Keeping Players in a Quality Organization
by grapejoos on May 20, 2008 7:51 PM CDT
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PrintThe signings of Newman and MB3 today made me ponder about the quality of the Cowboys' ownership and other sports owners. I came away thinking about how much credit is due to the Jones ownership and what they have done.
Don't get me wrong. This is not intended as a Parcells bashing session. This is a post about what Jones and co have done lately from a football and non-football standpoint. Since Jerry bought the team, he's won 3 Super Bowls under controversial circumstances. He forced out Jimmy Johnson in one of the greatest "what if" moments in the NFL (as in, what if the Cowboys dynasty stayed fully intact). He's made numerous, well-documented mistakes. But he has done one thing extremely well, especially of late: spent money on good players.
Maybe my memory is bad, but I feel like the Joneses do a remarkably good job of keeping good players and treating them well. Players get rewarded for playing well here. There doesn't seem to be any acrimony between players and the team. Philly and Rosenhaus couldn't get along, but it seems win-win for Rosenhaus and Jones. They have certainly given out bad contracts, but lately they seem like fair deals for quality players. The Cowboys have even turned some malcontents around as of late, though Pacman is surely a big test.
It is amazing to me that Dallas was able to sign MB3 and Newman, and it made me think about the players they've been able to retain over the years. I'm a fan of teams in other sports (Braves and Capitals, specifically), and those teams have tormented me with the players they've let get away over the years, for financial reasons or just not seeing the talent. I'm sure that's the case for many of you no matter who you root for. I am trying to think of great players the Cowboys have let go of too soon, and it's very difficult. Draft misses are a different story, so let's leave those out
I want you guys to help me out. Let me know which players have haunted you as former Cowboys. . All I can come up with is Jimmy Smith, and to a lesser extent Ken Norton Jr. And I have a pretty good feeling Julius Jones isn't going to end up on that list.
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Great post grapejoos
Jimmy Smith, maybe Mark stepnoski and Kevin Gogan come to mind but step and gogan were victims of the then new salary cap. Now that we have some good players, the jones’s are keeping up with themselves and doing an EXCELLENT job of signing quality young guys.
Stephen Jackson
I guess Marion Barber helps ease that pain.
"Why everything that's supposed to be bad, Make me feel so good?"
There isn't any doubt they reward their players for performing well
Stepnoski was a cap-casualty, Hershel was the trade that built the team in the 90’s, and the LB’s position were never rewarded, or given high contracts. The theory was that Dallas could replace them cheaply., and it worked.
But the Cowboys, after escaping salary cap hell, make an effort to keep their best players. It’s the reason we aren’t like the Skins, and have to over spend on other teams cast offs.
T-New, shutting down WR's for Dallas since 2003
I think we spent too much on Barber. BUT what is done is done. REALLY GLAD to keep TNew.
Now for the real monster coming:
WARE.
break the bank-Ware
Is there OLB in a 3-4 that has signed a big contract in the last year or two?
"Why everything that's supposed to be bad, Make me feel so good?"
No, but there are guides
Suggs just got a new franchise tender for a DE/OLB. I suspect Ware will get paid in the same range as Freeney/Allen/etc. Hopefully Merriman will sign a reasonable deal first.
Ware’s gonna get paid big time, but Glenn coming off the books should help. Hopefully there’s one more deal we can renegotiate. I think getting everyone signed is actually looking possible.
Ware will sign for around $10-11 mil per year
thats the going rate for the best OLB/DE in the game today.
In Romo we Trust
Not sure it is an issue
with the opt-out of the contract will there be a salary cap? Everyone is fighting about the old contract (owners) but the union is wanting out of the cap entirely. Sure it is a posturing but without agreement among the owners on revenue sharing the bigger clubs may say go ahead – no cap!
So I assume your numbers are good but will that be an uncapped year?
Aldridge said. "We feel like we can beat any team. We feel like we can beat the Spurs, Suns, Lakers, Mavericks, whoever any night right now, and we'll still be here when those teams get old and their guys retire. We're going to be here for a long time."
