Retaining Hatcher

[kiheikiwi]

After yesterday's game i was thinking about Jason Hatcher. I know the old saying about players performing in a contract year, but, I think we need to find a way to resign him - hear me out.
He is the heart and soul of all our rushlinemen. After Ratlif and Spencer being gone. Ware is a fantastic player - but not a vacal leader. It is Hatcher that speaks and leads this group. We are young and going to be younger after this next draft (i hope). He will be the voice in the locker room, the player to show the way. Somehow, someway we need to find a way to resign him for a couple of years without breaking our empty bank.
"I ate a Giant" - thats exactly what we need, his play and his demenor.
Find a way, keep him a cowboy till he retiers but it can't be a Ratlif type contract.
If we do not retain him, which is very possible we will not have any strong personality on a young line. Very similar to what Brian Waters gave us on the offensive line. An older player who shows by example how to play and with a bit of a mean edge. (Which is why I would also bring Waters back for one more year).
What do you think ?

 

[BlueStar22]

I think he'll be franchised or re-signed if the price is right. As great as he's been this year, he's on the wrong side of 30 to break the bank.

 

[CooterBrown]

Franchise tag. You can almost write it down already. It was good to see him talking to Dez after that long fumble loss. That is what team leaders do.

 

[Future]

He's not going to command the contract that people think. I would think that somewhere around 3 years for 4.5-5 would do it, and hopefully they can find some room.

 

[BlueStar22]

He's not going to command the contract that people think. I would think that somewhere around 3 years for 4.5-5 would do it, and hopefully they can find some room.

There's always a team on the open market that would pay a little bit more. All it takes is one team to drive up the price.

 

[jrumann59]

The only teams that would be interested would be teams running a Tampa 2 or a derivative of it. He is better at reacting on the run as opposed to a read and react get off the block type of DL scheme.

 

[jterrell]

I think he'll be franchised or re-signed if the price is right. As great as he's been this year, he's on the wrong side of 30 to break the bank.

franchised makes zero sense. that's a fortune.

hopefully they will agree to a reasonable long-term deal with a lot of fake money at the end.
something like 5 for 40m but with about 22m of that as bases the final 2 years.
please no goofy "scheduled restructure" nonsense leveraged with a massive bonus.

keep it simple.
10m SB
yr 1: 1m
yr 2: 4m
yr 3: 6m
yr 4: 10m
yr 5: 12m
5 years 43m sounds really rich....
Really a 3 year 21m deal. That's a HUGE raise for a guy on a 2m per year deal but also keeps arguably our best DL.

 

[dragon_mikal]

I want him back too but I think his asking price is going to be too much. The salary cap situation may not be a big deal to some but it worries me a little and it's going to hinder the team during the offseason IMHO.

They need to be looking for a decent replacement in the draft if possible.

 

[Future]

There's always a team on the open market that would pay a little bit more. All it takes is one team to drive up the price.

If that happens, then it would have to be the franchise tag...which I think would put him up around 8.5 million or so.

Actually the more I think about it, the less I think anything under 6 is going to be doable. They're going to have to franchise him if they can afford it. Freaking Suh's rookie contract giving him over $12 mil per and Gerald McCoy making over $11 screws everything up.

 

[StarBoyz83]

Let him walk.

 

[kiheikiwi]

I think we need to find a way. I beleive we need to draft a Dtackle in the first round - Hageman (sp) would be my pick if I could. But we need the experianced passionate players to go with that - hence Hatcher stays. Somehow. With all the young inexperienced players we now have and with getting our young DE end back next year. We need that vocal, this is the Cowboy way type player that Ware is not.
Like I said earlier, equate it to the offensive line and Waters. Newish LT, but no-one to really help him (player wise), new Center, New LG, RG journyman - but not a mentor. And RT - journyman Who took a paycut to stay. So in comes Waters and eveyone has said what a huge difference he made in mentoring and helping everyone on the line. (Please bring him back !) Hatcher will/could be the same for what I see as a completely different Dline, next year.

