Why are the Cowboys being so conservative with the Cap?

[MichaelWinicki]

I was really talking about Dez and Murray. If we are going to forgo FA for the most part then we should have the money to keep our core guys.

That's a fair argument. But at this juncture both guys seem to think they're worth more than what the club does... I can respect both positions. Sooner or later someone will have to give.

 

[skinsscalper]

I was really talking about Dez and Murray. If we are going to forgo FA for the most part then we should have the money to keep our core guys.

I think when it's all said and done, both will happen. Just my opinion, of course, but I think they both are locked up long term when the dust settles.

 

[NoLuv4Jerry]

All these guys were brought in at bargain prices. As soon as they asked for big money, they were gone.

Also guys like Branch, Vrabel, Welker and Seymour were shown the door when when it was going to cost them big dollars. Thier guard last year whose name escapes me. They bring in guys cheap and when they ask for the moon, they are sent packing.

The only exception is Brady who is the face of the franchise.

They have brought in many guys, but never at top dollar.

I recall Adalius Thomas being a big signing. I recall Revis being a big signing. I don't think they were paying Randy Moss peanuts. I don't think they were paying Talib peanuts. My point is...we need help. When Darren Sproles was available...and AFFORDABLE...we were told we already had an in house solution..Felix Jones. When he became available again....we were told we already had a guy...Laurence Dunbar. I am not saying I am the expert on WHO to bring in. But the teams that are winning....when they get close...they bring somebody in to boost them over the top.

The team we fielded last year was good...but not good enough. Remember what Parcells said...you never stay the same...you either get better or you get worse...well we were not good enough last year...and if we return with less talent this year....it STILL will not be good enough.

 

[calico]

The team we fielded last year was good...but not good enough. Remember what Parcells said...you never stay the same...you either get better or you get worse...well we were not good enough last year...and if we return with less talent this year....it STILL will not be good enough.

Three straight 8 and 8...

 

[cowboyvic]

I recall Adalius Thomas being a big signing. I recall Revis being a big signing. I don't think they were paying Randy Moss peanuts. I don't think they were paying Talib peanuts. My point is...we need help. When Darren Sproles was available...and AFFORDABLE...we were told we already had an in house solution..Felix Jones. When he became available again....we were told we already had a guy...Laurence Dunbar. I am not saying I am the expert on WHO to bring in. But the teams that are winning....when they get close...they bring somebody in to boost them over the top.

The team we fielded last year was good...but not good enough. Remember what Parcells said...you never stay the same...you either get better or you get worse...well we were not good enough last year...and if we return with less talent this year....it STILL will not be good enough.

Yep. one good thing about it, is we will find out this coming year if Murray leaves here. i am going to say it again. no Murray. a unhappy Dez. and the same kind of defense we had last year. could turn out really bad.

 

[jterrell]

The answer is because it is a good business model.

Being cap flexible allows you any number of moves and the worst way to use that space is overpaying in free agency.
The team has cleaned up it's cap mistakes as it shuffled off Ratliff, Austin and a few others.
That dead money hurts.

Also having a lot of space allows the team to make trades and moves for high priced guys without continuing to need to push post June 1st cuts and eat large dead sums 2 years after a player has played his last game for the team.

The first couple days of free agency ALWAYS favor the players.

The team feels like you get value later in the process and value is how you end up stacking talent.
The Cowboys tried the go for it, cap heavy model for 15 years with little no success.
One year of fiscal responsibility and they win 13 games....

 

[big dog cowboy]

Yep. one good thing about it, is we will find out this coming year if Murray leaves here. i am going to say it again. no Murray. a unhappy Dez. and the same kind of defense we had last year. could turn out really bad.

Bet you still think we are going 6-10 last year also.

 

[coult44]

Dallas should do what they are doing it is working. The critics as always will claim to know better yet the same critics gave Dallas no chance in hell to win last season. They do know what they are doing and we are in day 2 of FA with a lot of time before the end of FA.

You can't copy NE, unless you have Brady and Belicheck. Period!!

 

[Doomsday101]

You can't copy NE, unless you have Brady and Belicheck. Period!!

Dallas is not copying NE, NE is over the cap. Dallas was not going to be making a big splash in FA. They will be active they will address needs but they are not going to start over paying for guys who are not worth the money they are getting. I like Carter but 5 mill a year? that is dumb but that is what Tampa did and that is why Tampa is in the shape they are in. They did that with Mike Johnson paying big money and got little in return. Dallas will be getting good players in FA without making these dumb moves that tampa and Jacksonville are doing

 

[coult44]

Dallas is not copying NE, NE is over the cap. Dallas was not going to be making a big splash in FA. They will be active they will address needs but they are not going to start over paying for guys who are not worth the money they are getting. I like Carter but 5 mill a year? that is dumb but that is what Tampa did and that is why Tampa is in the shape they are in. They did that with Mike Johnson paying big money and got little in return. Dallas will be getting good players in FA without making these dumb moves that tampa and Jacksonville are doing

Save this, come back and check it in a few weeks...

