It's been amusing hearing the guys on Talking Cowboys come around on Hatcher. Prior to the preseason they wouldn't get off Hatcher back about how he's a situational player that you can't rely on, that he makes one play and then disappears for long stretches, that he's being played out of position, etc.
Over the last couple of weeks though, you start to hear them flip their story a bit and compliment him more and more.
Over the last two years he has probably been our best player on defense after Ware and Lee but ahead of Rat and Spencer.
He is on a ridiculous contract and we should really be trying to extend him. He looks like he still has a lot of tread on his tires because of how much time in his career he spent as a part-time player and because he played small Division football.
I would be comfortable at 3 years $12M, $5M bonus. At his age and after the last really stingy FA period that may be enough to entice him to forego a shot at FA. He has never really had a true monster payday as a 3rd rounder who got a couple of small tenders and then 3 years, $6M in FA in 2011 while we gave Spears 5 years, $20M. Shows what the FA knew about the players on their roster. Glad Hatcher got no offers because we did not have much money and he has been very valuable to us.
Realistically, if he were 26 he would be looking at $8M per year based on his play the last couple of years.
