The silly, speculative offseason and how it relates to the Cowboys

It’s all speculative.

Grizz likes to say it’s the silly season in the NFL and it is. But it’s more than that. It’s the speculative season. And everybody’s got a hypothetical.

D. Hall to the ‘Boys? But didn’t he just get traded though? Yeah but Hall says not so fast. Nothing’s finalized and don’t count out Dallas either. My local paper is reporting that Hall was in Oakland Friday but Hall won’t confirm it.

"As of right now, we're still at the same stages that I was at with every other team," Hall said. "New York, Washington, Dallas, and Jacksonville. Nothing has been OK'd on my end. Unless they agreed to something that I don't know about, but I don't think no team is going to sign me without talking to me and getting everything right on my end."

The rating on the Speculation-O-Meter? Very low. Hall is looking for an Asante Samuel-like contract and the Raiders are just dumb enough to give it to him. He’s a great player and all that. He’d arguably be the best cornerback on our team if we got him, although I’d take T-Newman in a heartbeat over Hall. T-New is smaller but faster, tougher and has a cooler head. He’d be a great addition but the money just isn’t there.

Is Nnamdi Asomugha available? Well the Raiders are reportedly trying give Hall $57 million so that’s a lot of money tied up in their secondary if they keep Asomugha. Could this be addition by subtraction? Does the arrival of Hall mean the departure of Asomugha?

The rating on the Speculation-O-Meter? Low. Number one, Asomugha has been franchised and is set to receive $9.8 million this year. Every contract that increases the market, Asomugha benefits. Don’t know about you but in my house that’s pretty good money. So I don’t see Asomugha clamoring to leave Oakland. Even if they get Hall. Could the Raiders repeal the tag? They could. But not likely.

Hat tip to jsams for posting the diary on Hall.

We’ve covered the Pacman Jones saga. But Jennifer Floyd Engel of the Star-Telegram is not satisfied. She’s not a Pacman fan. She wants us to tell Jones to "talk to the hand."

There have been no "hell, no's" leaking from Valley Ranch, rather quiet admissions his name has been discussed. Is still being discussed. As one Cowboys type noted, Pacman's name will go away for a while, then spring back up later in a different conversation, by a different person.

The word is intrigued, not necessarily interested.

Do not touch him -- and not because he introduced "making it rain" to the middle-class, suburban-guy lexicon or because he's a world-class screw-up. He did, and he is.

The reason for the Cowboys to just say no is because you only take risks this big on really good to great players. And is anybody convinced Pacman will be able to return to that level after not playing for a significant period of time?

Tank Johnson certainly was not able to do so.

The rating on the Speculation-O-Meter? Moderate. Jones has to be traded or released before he can become a Cowboy. Neither has happened. There’s mutual interest there. We’re interested and Pacman, is well, desperate. But a whole lot of things have to happen before this deal can become a reality.

Hat tip to scottmaui for his dairy on Pacman here.

There are some high profile Razorbacks expected to go in the first round. Darren McFadden could be a Top 5 pick and Felix Jones should be available at the lower half of the opening round. You know the drill. Jerry Jones is a Razorback through and through. He probably knows the Arkansas fight song and has Tusk, the Razorback live mascot, on speed dial. Will Jerry break the bank to grab one or both Felix and D-Mac?

The rating on the Speculation-O-Meter? High. Not for D-Mac. Sure we have two first round draft picks and Parcells would love to deal with us. But all the indications are that we won’t. Shoot, Jerry Jones can’t even remember the last Razorback he drafted. Maybe because there hasn't been one. On the other hand, all indications are that Felix Jones will be a Cowboy. In mock draft after mock draft, pundits have us taking Jones. With the loss of Julius Jones, the need for a running back is there. With Mendenhall, McFadden and Stewart all set to be gone by the point, Felix Jones is the logical pick.

My point is nobody frickin' knows. We're all just guessing here. But some speculation seems more reasonable than others. I can't see D. Hall coming here. Pacman? Maybe. D-Mac? Probably not. Asomugha? Not likely. Felix Jones? Good possibility.

But don't quote me on that.

Sources used in the story:
Dallas Morning News
The Sacramento Bee
Wikipedia.com
The Morning News
ESPN
Star-Telegram
Youtube.com
The Atlanta-Journal Constitution