Why the Cowboys should stay with Dak, they can't draft one better

[TheDuke]

people think that because a guy like Mahomes comes around, that falls a bit in the draft, once every 7-8 years or so. That drafting an elite QB should be no problem.

People also tend to forget the large number of first round QB’s that not only don’t become elite, but wind up being downright awful. Like half QB’s taken in the first round end up stinking. But people don’t remember them. Especially because it happens to other teams.

Exactly. 100%.
I’m tired of reading posts like the one earlier in this thread.

“draft defense this year and then scout up the qb’s and pick one you like”

I want to ask “which qb? What’s his name and why is he the one?” but I know I’ll never get an answer because they have no idea which one. They just think it’s easy. “Oh we’ll just draft one we like and boom we’ll have Joe Montana”

 

[CouchCoach]

I think the first thing to do is put the Mahomes situation out of your mind, he is at minimum, a generational talent, and when they drafted him, they had a plan to trade Smith.

The drafting of a franchise QB is the single trickiest element of running a team. Aikman was a no brainer and Romo was blind luck. In 2016, this QB was their 3rd choice behind Lynch and Cook. You like their odds of picking the right guy?

Sometimes you want a prime bone-in rib eye but you have to settle for a strip and better sides. The problem with this FO is what they already paid for the sides.

The only other option I see is getting vet QB like Rivers and drafting a QB high in this draft and the following year, if necessary, until they get the guy. However, they have needs of players playing now, not down the road. Any team that is going to have this many players in the top 6 paid at their position, must have 1st year contract players that excel.

Sometimes, you just have to dance with the devil you know.

 

[Diehardblues]

Do we really believe teams will be lined up to pay Dak 40 million? How well does he perform in Miami or Cinn for example without this type of surrounding supporting cast?

Is he the level of Elite QB a franchise can count on to elevate those around him? If not then we need to seriously reconsider if he’s asking for too much which we appear to be doing even with saying we’re All In.

If not pay him and let the chips fall where they may. Maybe we sign Cooper, maybe we don’t. Dak will need to elevate our current receiving corp. And he along with this offense will need to elevate the team cause we’ll have less to provide the defense needed as well .

If Cowboys fans believe Dak is or will become an Elite QB who can carry this franchise to the next level then open up the checkbook and pay the man. I’m sure Fat Mikey will make the most of it.

 

[charron]

Dak + draft pick >? Picked player + 33mil/year

We should have been seriously picking up QBs and trying to develop them.

Should always be the plan.

 

[Diehardblues]

I think the first thing to do is put the Mahomes situation out of your mind, he is at minimum, a generational talent, and when they drafted him, they had a plan to trade Smith.

The drafting of a franchise QB is the single trickiest element of running a team. Aikman was a no brainer and Romo was blind luck. In 2016, this QB was their 3rd choice behind Lynch and Cook. You like their odds of picking the right guy?

Sometimes you want a prime bone-in rib eye but you have to settle for a strip and better sides. The problem with this FO is what they already paid for the sides.

The only other option I see is getting vet QB like Rivers and drafting a QB high in this draft and the following year, if necessary, until they get the guy. However, they have needs of players playing now, not down the road. Any team that is going to have this many players in the top 6 paid at their position, must have 1st year contract players that excel.

Sometimes, you just have to dance with the devil you know.

Of course. Since we can’t trust our leadership to draft a QB potential replacement we must just accept what we have. The ole fear tactic from incompetence. Lol

What are we really gambling? We see what we are now? It wasn’t enough to win arguably worse division.

And we’ve seen what our QB is without pieces of Elite supporting cast. Throw him in Cinn or Miami and see how he does.

This offense is primed to bring in many QB’s that might not make it elsewhere. We don’t need a Mahomes. We need a Tannehill type who aren’t asking for Elite money. So we can continue the Elite supporting cast and use money to beef up defense.

One of these journeyman FA qb might just enhance their career in this offense like Doug Williams , Steve Young or Plunkett did after moving to a better supporting cast. Or a draft pick lower than the top picks on the board late in first or second. Worse case could be an improved backup or future trade bait.

If it doesn’t work we can get up to the plate and swing again next year which would appear much less risky than over committing to what we already know we have.

Now for those that believe it’s been all about coaching then Franchise Tag him so he we can see how he does with this SB caliber HC while also bringing in some competition for leverage.

We don’t have to be stuck with no choices.

 

[garyo1954]

The real question is why is this team so bad at evaluating college QB's?