I believe that we spent just the right amount on Barber. I mean, he’s going to be much more productive this year. I doubt he’ll trade off every series like he did last year and he will have a potentially improved run blocking line paving the way for him. Barber will produce the numbers that his contract denotes.
i hope so!
i am so eager to finally see him as the feature back—with guys with great potential as Jones and Choice changing things up and spelling him so he can endure into the playoffs (and future seasons)—and only time will tell how productive he is, but there is a reasonable chance that what you say will be true. And what is contract denotes will be fun to watch!
JImmy Smith wasn't a controversial cut
As I recall he had an appendix issue, along with a poor work ethic, after being drafted in the 2nd round. He was picked up by Philly and then released by THEM also. It wasn’t till he got to JAX that he turned it around. So it’s not like they knew he was a star in the making and just chose not to re-sign him or he was a cap casualty or anything like that.
I am going to show my age with this pick:
Todd Christensen
Lifetime Cowboys Fan from the Swamps of Jersey
The thing I remember about Christensen......
..is that he was a FB at BYU and Landry wanted him to change to TE and he pitched a fit, didn’t want to do it. So he was released; only to get picked up by the Raiders who promptly switched him to TE. He didn’t seem to have much of a problem accepting the switch after having been kicked to the curb once for refusing to switch :-)
Jim Zorn?
I have this vague memory that Jim Zorn was in the Cowboys training camp before getting cut and going to Seattle. He would not have played much behind Roger Staubach and Danny White, so there was no haunting with him, but I cannot find any reference to his being with the Cowboys. Does anybody else remember his being with Dallas?
Lifetime Cowboys Fan from the Swamps of Jersey
Jim Zorn was signed as an undrafted free agent from Cal Poly.....cut during training camp....1978 I believe...
A true diehard Cowboys fan since 1975.
"If you don’t take him off the field as a coach, he will just about die out there," Jerry Jones said. "That impacted my decision. It’s a Michael Irvin-type work ethic. That’s what we are talking about with Felix Jones."
- Owner/G.M of the Dallas Cowboys , Jerry Jones
I think it was earlier than '78
because wasn’t he the ‘Hawks first QB and they started playing in 1976.
In Romo we Trust
Zorn was a late cut to make room for a running back
Preston Pearson who was cut by the steelers, Zorn was picked up by Seattle and was their starter from 76 to 82
what a great addition Pearson was
one of my favorite Cowboys of the ‘70s. Who can forget his diving catch in the ‘75 NFC Championship game against the Rams, classic!
In Romo we Trust
Thanks for your comments
It shows my age a little, I only started following the Boys in 1991. So, seems like Jerry’s done well. I wish all of the teams I loved were owned by Jerry Jones.
guess i was off a few years....
A true diehard Cowboys fan since 1975.
"If you don’t take him off the field as a coach, he will just about die out there," Jerry Jones said. "That impacted my decision. It’s a Michael Irvin-type work ethic. That’s what we are talking about with Felix Jones."
- Owner/G.M of the Dallas Cowboys , Jerry Jones
Late Contribution
How about Steve DeBerg. I seem to recall he was drafted by the Cowboys in the late 70’s and was a late training camp cut. The one that got away I wish we had kept was Steve Wisniewski in early 90’’s I believe.
Wisniewski-G was traded for Mark Stepnoski-C on draft day....
either way we ended up with a pro bowl o lineman.
A true diehard Cowboys fan since 1975.
"If you don’t take him off the field as a coach, he will just about die out there," Jerry Jones said. "That impacted my decision. It’s a Michael Irvin-type work ethic. That’s what we are talking about with Felix Jones."
- Owner/G.M of the Dallas Cowboys , Jerry Jones
The Issue I Have With Ownership is the Front Office Team
Jerry is not a football guy and not having a football guy as GM has created some serious personnel blunders. But even bigger than that, is the failure to find a long-term solution to the head coaching position that was vacated when Jimmy Johnson left. Switzer, Gailey, Campo, Parcells…I just want to scream when I think about the blunders. And now, if Wade can’t elevate this team’s performance, there will be lots of Wade-bashing and shouts of how Garrett will be our savior. Not me, this is bigger than that.
I have to give them failing grades for not installing a football-savvy group to run the day-to-day operations and find the right head coach to lead this team to a championship.
Period. End of story.
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