 

[jterrell]

You can't copy NE, unless you have Brady and Belicheck. Period!!

NE has almost exclusively dumped guys when they were too high priced.
See Vince Wilfork, Revis this year, Logan Mankins and any number of other guys.
NE gets value for their spend. PERIOD.

The biggest thing the two SB teams had in common was extreme value up and down the roster versus the cap.

 

[xwalker]

They've been telling you for weeks why. FA's generally garner contracts that far outweigh their playing abilities. JG is building a young team via the draft . It's no coincidence last years team was successful. They were one of the youngest teams in the league. Signing high priced FA's is counter intuitive to having good team chemistry.

Team chemistry is a good answer.

I think there are reasons other than the cap per se.

 

[texbumthelife]

I never in my wildest dreams thought I would see people complaining about Jerry being cheap.

This board is borderline unbearable sometimes. Ridiculous.

 

[NoLuv4Jerry]

Three straight 8 and 8...

20 straight years of no Super Bowl titles...Super Bowl apperances....heck not even a NFC title appearance. What is the goal here?

 

[NoLuv4Jerry]

Dallas is not copying NE, NE is over the cap. Dallas was not going to be making a big splash in FA. They will be active they will address needs but they are not going to start over paying for guys who are not worth the money they are getting. I like Carter but 5 mill a year? that is dumb but that is what Tampa did and that is why Tampa is in the shape they are in. They did that with Mike Johnson paying big money and got little in return. Dallas will be getting good players in FA without making these dumb moves that tampa and Jacksonville are doing

NE also JUST WON THE SUPER BOWL. They have been to 6....6...since our last Super Bowl appearance. So whatever they have done and/or are doing....has worked! Would you mind being in cap hell if you have a Super Bowl ring to show for it? We have been in and out of cap hell over the last 20 years with ZIP to show for it. So IF....IF they are in cap hell.....I would argue coming off a Super Bowl win....they should consider it a badge of honor!

 

[Eddie]

People complain when the Cowboys spend too much money and they complain when the Cowboys don't spend enough money. They just can't win with some folks.

I agree. Handing out big contracts to high priced FA's has done wonders for us in the past. Let's keep continuing to go for the splash.

 

[birdwells1]

People complain when the Cowboys spend too much money and they complain when the Cowboys don't spend enough money. They just can't win with some folks.

This logic is incorrect because those groups are different.

 

[Doomsday101]

NE also JUST WON THE SUPER BOWL. They have been to 6....6...since our last Super Bowl appearance. So whatever they have done and/or are doing....has worked! Would you mind being in cap hell if you have a Super Bowl ring to show for it? We have been in and out of cap hell over the last 20 years with ZIP to show for it. So IF....IF they are in cap hell.....I would argue coming off a Super Bowl win....they should consider it a badge of honor!

I respect what NE my point was Dallas is not using the playbook of the Pats but they are being smarter about how they handle the team by not over spending on the next shinny object out there. You guys want a 1 or 2 year fix while I see Dallas making moves to keep the window of opportunity open for a longer period. People will say it is based on Romo? I disagree. I think Romo has a window in which he can play however once he does leave I would not be opposed to using 2 #1's to move up in a 1st rd to take a top QB from the draft and at least I would know they have a good team in place for him to have a good chance to develop. Dallas spent some times doing things the wrong way we have just began over the last 2 to 3 years of doing things the right way and it will pay off in the end.

 

[BigD_95]

I believe we should sign an impact pass rusher because I don't think you can find one where we pick in the draft. And that takes money. A lot of it.

So there goes your theory out the window.

I agree. We need to sign a impact pass rusher. You wont draft a guy that will step in and in one year be a great player. We need to sign a pass rusher.

 

[USMarineVet]

There is plenty of money. and Jerry is more than happy not to spend it to help make the team better. and he and his son get nothing but praise from the local media, and from some fans, who thinks it's just great.yet the franchise has won nothing in going on 20 years. and there is no pressure to go out and get top free-agents anymore. Jerry must one happy man. he can put that extra money in his pocket.

With respect, I don't think this is the case. It's more about being wiser and more prudent; and learning from the mistakes of the past. Restructuring in many ways is like borrowing from Peter to pay Paul. And at JJ's age, I truly believe that he would gladly trade all that extra money he saved in his pocket if it meant winning a Super Bowl. The thing is... there's a smart way to win one and a not so smart way. We've been vesting ourselves in the not so smart way for too long, hence no SB's in 20 years. The Cowboys are exercising a smarter way to build the team now. They're focusing on managing the cap in a more disciplined way and drafting talented, low cost players so that when they are in a cap-friendly environment they can pull the trigger on the so called "one missing piece". This new strategy makes a lot more sense towards putting a perennial playoff team on the field than the old way.

I know it's frustrating watching other teams pull that trigger, but Rome wasn't built in a day.