Where is the disconnect? Romo was undrafted and a suggestion by Peyton.
Dak was like the 4th or 5th choice and the team tried to trade for a guy who ended up a true loser.
Shoot... Jerry was openly heartbroken he couldn't get the trade for that guy!

What is their problem?

In the past it was a problem due to college QBs not being NFL ready. That's no longer true to the same extent.

Looking at the QBs who started in 2019, 6 were rookies. That includes Daniel Jones, Will Grier, David Blough, Gardner Minshew, Drew Locke, and Devlin Hodge. Blough and Hodge were undrafted free agents.

In 2018 the class included Sam Darnold, Bakers Maysfield, and Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson.

2017 Mitch Trubisky and Patrick Mahomes, Deshaun Watson

2016 Dak Prescott, Carson Wentz, and Jared Goff.

2015 Marcus Mariota and Jameis Winston. (By most accounts they will be looking for new teams this year)

2104 Jimmy Garroppolo, Derek Carr

If we use the cut-off of 2016:

Wentz, Goff, and Mahomes already have Super Bowl appearances.
Wentz, Mahomes, Watson, Jackson, Allen all made the playoffs this year.

This means about half the starters in regular season had less than 5 years NFL experience. Five of the starters in the playoffs had less than 4 years experience.

John Elway has proven he's not afraid to churn the QB position, and it appears the NFL is following suit. And in Dallas it doesn't matter who is behind center this year, they will be starting at ground zero with the new system. (This will be the built-in excuse for the Dak suck-ups next year)

Dak Prescott landed in the right place at the right time and is the product of a perfect storm year. Time to quit hoping, dreaming, and standing pat on what you think you have and roll the bones.

 

[CouchCoach]

Of course. Since we can’t trust our leadership to draft a QB potential replacement we must just accept what we have. The ole fear tactic from incompetence. Lol

What are we really gambling? We see what we are now? It wasn’t enough to win arguably worse division.

And we’ve seen what our QB is without pieces of Elite supporting cast. Throw him in Cinn or Miami and see how he does.

This offense is primed to bring in many QB’s that might not make it elsewhere. We don’t need a Mahomes. We need a Tannehill type who aren’t asking for Elite money. So we can continue the Elite supporting cast and use money to beef up defense.

One of these journeyman FA qb might just enhance their career in this offense like Doug Williams , Steve Young or Plunkett did after moving to a better supporting cast. Or a draft pick lower than the top picks on the board late in first or second. Worse case could be an improved backup or future trade bait.

If it doesn’t work we can get up to the plate and swing again next year which would appear much less risky than over committing to what we already know we have.

Now for those that believe it’s been all about coaching then Franchise Tag him so he we can see how he does with this SB caliber HC while also bringing in some competition for leverage.

We don’t have to be stuck with no choices.

Would you like me to list all of the leaderships that have failed on picking QB's? You act like this is easy because you spend more time second guessing after the fact problems.

You don't like this QB, under any circumstances, and have the HC failing before he could even find his office. You can point out problems, can you come with any solutions?

Instead of being so down on Prescott, think of all the QBs they could have had and you can start with Lynch and Cook but don't stop there, take a look back over the 1st round QB's in the last 4 drafts. Trickiest job of a GM.

Sometimes you just gotta play the hand your dealt. Yep, they dealt some of this to themselves with the Elliott and Lawrence contracts but they've got a lot of company because the majority of leaderships make a lot of mistakes.

 

[nightrain]

I wonder what Bridgewater will be looking for? Would he be a smarter play at $25M/Yr than Dak at $35M/Yr?

 

[CowboyRoy]

Our greatest window to win with Dak was during his Rookie contract.

Yep, and your hero Garrett blew it.

 

[Philmonroe]

Exactly. 100%.
I’m tired of reading posts like the one earlier in this thread.

“draft defense this year and then scout up the qb’s and pick one you like”

I want to ask “which qb? What’s his name and why is he the one?” but I know I’ll never get an answer because they have no idea which one. They just think it’s easy. “Oh we’ll just draft one we like and boom we’ll have Joe Montana”

You want to ask all them silly questions because you think Dak is some great qb and trying to put excuses for why not to draft someone better. The draft and he’ll life doesn’t really work like that. You have to scout players and hopefully make the best choice and if it wasn’t like that why would anybody ever pick a bust. That’s why people like you and the whole who is the exact person question is stupid question straight up.

 

[Diehardblues]

Would you like me to list all of the leaderships that have failed on picking QB's? You act like this is easy because you spend more time second guessing after the fact problems.

You don't like this QB, under any circumstances, and have the HC failing before he could even find his office. You can point out problems, can you come with any solutions?

