Why do we suck so bad in free agency?

[Cowboyny]

Drafting is all fine and dandy, we don’t even do that well....

But we are flat out terrible in free agency...get cheap scrubs of whom many don’t even make the team or get cut after a few games

It's more to do with their strategy to build just through the draft process.

 

[Whyjerry]

Drafting is all fine and dandy, we don’t even do that well....

But we are flat out terrible in free agency...get cheap scrubs of whom many don’t even make the team or get cut after a few games

For the last couple decades plus, scouts have turned over, coaches, players, stadiums but the one constant is...the GM. 25 years and counting of futility. That’s why we suck.

 

[rnr_honeybadger]

People have amnesia but they had a very good offseason in 2019...8-8. They have other issues other than free agency.

No, we were given media driven hype to believe these were good off-season based on a pick here and there. This franchise does not draft well because it is ruled by incompetence in the front office. Starting with Jerry and his idiot spawn.

 

[nobody]

/thread

 

[Ranched]

 

[LACowboysFan1]

Just a thought -- it's too bad we can't return Tex Schramm to life as our GM -- he had a knack for bargaining that our FO can't touch!

Jimmy was very good at that also...

 

[Doomsday101]

Just a thought -- it's too bad we can't return Tex Schramm to life as our GM -- he had a knack for bargaining that our FO can't touch!

Tex was a complete cheapskate. Cowboys of that era where one of the lowest paid teams Cowboys players would go to pro bowls and talk with players who were amazed at how little Cowboys players were paid. Since there was no FA and little player movement in those days Tex did not have to worry about losing players.

 

[LACowboysFan1]

The Cowboys primary objective in free agency is to be cheap.

No, not really cheap, but their salary cap focus is, and always has been with Jerry, is to have a few "superstars" and fill in the rest of the team with average players.

That can work, but it's hard and requires quite a bit of luck and of course proper evaluation of the free agents, and the evaluation part is where the Cowboys fall short...

 

[LACowboysFan1]

Tex was a complete cheapskate. Cowboys of that era where one of the lowest paid teams Cowboys players would go to pro bowls and talk with players who were amazed at how little Cowboys players were paid. Since there was no FA and little player movement in those days Tex did not have to worry about losing players.

And the salaries were much, much lower, but players could make up for the lower pay because the Cowboys were always in the playoffs, and won consistently in the playoffs, the playoff money compensated for the lower base salary. If Tex was a "complete cheapskate" he wouldn't have been able to get players like Adderly, Alworth etc. Those guys could have gotten more money elsewhere, but they looked at the total compensation package and signed with Dallas...

 

[LACowboysFan1]

Drafting and free agency are both total lotteries. No team is good or bad at either, just lucky or unlucky.

No. There is skill involved. No team hits on every player, for sure, and like with Brady teams do get lucky.

If it was just luck Dallas would have had more success in both, after all we're dealing with 26 YEARS of both...

 

[Doomsday101]

And the salaries were much, much lower, but players could make up for the lower pay because the Cowboys were always in the playoffs, and won consistently in the playoffs, the playoff money compensated for the lower base salary. If Tex was a "complete cheapskate" he wouldn't have been able to get players like Adderly, Alworth etc. Those guys could have gotten more money elsewhere, but they looked at the total compensation package and signed with Dallas...

Staubach himself talked about how cheap Tex was. You are right the salaries were lower because players had little say. Players were acquired in trades and that was pretty much it. They did not shop their services around. I have read quotes from other Cowboys players of that time who would say the same as Roger, they would go to the pro bowl and be talking with other players and those players were shocked at how little Cowboy players were being paid.

As for Jerry yes Dallas does not overpay in FA but because of that the cap remains manageable to be able to sign key players. It has nothing to do with being cheap, Cowboys spend big money just as all NFL teams do. It is a different NFL these days and while there are many things I loved about Tex the fact is he did not pay his players at the same rates others around the league were getting paid.

 

[CWR]

We are better than average at drafting. We suck at FA because we'd rather sign several bargain players than one or two legit players.

 

[Carson]

We are better than average at drafting. We suck at FA because we'd rather sign several bargain players than one or two legit players.

Facts.

Give me 1 legit starter over McCoy, Poe, Worley and HaHa

 

[CATCH17]

Free agency is for people who are bad at drafting. Cowboys are amazing at drafting.


Dak, Bryon, pre accusal Zeke, Gallup


All ballers

Denver bought a championship.. Rams almost bought a championship.

Even the Patriots get involved. KC bought a defense.

Dallas does nothing. Secret sauce.

 

[CalPolyTechnique]

Because we generally have a thrift shop bargain bin approach to free agency.

I agree with the general philosophy of not trying to build a winner through free agency but I do think there’s nothing wrong with filling starting spots when appropriate.

 

[ClappingCarrot]

Stephen hunts the bargain bin. He's told us numerous times he doesn't like FA because you pay good players great player money. That's how you end up with guys like Daryl Worley and Dontari Poe. It's arrogance and ignorance in the highest degree.

Jerry talks all the time about how he wants to win now, yet we are so frugal with our cap situation, even when Dak was making 1M a year. Why not sell out and grab top tier talent and make a legit run at a title? The Broncos a few years ago, then the Patriots a few times, then the Eagles. Those guys spent cash to get some guys on the field. Sure none of those guys are any good now, but they got Lombardi's while we are still stuck in 1995, watching our last Super Bowl run on VHS.

 

[rnr_honeybadger]

Denver bought a championship.. Rams almost bought a championship.

Even the Patriots get involved. KC bought a defense.

Dallas does nothing. Secret sauce.

Tampa is about to do it too. Jerry meanwhile is trying to prove he can recreate the triplets without realizing that those 90s Cowboys teams were more than just the bloody triplets.

 

[LACowboysFan1]

Staubach himself talked about how cheap Tex was. You are right the salaries were lower because players had little say. Players were acquired in trades and that was pretty much it. They did not shop their services around. I have read quotes from other Cowboys players of that time who would say the same as Roger, they would go to the pro bowl and be talking with other players and those players were shocked at how little Cowboy players were being paid.

As for Jerry yes Dallas does not overpay in FA but because of that the cap remains manageable to be able to sign key players. It has nothing to do with being cheap, Cowboys spend big money just as all NFL teams do. It is a different NFL these days and while there are many things I loved about Tex the fact is he did not pay his players at the same rates others around the league were getting paid.

Salaries were cheap all over the league, many players in the 60's had off season jobs, I'm pretty sure most GMs weren't altruistic, that's not how they got to where they were....

 

[DUO_CORE]

Because we like our guys and must trust the process.

 

[Jake]

Drafting is all fine and dandy, we don’t even do that well....

But we are flat out terrible in free agency...get cheap scrubs of whom many don’t even make the team or get cut after a few games

Because these guys will never be fired no matter how poorly they do their jobs.