With the labor negotiations between the NFL owners and players moving along, the optimism that we'll have an end to the lockout soon has never been higher. Along with that, we might finally get back to talking football, roster spots, training camps and all those good things about an offseason that we've been robbed of in this 2011 spring and summer. We had a draft, but that other big mover of personnel, free agency, has yet to happen. Based on the calendar and the expectations of the league trying to avoid missing any games, even pre-season games, it looks like the free agency period for 2011 will be compacted into a few short weeks coinciding with the beginning of training camps.
As OCC posted previously, the league is looking at going back to the '4 years of service for free agency' plan that was the standard before the uncapped year of 2010. That would mean the Cowboys would have a handful of important free agents in-house that they would need to take care of in addition to signing anybody from around the league. Doug Free, Stephen Bowen, Jason Hatcher would all become FA's if the rumor is true, and Kyle Kosier is one no matter what rules are agreed to under the new CBA. Those are some important names to decide on, especially the two linemen and Bowen.
And none of us can forget about the huge hole at safety, where Alan Ball will likely shift back to cornerback and the Cowboys still need to decide on last year's starting strong safety, Gerald Sensabaugh. That's a lot of uncertainty in the middle of the defensive secondary.
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On the edges of the secondary, the Cowboys have players, but at what level will they play? Terence Newman's play has been declining, especially with constant nagging injuries, and Mike Jenkins went from prized up-and-comer to a 'what-the-heck-was-he-doing-out-there' season in 2010. So with that, the question has been hanging out there all offseason - will the Cowboys pursue the biggest free agent fish out there, Nnamdi Asomugha?
Earlier this week, Peter King listed the Cowboys as the number two most likely destination for Asomugha, right behind Philadelphia.
2. Dallas. Go back in history. Remember when Jerry Jones, against the wishes of son Steven, gave Deion Sanders a $13 million signing bonus in 1995 to come to Dallas? (Jerry thought his son was going to punch him over it.) Jones has the ability to fit Asomugha under his cap. With Tony Romo and DeMarcus Ware the only huge-money players on the roster, the Joneses can find a way to shoehorn an Asomugha contract into the fold.
Sounds intriguing, I don't think any Cowboys fan would mind having some of Asomugha's talent on the team. But just as quickly, Matt Mosley threw cold water on that fire from his Twitter account.
I noticed Peter King had Cowboys No. 2 in Nnamdi sweepstakes. But I'm told by Cows' officials that's a LONG shot.
So what do you think? Is Nnamdi as a Cowboy a longshot or a real possibility? Our friend Dan Graziano has a list of free agent CB's he likes, could one of them make their way to Dallas?