Instead of being so down on Prescott, think of all the QBs they could have had and you can start with Lynch and Cook but don't stop there, take a look back over the 1st round QB's in the last 4 drafts. Trickiest job of a GM.

Sometimes you just gotta play the hand your dealt. Yep, they dealt some of this to themselves with the Elliott and Lawrence contracts but they've got a lot of company because the majority of leaderships make a lot of mistakes.

Of course we can play the hand we’re dealt. It’s a secure blanket that puts butts in the seats , sells jerseys and hope with a following. We’ll see how that following holds up without anymore success.

And I’d like to have seen how Lynch or Cook might have done in this offense. Dak might not have had this level of success where they went ? All speculative.

In recent drafts I’d take Darnold , Allen or Baker. Maybe Watson or even Jackson. I won’t even throw in Mahomes. There’s several . Many QB’s would have a better shot in this offense than most.

If not we could go back to wheel and spin again or FA. You only continue rolling the dice when you’re not content with your hand.

 

[Corso]

In the past it was a problem due to college QBs not being NFL ready. That's no longer true to the same extent.

Looking at the QBs who started in 2019, 6 were rookies. That includes Daniel Jones, Will Grier, David Blough, Gardner Minshew, Drew Locke, and Devlin Hodge. Blough and Hodge were undrafted free agents.

In 2018 the class included Sam Darnold, Bakers Maysfield, and Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson.

2017 Mitch Trubisky and Patrick Mahomes, Deshaun Watson

2016 Dak Prescott, Carson Wentz, and Jared Goff.

2015 Marcus Mariota and Jameis Winston. (By most accounts they will be looking for new teams this year)

2104 Jimmy Garroppolo, Derek Carr

If we use the cut-off of 2016:

Wentz, Goff, and Mahomes already have Super Bowl appearances.
Wentz, Mahomes, Watson, Jackson, Allen all made the playoffs this year.

This means about half the starters in regular season had less than 5 years NFL experience. Five of the starters in the playoffs had less than 4 years experience.

John Elway has proven he's not afraid to churn the QB position, and it appears the NFL is following suit. And in Dallas it doesn't matter who is behind center this year, they will be starting at ground zero with the new system. (This will be the built-in excuse for the Dak suck-ups next year)

Dak Prescott landed in the right place at the right time and is the product of a perfect storm year. Time to quit hoping, dreaming, and standing pat on what you think you have and roll the bones.

Really nice post.

 

[garyo1954]

Really nice post.

Oh, gosh, gee-willickers. You're embarrassing me!

 

[MWH1967]

 

[CouchCoach]

I wonder what Bridgewater will be looking for? Would he be a smarter play at $25M/Yr than Dak at $35M/Yr?

Depends on the Brees situation but he stayed last season as the backup for a reason, I just assumed he was heir apparent. But then he got showcased and did a nice job so his value increased.

The trick to this is the QB market. Is he equal to Cousins and Garoppolo? I think so and that puts him in that transition tag area for Prescott and are they better off to do that?

The key to all of this is exactly what we don't know, what does Big Mike think? He coached against Bridgewater. Or does he have his eye on another that he feels would fit his offense? Or did he come in thinking Prescott was his guy. I dunno but I would have thought if he was a Prescott guy, this would be a done deal. I am spitballin' but I don't think he's on board with Prescott having his shot at redemption in his hands. And then again, this could just be some posturing.

 

[Diehardblues]

The real question is why is this team so bad at evaluating college QB's?

Where is the disconnect? Romo was undrafted and a suggestion by Peyton.
Dak was like the 4th or 5th choice and the team tried to trade for a guy who ended up a true loser.
Shoot... Jerry was openly heartbroken he couldn't get the trade for that guy!

What is their problem?

I’m not sure we can argue we are bad at drafting QB’s. We haven’t really tried since 1989.

Since Aikman retired we’ve used 2nd round on Quincy, 4th on McGee and Prescott and a 5th on White. That’s it in 20 years.

 

[Corso]

I’m not sure we can argue we are bad at drafting QB’s. We haven’t really tried since 1989.

Since Aikman retired we’ve used 2nd round on Quincy, 4th on McGee and Prescott and a 5th on White. That’s it in 20 years.

Good point.

 

[blueblood70]

Don’t have to draft one better.

