What’s up with Lawrence?

[Bullflop]

He was coached by his agent to play the only leverage he had, I don't fault him. I fault the FO for not putting better players around him. We hope Quinn makes a difference and maybe Gregory can come back but those DT's are the weak part of the D.

Whether his agent gave him sound advice certainly remains a point of contention. Hard to say if he would have gotten the lucrative contract that he did without holding his shoulder surgery hostage. It didn't do any favors for DL's popularity, however, along with the incident with that young kid. It's been forgiven by the Dallas hierarchy and possibly, by many, if not most of the fans.

Rod Marinelli loves his lightweight DTs, that's for sure. As long as he remains our DC, it might well continue being a weakness. It'll be interesting to see what his replacement will be whenever he retires. You've got to wonder if bigger and better DTs become commonplace with the Cowboys.

 

[nate dizzle]

Anyone have a good source that tracks individual quarterback pressures? Would like to see where Lawrence is on that list year over year.

 

[blueblood70]

whats up with all the whats up posts about all the players , ironically the ones who got PAID.. let me tell you, players arent judged by few games , they have season stats, after 16 we can go over Zeke, Jaylons, and Tanks stats..

right now its way too soon..

just like the other spectrum, Daks playing great but its two freaking games..its long season, save the judgments for after the season..

on Tank, we were lucky he made it back game 1 let alone be starting..so lettings him play his way back into shape and the defense as whole finding heir stride is the way to go..

they talked about it in game when they said tanks got a lot of attention on him ie a target noone on the line scares them, well Hopefully Quinn remedies that..

seems to me the money/contracts off season of drama surrounding them has made the fans be hyper-focused on the play snap to snap and thats not fair and utterly ridiculous..

 

[kskboys]

Whether his agent gave him sound advice certainly remains a point of contention. Hard to say if he would have gotten the lucrative contract that he did without holding his shoulder surgery hostage. It didn't do any favors for DL's popularity, however, along with the incident with that young kid. It's been forgiven by the Dallas hierarchy and possibly, by many, if not most of the fans.

Rod Marinelli loves his lightweight DTs. As long as he remains our DC, it might well continue being a weakness. It'll be interesting to see what his replacement might be whenever he retires, no doubt.

I do fault him. To put off getting yourself fixed to hold the team hostage is a pure chickenpoop move. Very cowardly.

 

[jrumann59]

Watch the games.

Man, fantasy stats make people stoopid.

Aye,the one sack the defense got from Crawford is because DLaw had 3 guys commit to blocking him on one stunt.

 

[Bullflop]

I do fault him. To put off getting yourself fixed to hold the team hostage is a pure chickenpoop move. Very cowardly.

It wasn't my idea, that's for sure. I'm certainly not condoning that move, although, as fans, there was nothing we could do to change it. They put the Dallas FO in a very precarious position in doing so. Nevertheless, it worked to DL's advantage, judging by the contract he was awarded. Yet, it really does seem a chicken poop way to handle that situation. Holding one's surgery hostage isn't in the best interest of the team, under any circumstances.

 

[jnday]

whats up with all the whats up posts about all the players , ironically the ones who got PAID.. let me tell you, players arent judged by few games , they have season stats, after 16 we can go over Zeke, Jaylons, and Tanks stats..

right now its way too soon..

just like the other spectrum, Daks playing great but its two freaking games..its long season, save the judgments for after the season..

on Tank, we were lucky he made it back game 1 let alone be starting..so lettings him play his way back into shape and the defense as whole finding heir stride is the way to go..

they talked about it in game when they said tanks got a lot of attention on him ie a target noone on the line scares them, well Hopefully Quinn remedies that..

seems to me the money/contracts off season of drama surrounding them has made the fans be hyper-focused on the play snap to snap and thats not fair and utterly ridiculous..

When a player signs a big contract like Lawrence, there are high expectations that comes with it. Fans expect big things from him. As I posted earlier, two games is not enough to judge him on, but he has been quite so far. I don’t consider the team lucky to have him on the field at this point. It is expected and he would have been in much better shape if he would have done the responsible thing and had his surgery within a week or two after the season ended.

 

[CouchCoach]

I do fault him. To put off getting yourself fixed to hold the team hostage is a pure chickenpoop move. Very cowardly.

I don't see that as cowardly at all. They were stuck in negotiations and he'd played the good soldier and taken his tag and played well through most of the season.

Was the team unaware of the time frame for healing that shoulder and when he'd be at 100%? They played the game right along with him and they knew they were going to acquiesce to his salary demand. They strung it out more than he did.

ksk, your post leads me to believe that you still believe that team means anything to these players and that they should put the team's needs above their own. That has actually never existed, it was just forced on the older players before FA.

I accept the NFL, and all pro sports, for what it is. Team means very little, it's all about each individual getting as much as they can while they can and not one of them gives a damn about the cap restrictions or if other players will have to be sacrificed in order to meet their demands. It is 100% all about selfishness.