 

[BAZ]

They should let him walk. The need to rebuild that line with youth and picks. Last thing the need to do is pay a lineman at that age.

 

[xwalker]

After yesterday's game i was thinking about Jason Hatcher. I know the old saying about players performing in a contract year, but, I think we need to find a way to resign him - hear me out.
He is the heart and soul of all our rushlinemen. After Ratlif and Spencer being gone. Ware is a fantastic player - but not a vacal leader. It is Hatcher that speaks and leads this group. We are young and going to be younger after this next draft (i hope). He will be the voice in the locker room, the player to show the way. Somehow, someway we need to find a way to resign him for a couple of years without breaking our empty bank.
"I ate a Giant" - thats exactly what we need, his play and his demenor.
Find a way, keep him a cowboy till he retiers but it can't be a Ratlif type contract.
If we do not retain him, which is very possible we will not have any strong personality on a young line. Very similar to what Brian Waters gave us on the offensive line. An older player who shows by example how to play and with a bit of a mean edge. (Which is why I would also bring Waters back for one more year).
What do you think ?

Only if it is a reasonable contract. DE Cliff Avril signed a 2-year, 13M contract and he is only 27. Hatcher will be 32 at the beginning of next season. I definitely wouldn't give him more than the Avril contract.

I don't think the Cowboys will want to franchise anyone next year. Franchising Spencer forced them to restructure all other contracts in March including Ratliff's contract. If they could have waited on Ratliff's contract, they could have saved 5.5M by cutting him before game 1.

Speaking of Ratliff, they will have about 6.9M in dead-money on the 2014 cap from his release. They can't take advantage of the June 1st cut rule because they have already released him.

Just keep in mind some of the bad contracts that the Cowboys have had to deal with when considering an older player like Hatcher that is having a career year just before he becomes a Free Agent.

If they have any money to spend on a Free Agent like Hatcher, they also need to consider the alternate Free Agents that are younger. I'm not saying this player is a Marinelli type DL, but DT Linval Joseph will be a free agent after the season and is only 25. He is the type of player that is still on the upside of this career.

 

[Tabascocat]

Well, with Spencer and Ratliff gone and a still decreasing Ware, Hatcher is the only dominant piece left. If he does go elsewhere and Ware is a liability, can the line be saved through the draft? I don't think so. They won't sign a FA(at or near the same price) to take his place, might as well tag or re-sign him then.

It is a tough predicament to be in since they have been burned recently by the exact same situations. There are too many holes to fill and letting Hatcher walk only opens up another one. But, can you sign him and gamble that it pays off at his age? IDK

Maybe releasing Miles and Ware can free up some extra cap space. Maybe there is a younger DL they can sign for half the price. I am fine with whatever direction they go, he does make our a line a lot better than it is.

 

[Questfor6]

If Marinelli is still here next year look for them to make a run at Henry Melton. Rod turned him into an animal in Chicago, plus he's a Texas boy who might cut a homestate discount (esp coming off a torn ACL).

 

[Common Sense]

If Marinelli is still here next year look for them to make a run at Henry Melton. Rod turned him into an animal in Chicago, plus he's a Texas boy who might cut a homestate discount (esp coming off a torn ACL).

It will be interesting to see how things play out if Melton hits free agency. That said, Hatcher seems to have an effect on this locker room that is hard to put a price on.

 

[bayeslife]

I love Hatch and what he's doing, but I'm tired of signing old players to bad contracts. God forbid he gets injured or it turns out this was only a career year.

 

[TrailBlazer]

Remember what hatch said before the season. "Bass is the reason I won't be in Dallas next year."

 

[Common Sense]

Remember what hatch said before the season. "Bass is the reason I won't be in Dallas next year."

That's like saying the team will let Dez walk, because Cole Beasley.

 

[Doomsday101]

I would think the Cowboys will try to get him resigned just have to see how far apart the 2 sides may be. If possiable yeah I keep Hatcher.