The value of Leary

[Verdict]

Leary will be a restricted free agent this year, which of course means that the Cowboys will probably tender him at the second round tender. We will either have the value of his services for another year, or we should get a second round pick in exchange.

That is an embarassment of riches on the offensive line, and I am ok with that. In fact it is awesome. If we get a second round pick for him, that's awesome too.

But this post is about more than that. There are teams which have ****** offensive lines who desperately need a player like Leary. Some of those teams probably have an abundance of cap room to resign him. Whereas, if we keep him this year, we might get a comp pick for losing him, but the odds of us resigning him to a market deal after this year seems unlikely.

What do you guys think he would net in a tender and trade situation? Would you move him this year for a 3rd? For a 2nd rounder he is long gone, IMHO. Do you think there are any teams that would be willing to cut loose with a draft pick, or player for player swap for him?

 

[big dog cowboy]

No one will give up a 2nd rounder for him. So Leary is a tender and trade situation or we are letting him walk with a comp pick next year is what will happen if we are eligible to get a comp pick for him. I would rather see the Cowboys trade him then lose a comp pick because of FA signings.

 

[CF74]

If we are going to lose him I'd be happy with a 4rth, a 2nd would be a coup...

 

[Hardline]

We have a better than average guard to back up Collins. Leary's greatest value to this team is depth.

 

[CCBoy]

We have a better than average guard to back up Collins. Leary's greatest value to this team is depth.

Leary should be seen as a top notched depth player. He is currently at the very top of his projected game. He has value, even if not marketable...

 

[darthseinfeld]

I still think the best place to get value is player for player. Doesnt happen that often but very doable for a player on a rookie deal. They will have to extend Leary, but I see him getting a Koiser type deal so I don't think that would be a huge detraction. I think the HB position would be a prime to to use a Leary trade to upgrade.

Id call Atlanta about Coleman, LA about Tre Mason and SF about Hyde. All those teams could use a an upgrade on the line

 

[CCBoy]

I still think the best place to get value is player for player. Doesnt happen that often but very doable for a player on a rookie deal. They will have to extend Leary, but I see him getting a Koiser type deal so I don't think that would be a huge detraction. I think the HB position would be a prime to to use a Leary trade to upgrade.

Id call Atlanta about Coleman, LA about Tre Mason and SF about Hyde. All those teams could use a an upgrade on the line

Leary still has a knee that can blow at any time...and those runners are pretty valued by their respective teams.

 

[darthseinfeld]

Leary still has a knee that can blow at any time...and those runners are pretty valued by their respective teams.

Coleman probably. Mason wasnt too productive last year and Hyde doesnt fit Kellys offense. Hyde is also coming off a knee injury

 

[jterrell]

I think the accepted way to handle this is to tender him an R2.
But I hesitate to do that.
It's a cap cost of 2.5M for 1 year.
Not terrible of course but you'd presumably have a very bitter player.
You took his job even though he played quite well, handcuffed him and kept him form earning 10m-15m in the open market.

So.... I'd offer him as a right of first refusal. ~1.7M cap cost.
Let him test his market. Offer trades for a 4th rounder or cheap veteran we value.
Give him the best chance to land where he likes and recoup a strong/fair return quickly

 

[speedkilz88]

I think the accepted way to handle this is to tender him an R2.
But I hesitate to do that.
It's a cap cost of 2.5M for 1 year.
Not terrible of course but you'd presumably have a very bitter player.
You took his job even though he played quite well, handcuffed him and kept him form earning 10m-15m in the open market.

So.... I'd offer him as a right of first refusal. ~1.7M cap cost.
Let him test his market. Offer trades for a 4th rounder or cheap veteran we value.
Give him the best chance to land where he likes and recoup a strong/fair return quickly

Tendering him 2.5 is the only thing to do and that is what he and his agent will expect. worrying about a player being bitter over a tender is silly.

 

[CCBoy]

I think the accepted way to handle this is to tender him an R2.
But I hesitate to do that.
It's a cap cost of 2.5M for 1 year.
Not terrible of course but you'd presumably have a very bitter player.
You took his job even though he played quite well, handcuffed him and kept him form earning 10m-15m in the open market.