 

[CouchCoach]

I will never understand why people think that Demarcus Lawrence is a stud DE.

He's the only stud DL they have and they've been dependent on him to the point of wearing him out. Sound familiar? They did the same thing to Ware.

 

[jrumann59]

When a player signs a big contract like Lawrence, there are high expectations that comes with it. Fans expect big things from him. As I posted earlier, two games is not enough to judge him on, but he has been quite so far. I don’t consider the team lucky to have him on the field at this point. It is expected and he would have been in much better shape if he would have done the responsible thing and had his surgery within a week or two after the season ended.

4 down lineman 5 OL sometimes a TE or RB, how many guys can be double or triple blocked before the QB gets sacked????? DLaw has seen a lot of Doubles, TE and RB chips. THe issue is less him and more the over rated talent next to him like Maliek "I am breaking out, again" Collins, Woods and Crawford at RDE

 

[CouchCoach]

Whether his agent gave him sound advice certainly remains a point of contention. Hard to say if he would have gotten the lucrative contract that he did without holding his shoulder surgery hostage. It didn't do any favors for DL's popularity, however, along with the incident with that young kid. It's been forgiven by the Dallas hierarchy and possibly, by many, if not most of the fans.

Rod Marinelli loves his lightweight DTs, that's for sure. As long as he remains our DC, it might well continue being a weakness. It'll be interesting to see what his replacement will be whenever he retires. You've got to wonder if bigger and better DTs become commonplace with the Cowboys.

I think the advice proved to be sound, it got the deal done and I believe the pressure exerted on the club by the waiting surgery is what got it done.

Let me ask you what you would advise your client to do with a team with the history of dragging out contract negotiations with high profile players? This is by design, they want to remain a page one story because that is more important to this team than any other. They've already shown their hand and Lawrence's and Elliott's agents played it just as they should have. They're still milking the Prescott and Cooper negotiations. Look at all of the clownish "a deal is imminent", "oh, we're not talking right now", "Dak wants 40M", all designed to keep them in the news. They are both pathetic in their need for the spotlight and what other team has to have a radio show for the Daddy clown and the Sonny Boy clown? Everything they do, everything this team does is designed to keep them in the celebrity circus.

 

[kskboys]

I don't see that as cowardly at all. They were stuck in negotiations and he'd played the good soldier and taken his tag and played well through most of the season.

Was the team unaware of the time frame for healing that shoulder and when he'd be at 100%? They played the game right along with him and they knew they were going to acquiesce to his salary demand. They strung it out more than he did.

ksk, your post leads me to believe that you still believe that team means anything to these players and that they should put the team's needs above their own. That has actually never existed, it was just forced on the older players before FA.

I accept the NFL, and all pro sports, for what it is. Team means very little, it's all about each individual getting as much as they can while they can and not one of them gives a damn about the cap restrictions or if other players will have to be sacrificed in order to meet their demands. It is 100% all about selfishness.

I disagree completely that "accepting" the franchise tag is playing the good soldier. That is very high pay, enough to retire on for one year of salary.

Key word: "demand". He is demanding to be overpaid, not paid. If he would've gotten around 18 mil/season, he would be just as rich and would've been more ready for the season.

These guys are being paid exorbitant amounts to play a game. On the other side of the coin, this really ridiculous idea of "getting paid" is the actual twisted idea.

I'm quite simply not the greedy type, CC. I'd rather play for 18 mil/season and have better players around me than to get a bit more and lose. And that often becomes the real choice.

 

[CouchCoach]

4 down lineman 5 OL sometimes a TE or RB, how many guys can be double or triple blocked before the QB gets sacked????? DLaw has seen a lot of Doubles, TE and RB chips. THe issue is less him and more the over rated talent next to him like Maliek "I am breaking out, again" Collins, Woods and Crawford at RDE

Wish I could Like this more, I am going to give you one of my Love's, now cherish it because I don't just hand these out to all the posters.

That is the hammer coming down squarely on the nail. This is not about the DE, it's about the DL that they've failed to build right and listening to a DC that didn't build the one in TB or CHI. And they picked Hill based off Marinelli's relationship with Hill's old HC and the player.

They've got a potential stud LB corps but they're not going to see that until they get some better DL to keep the OL off the LB's.

 

[kskboys]

I think the advice proved to be sound, it got the deal done and I believe the pressure exerted on the club by the waiting surgery is what got it done.

Let me ask you what you would advise your client to do with a team with the history of dragging out contract negotiations with high profile players? This is by design, they want to remain a page one story because that is more important to this team than any other. They've already shown their hand and Lawrence's and Elliott's agents played it just as they should have. They're still milking the Prescott and Cooper negotiations. Look at all of the clownish "a deal is imminent", "oh, we're not talking right now", "Dak wants 40M", all designed to keep them in the news. They are both pathetic in their need for the spotlight and what other team has to have a radio show for the Daddy clown and the Sonny Boy clown? Everything they do, everything this team does is designed to keep them in the celebrity circus.

