]

As mentioned, he is 5-0 against the Danny Dimes, Taylor Heinickes, Jaylon Hurts. Dak has always been the guy that has to hit the guy open in the zone or busted play deep. He used to have above avg legs. He is not an anticipatory qb, not accurate, and holds the ball too long.

He is a 10-15mm per year middling qb. Manning won a SB bis last year when he was worse than Dak, but that defense was top 4 all time. You can't spend all the money on a middling qb, a crap RB and underused WR and have multiple games where you can't crack 10 points by the 4th qtr

Not arguing he is overpaid, but with the construction of the current roster this team could contend for a championship. Dak just needs to play better, along with a few others. Dak at least gives you a chance this year, Dalton wouldnt.

 

[tyke1doe]

The Fan Boys who buy tickets and jerseys all screamed ‘pay da man’ when it came to Lawrence, Elliott, Cooper, and Dak. Jerry gave the Fanboys what they wanted.

The Fanboys are still buying tickets and jerseys.

So, @Jake what exactly is the problem?

I'm not a fan boy, but I support a player trying to get as much as he can.

But that doesn't mean the GM and the owner have to pay them as much as they want.

If I'm Zeke, I'm asking for the whole kit and caboodle.

If I'm Jerry, I'm saying "this much is what I'm going to pay you" and if he sits out, go LeVeon Bell on him like the Steelers did with LB.

 

[tomsanders921]

Gotta keep somebody at some point though. I'm not sure the roster construction of this team is its biggest issue. I've never been a fan of the Zeke contract, the Dak contract I was on the fence either way. Cooper & Dlaw are certainly top players at their positions though.

I would argue against dlaw being a top player at his position. He's a really good player. But he is not an elite pass rusher.

Hes really good against the run. But u don't pay premium money for defensive ends that r good against the run. He also seems to be on the sidelines way too much for my liking. I get that he goes all out all the time, but it gets old seeing him on the sidelines so much.

 

[Acceptablename]

Dallas has four players who are in the top five paid at their positions: Dak, Zeke, DLaw, and Amari. Do any of them look like top five players at their positions?

Being able to distinguish good players from great ones is essential to making smart personnel decisions in the salary cap era. The Cowboys front office has made this mistake too often since their last SB, and we've seen the results.

Ill nominate dlaw

 

[thunderpimp91]

I would argue against dlaw being a top player at his position. He's a really good player. But he is not an elite pass rusher.

Hes really good against the run. But u don't pay premium money for defensive ends that r good against the run. He also seems to be on the sidelines way too much for my liking. I get that he goes all out all the time, but it gets old seeing him on the sidelines so much.

The injury issue I understand, but the guy is a top player when healthy. Even as a pass rusher I think hes a top player in this league... despite the sack numbers not being what you would want.

 

[tomsanders921]

The injury issue I understand, but the guy is a top player when healthy. Even as a pass rusher I think hes a top player in this league... despite the sack numbers not being what you would want.

Who would you rather have? Randy Gregory or dlaw? I don't know about the cap ramifications of dlaws contract, but it might be hard to keep them both.

If u had to choose one over the other, who would you choose? To me, Gregory seems like a more impactful player.

 

[thunderpimp91]

Who would you rather have? Randy Gregory or dlaw? I don't know about the cap ramifications of dlaws contract, but it might be hard to keep them both.

If u had to choose one over the other, who would you choose? To me, Gregory seems like a more impactful player.

Good question....I would go out of my way to keep this defense together another year if possible. I think that is a realistic solution if you are willing to restructure DLaws contract.

If it did come down to one or the other i'd probably opt for Gregory though if we are including contract details in the decision. Most projections are showing Gregory in the 10-12 Million annually range. Dlaw by cutting him frees up about $19 Million.

Not talking money at all I would probably go with Dlaw though. Gregory is probably the better pure pash rusher, but DLaw the better overall player. Both have missed a lot of time, for very different reasons. Not sure who I trust more to stay on the field, and with rule changes if Gregorys issues are even an issue anymore? Dont know.

 

[Blast From The Past]

Dak at times plays like a top 5 player. Zeke has the dumbest contract in history. Amari will
cost them Gallup. Bad contract. Lawrence is a good player but very rarely dominant.

I'm not sold on Dak but I don't dog him either as I support who throws the rock for the Cowboys no matter what but I reserve the right to change my mind. I don't know why Amari Cooper disappears from games. Is it because he gets bracketed by double teams? Playing hurt? I know that he has caught clutch passes and touch downs here at times. DLaw has had moments but his contract dictates those moments be more often than he has shown. That contract year he was beastly like. And now to Zeke who I like. But I think Jerry was haunted by the E Smith hold out back in the day and the results he obtained by eventually signing him after the first two losses of the season without him. Only thing is Zeke isn't E Smith and in the salary cap era you can't pay a rb that coin and have money to pay others in order to compete.

 

[Ranching]

Dallas has four players who are in the top five paid at their positions: Dak, Zeke, DLaw, and Amari. Do any of them look like top five players at their positions?

Being able to distinguish good players from great ones is essential to making smart personnel decisions in the salary cap era. The Cowboys front office has made this mistake too often since their last SB, and we've seen the results.

So just let them walk in be in a perpetual rebuild.....all teams do this...part of the salary cap and Free Agency era.

 

[ghst187]

I was all for tagging Dak with the franchise tag to get 2 1st round picks, would have even negotiated a 1st and 2nd, whatever. We still get Parsons and maybe Mac Jones? Have 40 million extra cap space for defense or Oline?

that would’ve been amazing. Plus imagine not having given Zeke and Jaylon big money…smh

 

[INCowboysFan]

Hindsight is 20/20

Exactly. Jerry is not a psychic. It looked like Zeke was approaching his peak when he signed that contract. Turns out he had already peaked and is now in decline. DLaw was Jerry's war daddy, but has been beat up since then. Amari was lightning in a bottle. He had to be signed since we gave up draft capital for him. Dak was playing well, throwing for tons of yards last year before he broke the ankle. Started off great this season, but now seems timid and unsure in his decision making. But his contract will look like a bargain when this next group of QB's comes due. Kyler Murray, Josh Allen, Herbert, Burrow, etc will break the bank and Dak's contract will look like peanuts.

 

[texbumthelife]

I’ve been saying it for a while. The Cowboys biggest deficiency is their inability to self-scout and self-evaluate.

As an outsider, I try not to lay blanket blame for these things, but this has continued through multiple coaching regimes and lots of player turnover so it absolutely has to start with the Joneses.