So.... I'd offer him as a right of first refusal. ~1.7M cap cost.
Let him test his market. Offer trades for a 4th rounder or cheap veteran we value.
Give him the best chance to land where he likes and recoup a strong/fair return quickly

Conflicts in the defensive line, shows how very important offensive line depth remains. Romo getting hurt?

 

[slick325]

Watch for the Vikings being interested in Leary and for their 2nd. Seattle as well...

Hoping it happens because this team needs more talent and depth all over the board.

 

[Verdict]

Watch for the Vikings being interested in Leary and for their 2nd. Seattle as well...

Hoping it happens because this team needs more talent and depth all over the board.

Dallas seems to have a pretty good eye for offensive line talent lately. I know they really wanted Trai Turner in the mid rounds of the draft and he has turned out pretty well for the Panthers. If we got a second for Leary, we could use the second to shore up the defense and take a guard in the 3rd round to groom for depth.

Also, position flex is a good thing to have, but I would rather have a guy who is dominant at one position rather than a pretty good guy who can play two positions reasonably well, as a starter. Swing tackle might be a slight exception to that rule.

 

[big dog cowboy]

Watch for the Vikings being interested in Leary and for their 2nd. Seattle as well...

Hoping it happens because this team needs more talent and depth all over the board.

Bottom 2nd round would be wonderful. My mouth is watering over these 6 picks:

4
34
Late 2nd (Leary)
67
4th round (plus comp 4th)

 

[Verdict]

I don't think they will let Leary go for a 4th round pick, he is too valuable to the team as quality depth/potential starter material, you probably can't get his replacement for a 4th round pick. For a 2nd rounder, I think he is long gone, no matter how low of a second round pick (on our end).

The third round is a lot more of a grey area. Top of the 3rd round you can do a lot with. By the end of the 3rd, most high probability starters will be gone unless you select a deep position with that pick. If it is not a very deep position, you probably have only about a 50/50 chance of hitting on the drafted player late in the 3rd, at best.

 

[CATCH17]

If we could get a 4th or even a 5th for him i'd do it.

Otherwise just keep him.

 

[Stash]

I think the accepted way to handle this is to tender him an R2.
But I hesitate to do that.
It's a cap cost of 2.5M for 1 year.
Not terrible of course but you'd presumably have a very bitter player.
You took his job even though he played quite well, handcuffed him and kept him form earning 10m-15m in the open market.

So.... I'd offer him as a right of first refusal. ~1.7M cap cost.
Let him test his market. Offer trades for a 4th rounder or cheap veteran we value.
Give him the best chance to land where he likes and recoup a strong/fair return quickly

I disagree.

I've been looking around at opposing teams and in terms of offensive line, we are in an incredibly enviable position. Not only do we have young, quality starters at four of five positions at minimum, but we have depth coveted by the rest of the league with Leary.

Taking a look at Seattle, Philadelphia, Atlanta, and Minnesota in the NFC alone, have big needs at guard with plenty of teams in the AFC needing help too. There simply aren't enough good ones in the league right now and we're blessed to be overstocked.

I'm absolutely tendering him at that 2nd round level because I think I can at best get that, or at least a 3rd rounder.

 

[Stash]

I was wondering - just hypothetically - if Leary could possibly have value to the Titans if we were possibly interested in their #1 overall pick? Word is that they're trying to fortify their offensive line to better protect Mariota and help their struggling running game. It's possible that a trade down could net the, not one, but two offensive line starters by the 4th pick of the draft?

I'm not saying that our pick plus Leary would be enough obviously, but if they had interest it might help lower the cost if we absolutely felt that there's a huge difference between Wentz and Goff.

 

[big dog cowboy]

I was wondering - just hypothetically - if Leary could possibly have value to the Titans if we were possibly interested in their #1 overall pick? Word is that they're trying to fortify their offensive line to better protect Mariota and help their struggling running game. It's possible that a trade down could net the, not one, but two offensive line starters by the 4th pick of the draft?

I'm not saying that our pick plus Leary would be enough obviously, but if they had interest it might help lower the cost if we absolutely felt that there's a huge difference between Wentz and Goff.

One would think Leary would have value to the Titans. But I'm not trading up for anyone.

 

[Stash]

One would think Leary would have value to the Titans. But I'm not trading up for anyone.

I can't blame you on that. I was just thinking hypothetically if the Cowboys loved Wentz, and felt he was worth the cost associated in trading up.