That's fine, but then the player should be ready to catch a pile of flak.

There are other important things in life than money. Respect, loyalty, integrity. IMO, DLaw gave up all of these. And IMO, it is not worth it.

 

[CouchCoach]

I disagree completely that "accepting" the franchise tag is playing the good soldier. That is very high pay, enough to retire on for one year of salary.

Key word: "demand". He is demanding to be overpaid, not paid. If he would've gotten around 18 mil/season, he would be just as rich and would've been more ready for the season.

These guys are being paid exorbitant amounts to play a game. On the other side of the coin, this really ridiculous idea of "getting paid" is the actual twisted idea.

I'm quite simply not the greedy type, CC. I'd rather play for 18 mil/season and have better players around me than to get a bit more and lose. And that often becomes the real choice.

Easy for us to say when not really faced with that decision but I do not see ANY players taking less to keep more players around them, I see just the opposite. Like Flacco's comment not wanting to force the team to let players walk and then doing just that. Every player gets the max he can get and Brady didn't take less to keep players around him, he did that to stay in NE.

ksk, when I finally accepted what pro football really is, I gave up on that team concept, it is all about the individuals getting as much as they can while they can and it is every man for himself. I don't watch football any longer, I watch millionaires playing a game and doing their best to say "look at me" to the world. Which is why I spend less time watching the games every year because I don't like this at all. I try to fool myself into believing the players back in the day wouldn't have been this way and that is foolish. They would have gone for the money, if they could have.

I wish Lawrence had done the "right thing" for the team and me instead of the "right thing" for himself but that's not the way of this business. I accept anything they do to get paid and even understand the ego need to be the highest paid at their position because they live in a business and a world none of us really know. If we think there isn't money envy in every locker room in the NFL, we haven't been paying attention. They have their own pecking order.

 

[CouchCoach]

That's fine, but then the player should be ready to catch a pile of flak.

There are other important things in life than money. Respect, loyalty, integrity. IMO, DLaw gave up all of these. And IMO, it is not worth it.

For you, it's not but that's putting your own values in line with a NFL player.

And I don't want to give the wrong impression, I am not a money hound and never have been. I was offered more money to walk across the street in 4 markets I worked in and never did. However, I do understand people that are money driven and that's how they keep score.

I don't think Lawrence or Elliott didn't think there could be repercussions by the way they used their leverage and I'd bet they and their agents discussed that before proceeding with that strategy. They decied the reward was worth the risk.

My man, know what the problem is? Making these salaries public. Why can't they just publish a team's standing against the cap without any details about individual salaries? That only feeds agents and player egos and it didn't used to fuel the talk during games but try and watch a game without that now. It is part of the game as it has ruled this forum all off season.

Hell, I didn't know what my favorite players made back in the day and I sure as hell didn't hold that against them when they made a mistake. But now, it's all about the money. Lawrence isn't the player he was because he's getting paid more now. Elliott was a bargain but now will be held to a higher standard all because of the money he's making.

 

[CowboyStar88]

I think D-Law is getting his legs under him. His “sack” stats aren’t showing up yet, but you can see he’s getting close. Guy missed OTA’s and TC due to the surgery. Yes, I know he should’ve had it earlier, but it was his leverage for his contract and I’m not gonna hate on the dude for it.

 

[CowboyStar88]

I created a thread under the same title and same concerns concerning D-Law. I hope that huge contract didn't go to his head or starts affecting his performance.

If you follow Tank at all it would be a safe bet to say this isn’t a thing at all. This dudes work ethic and drive is what you’d want in a guy who just got paid.

Follow his SM, I’d love to have a team full of Tanks and Dak. This is the same guy who bet on himself on a tag with no guarantee if he got hurt.

 

[CowboyStar88]

I do fault him. To put off getting yourself fixed to hold the team hostage is a pure chickenpoop move. Very cowardly.

Was playing on a Franchise tag with no guarantee if he was seriously injured cowardly as you put it?

 

[IndianaCowboys1994]

It really gets old every year knowing that the DL and safety positions are problems on the defense. Drafting Hill was an attempt to improve the situation, but Dallas passed in some very good safety prospects to draft a DL that is a project player that has a long way to go before developing into a decent player.

Yeah. Like I said they aren't "bad" but they aren't "great" either. Just average. They need a difference maker. That's why the Hill pick made no sense. I just think a safety will impact a game more than a defensive tackle. Think about it...Xavier Woods/Jeff Heath have more of a say in the outcome of a game than Maliek Collins or Antwaun Woods. It is a passing league. Usually your ends are the ones who pressure the QB. Yes, there are a few exceptions (Aaron Donald, Fletcher Cox)