Will Re-Signing The Cowboys Offensive Line Be An Issue?

[Nightman]

Did you forget that 9 times out of 10 includes a 1 time out of 10 where it works?

How were you as an algebra student?

I was in the 99th percentile, so I don't assume my decisions are going to be mistakes. I have confidence in myself, not fear.

 

[Toruk_Makto]

I was in the 99th percentile, so I don't assume my decisions are going to be mistakes. I have confidence in myself, not fear.

You were in the 99th percentile in Algebra? That was something they measured. I don't think they do.

I just got an A for my 7th grade class.

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

It's hard to assume anything when a decision on any of them is two years away.

Martin is going to be a franchise player. I'd expect them to hammer out a similar deal like they did with Tyron.

If Collins turns out to be an All-Pro candidate, which he might be, I think he'll get paid too.

Fred is the real wildcard, and I hate it because he's probably the smartest guy in the NFL. I've been taking some intro classes to get a 2nd bachelors in Comp Engineering and it's enough to make a grown man cry. But, he is a center. And if you're going to pay 3 OL you take the two top notch guards and you draft a top center. I think he'll be smart enough to sign a longer term deal that may not pay as much, but gives him a lot of job security.

Normally I'd just keep one guard in this salary cap era. But Collins looks like the real deal. And if Romo's contract comes off the books, you get a QB on a rookie contract, all of a sudden you have a lot more cap space. Surround that young QB with a lot of OL talent and give him the best chance to succeed.

They drafted C first for a reason and Fred's contract comes up first.

 

[gmoney112]

They drafted C first for a reason and Fred's contract comes up first.

Well, yeah. Was Costa still doing his best NFL impression then? I can't remember if he was still there but good lord.

If he's hit with the fifth year option then all their contracts come up at the same time. It'd be a tough decision but if you had to make a decision... I'd take two all-Pro guards. Time will tell anyways

Keep in mind I want them all back. And I think they will be if they perform. I'm just playing ifs and buts. I love me some Tfred.

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

Well, yeah. Was Costa still doing his best NFL impression then? I can't remember if he was still there but good lord.

If he's hit with the fifth year option then all their contracts come up at the same time. It'd be a tough decision but if you had to make a decision... I'd take two all-Pro guards. Time will tell anyways

Keep in mind I want them all back. And I think they will be if they perform. I'm just playing ifs and buts. I love me some Tfred.

I think it's easier to find guards than to find C. Fred might be the best C in the league. Knowing the Jones' they will pay up to keep all 3 of them. Tyron already took a very team friendly deal.

 

[SilverStarCowboy]

Not the first time around.

 

[Garret]

Well, guess that shut me up!! But I still say he's average at best and I can see the point of those that would like to see a stud running behind this O-Line, something similar to when we had Emmitt running behind that beast of a Line from the 90's

Last year he was way better than average. He finished with 4th with 1,085 yards Behind Peterson 1,485, Martin 1,402 and Gurley 1,106

3rd in YPC 4.6 ahead of Peterson 4.5 and Doug Martin leading the pack 4.9.


He wasn't good in the touchdown department but I do think bad qb and some bad play calling played a part in that. If he had good qb play and was featured for 16 could have easily had over 1300 yards. Get a power back to pair him with and you're set.

 

[ABQCOWBOY]

They drafted C first for a reason and Fred's contract comes up first.

I am not sure of what you are referring to here but I think they drafted Center because Fredbeard was the best player on their board. Of course, you can argue that whole Sharrif Floyd thing but it's been done to death. Better to let it die the slow death it deserves IMO. I don't know if you mean to suggest that the Cowboys drafted Center specifically for Cap Management reasons or not, I just think they took him because he was the best player on the board at 31. IDK

 

[Thefeelofcotton]

My dream scenario is that one or more of these guys take less than market value for their second contract so we can keep them all together. Continuity is one of the most important aspects of a successful offensive line, the longer we can keep the same 5 guys together and on the field, the better they will be. I know this is only a dream that is most likely not going to happen. My question is how good will Chaz Green be to possibly replace Doug Free?

 

[CATCH17]

It's not all about the RB, it's about having a OC who takes advantage of the tools he has. If Linehan stuck with the run more last season, not only would we have won more games, but we could have easily been a top five rushing team. How many times were we running the ball well last year and our genius OC decided to pass, or worse decided to pass on first downs. We should have been mauling teams in the forth quarter and keeping our defense fresh when needed. I really hate these guys who think the dink and dunk passing game is as good as the run, can you tell?

The problem more than anything was predictability.

We basically let defenses no whats coming based on the down and formation we come out in.


It's the most half assed playcalling I think I've ever seen.

 

[ABQCOWBOY]

There's always a chance one of them might elect to try free agency instead of agreeing to a long term extension, but it's unlikely, IMO.

Jerry Jones likes keeping players that are worthy, especially when they are former first round draft picks like Travis Frederick and Zack Martin.

We have to go back to the 2008 class, Felix Jones and Mike Jenkins, to find first rounders who didn't get second contracts in Big D. Jones was injury prone and Jenx had worn out his welcome.

La'el Collins is in a different boat than his line-mates, since that bizarre situation led to him going undrafted.

Collins will be eligible to sign an extension next off-season, whereas drafted players must wait until after their third completed season. Dallas may be eager to get something done with Collins in order to bypass his restricted free agency year in 2018.

How big of a commitment would it be after only two seasons? It wouldn't be cheap, certainly, but it shouldn't be too arduous, either.

I expect Fredbeard to get a long term extension next off-season and Martin to follow suit in 2018.

Ideally, I'd want to sign Collins to a three year extension after this season that would run through 2019.

That would put him in line for a big money extension in the '19 off-season.

Frederick in '17, Martin in '18 and Collins in '19.

I think there is more then a chance that they will test FA. They would be stupid not to IMO and I also think that more then just one of them might do this. If you are these guys, you understand that everybody is going to come up on second contracts and the reality is that you can't depend on the organization paying everybody. An Agent would not allow that in any circumstance.

I do understand the reasoning behind the "Jerry will take care of players" thing but I don't know if the 2008 history really is a very good indicator. If you look back, Mike Jenkins and Felix Jones were the two 1st round picks in 2008 and both were gone after their first contracts. 2009 we didn't have a 1st round pick. After that you have Dez who was never going anywhere and then you get right into the drafting of the OL. 2011 we took Tyron. 2012 we took Mo and we have extended him for 1 yr. I don't know that we would have if we weren't in such poor shape in the secondary. To me, that is more of a forced move or we probably would have signed him for more years. If he turns out to be a player, we are going to have to pay him down the road and CBs are not cheap. 2013 we took Fredbeard, 2014 we took Martin and last year we took Jones. I am not sure that we can look at the track record and apply it to this situation.

If you look back to the 90s, we actually did just the opposite. We let Step walk and he was already a three time Pro Bowler. I guess I am not as convinced that we will keep them all. I hope we do but I don't know.

I would not be surprised to see the Cowboys draft a C/G if a player is there for us. If a guy like Nick Martin is there in the third round, I would not be at all surprised to see us take him. JMO