Saving 40 million a year could get by with less if it affords a greater supporting cast.

these articles do make me laugh NOT BETTER but how about nearly as good for half price? Daks issue is his contract demands not his talent, the cist doesnt match his talent regardless of Market..

market for whom? there are 32 starting QBs there are 20 of them not getting over 25million, some for far less then that.. how far a drop off from a Dak at 34-36mil or a Journeymen for 19-22?

why do we have to draft a qb high, we did get dak I the 3th RW was a 3rd rounder Brady a 6th there not much more guarantees late first qb choice vs a few rounds later.. maybe a Fromm or Hurts can be had in the 4th same place we got dak , Grab a journeymen and put the non exclusive tag on dak, let him seek offers, we can either trade him ofr use him for a year to bridge the gap to our drafted QB, if he holds out we have the journeymen.. but if Dak becomes a 34mil QB we sign him in 21..

there are options with strong run game, Oline, and using FA and Draft to fortify the defense and ST with the new staff, why would we be to scared to go that route?

these constant posts on how we cant do better and we have no options are hilarious.. sure its scaryu maybe we go through a bad stretch like after aikman OR we get a Dak type transion from Romo? yes its risk but we just finished 8-8 with Dak and a old staff that want creaitve , we might be able to reboot seamlessly with little creativity from the staff..I mean how do we not knw that a Hurts type can be the next or close to a Lamar Jackson or use him with a journeymen like they use THill until hes ready?

we do Have ollard and Zeke with the line to make the transition easier..weve missed the playoffs 2 of the last 3 years. so would it be that diffcult ? i dont know i like dak but at 30 or less not what hes asking..

Intersitng off season coming once March hits and all this tag stuff starts developing.

 

[Diehardblues]

these articles do make me laugh NOT BETTER but how about nearly as good for half price? Daks issue is his contract demands not his talent, the cist doesnt match his talent regardless of Market..

market for whom? there are 32 starting QBs there are 20 of them not getting over 25million, some for far less then that.. how far a drop off from a Dak at 34-36mil or a Journeymen for 19-22?

why do we have to draft a qb high, we did get dak I the 3th RW was a 3rd rounder Brady a 6th there not much more guarantees late first qb choice vs a few rounds later.. maybe a Fromm or Hurts can be had in the 4th same place we got dak , Grab a journeymen and put the non exclusive tag on dak, let him seek offers, we can either trade him ofr use him for a year to bridge the gap to our drafted QB, if he holds out we have the journeymen.. but if Dak becomes a 34mil QB we sign him in 21..

there are options with strong run game, Oline, and using FA and Draft to fortify the defense and ST with the new staff, why would we be to scared to go that route?

these constant posts on how we cant do better and we have no options are hilarious.. sure its scaryu maybe we go through a bad stretch like after aikman OR we get a Dak type transion from Romo? yes its risk but we just finished 8-8 with Dak and a old staff that want creaitve , we might be able to reboot seamlessly with little creativity from the staff..I mean how do we not knw that a Hurts type can be the next or close to a Lamar Jackson or use him with a journeymen like they use THill until hes ready?

we do Have ollard and Zeke with the line to make the transition easier..weve missed the playoffs 2 of the last 3 years. so would it be that diffcult ? i dont know i like dak but at 30 or less not what hes asking..

Intersitng off season coming once March hits and all this tag stuff starts developing.

Well done !

 

[DonnyPhoenix]

What's up, CZ? Haven't posted in several years, but have kept up somewhat and thought I'd chime in on one of the many Dak threads with my $.02. I think Dak has more than earned the right and respect to see what he can do with another HC and staff. He's going to get a chunky contract wherever he goes. Guaranteed. He's good. He forced the coaches' and FO's hands with his production and leadership. He's young. 4-year starter and just finished his rookie contract. He's cerebral. He works on something every offseason to improve, and is not involved in BS outside of football. He's a leader. He commands the huddle and his teammates rally around him. You can't fluke your way into the production he's had his whole career. Matter of fact, Dallas didn't really fluke their way into drafting him. They had a certain value on him, but the FO did their due diligence on Dak. When the time came, they took him.

Points:
He's outperformed his rookie contract and his perceived value based on draft position.

The salary cap will never go down.

The starting QB will always be the most important and hardest to fill position on the field due to skillset.

Only one QB will win the SB every year, and it usually isnt the QB who does everything the best who wins it..

DC has the QB they need. Just need to get him signed so he'll be focused on football and not contract negotiations. There will be plenty of money to go around. Dallas is going to have around $80M in cap space this season. Get our O-line healthy and performing up to standard, a couple of D-line pieces, let Heath walk, sign Eric Berry for cheap incentive-laced deal, draft a cpl of DB's(a safety high), and see what this new coaching staff can do.