Anthony Spencer has long-term deal on table

[Rev]

It just sounds like the agent is weighing the options for Spencer. Not that he actually has an offer on the table. At least that is what I take from it.

 

[Iamtdg]

It just sounds like the agent is weighing the options for Spencer. Not that he actually has an offer on the table. At least that is what I take from it.

Sweet baby Jesus, I hope so.

 

[dbair1967]

It just sounds like the agent is weighing the options for Spencer. Not that he actually has an offer on the table. At least that is what I take from it.

That was my take too.

There's also been no report by anyone who covers the team that they have a long term deal out there for him.

 

[Midswat]

Gaping hole?

Am I the only one that associates that term to porn?

 

[Iamtdg]

Am I the only one that associates that term to porn?

Negative, ghost rider.

 

[dbair1967]

Gaping hole?

Not having solid starting OLB's in the 3-4 would qualify as a "gaping hole"

Even if that was true, what team thinks solely about the here and now?

They arnt, thats why they tagged him. To keep their options open rather than having to be pegged into drafting for need.

Like Spencer being on the team would make the difference between a Superbowl or not. He's shown nothing to warrant a long term contract, he should be happy he's getting an offer.

And obvious upgrade?

Werent you the one who argued with me for days on end about how stupid it was NOT to offer him a long term deal?

And for the record, I dont think they should. I think he's clearly displayed the last two seasons that he is pretty average. He doesnt warrant a long term deal. They did the right thing by insuring they had him for this yr at the least until they figure out if they could have a better option. Or perhaps draft a guy that might not be ready now, but would be ready in 2013.

Who was the upgrade over Gurode?

Pretty obvious they felt Costa could do the job. Ultimately they were wrong, but Gurode wasnt worth the money any longer and Costa had at least showed in practice that he was capable. We dont have anyone on the roster now, nor was there anyone available in free agency they could get that could reasonably replace Spencer.

Everyone knew Newman was gone before Carr was signed, didn't stop people from knowing.

Why are you comparing this situation? Just like with Gurode, totally different set of circumstances. Older guy at the end of his career who's play had clearly dropped off. And they waited until after they signed Carr to release newman, did they not?

Bui

lding a team doesn't involve being scared about one single year. Completely irrational to think that an average player is the difference between winning it all or not winning. That's what Dallas has done with Spencer.

Totally dont agree, OLB in this scheme is critical and without having a definite option to replace the guy, you are just creating another hole that hurts the team.

 

[Jon88]

How can we get Mario Williams if he signed with Buffalo?

Am I missing something?

 

[superpunk]

It just sounds like the agent is weighing the options for Spencer. Not that he actually has an offer on the table. At least that is what I take from it.

So maybe it was just one of those things that didn't need to be said out loud.

 

[bbgun]

So we go from finally getting rid of him, to maybe having to tolerate him for one more year, to staring at the prospect of several more years of his underwhelming play. Somebody please kill me.

 

[superpunk]

So we go from finally getting rid of him, to maybe having to tolerate him for one more year, to staring at the prospect of several more years of his underwhelming play. Somebody please kill me.

I don't think this is a real thing. If he had a long term offer he'd sign it, there wouldn't be any debate.

 

[dbair1967]

How can we get Mario Williams if he signed with Buffalo?

Am I missing something?

I think some believe had they not tagged Spencer, they could ahve signed Williams.

I think its pretty obvious that was never a legit option now.

 

[Everlastingxxx]

Mediocre team. Spencer is the perfect long term player for the Cowboys. Makes sense.

 

[marionbarberthe4th]

I don't think this is a real thing. If he had a long term offer he'd sign it, there wouldn't be any debate.

Unless they low-balled him

Something your people know a lot about

 

[Hoofbite]

Not having solid starting OLB's in the 3-4 would qualify as a "gaping hole"

You're almost as bad as cowboyjoe with the quote function.

They could get an OLB, or is that out of the question?

They arnt, thats why they tagged him. To keep their options open rather than having to be pegged into drafting for need.

Dallas drafted need last year, seemed to work pretty well with Tyron.

Werent you the one who argued with me for days on end about how stupid it was NOT to offer him a long term deal?

I said I would rather he get a long term deal so his cap number would be low and Dallas could bring in quality OL. That was back when quality OL were on the market. Would have been nice to pass on the two pussies they signed and instead acquired a real OL with some history of solid play.

Pretty obvious they felt Costa could do the job. Ultimately they were wrong, but Gurode wasnt worth the money any longer and Costa had at least showed in practice that he was capable. We dont have anyone on the roster now, nor was there anyone available in free agency they could get that could reasonably replace Spencer.

So draft a guy. It's simple, you have a number of picks use one of them to get a guy. Teams do it every year.

Why are you comparing this situation? Just like with Gurode, totally different set of circumstances. Older guy at the end of his career who's play had clearly dropped off. And they waited until after they signed Carr to release newman, did they not?

Because if your only reason for keeping a guy is because you are scared to play someone else, it's all the fucking same. If Dallas had their preference or a set of balls, Spencer wouldn't have been tagged.

Totally dont agree, OLB in this scheme is critical and without having a definite option to replace the guy, you are just creating another hole that hurts the team.

Maybe it hurts. Or maybe they get a guy who could actually take advantage of constant one-on-one matchups.

Never know until you sack up a bit and quit accepting mediocrity.

 

[UVAwahoos]

When you have an inexperienced clown head coach making decisions on guys like Costa and Spencer...and then relaying those decisions to an incompetent GM...you likely end up with an 8-8 team

...and a lot of apologetic excuse-making fans.

 

[dbair1967]

You're almost as bad as cowboyjoe with the quote function.

Yawn.

They could get an OLB, or is that out of the question?

Sure they could, do you know for certain any of these guys are capable of starting THIS year, and not be a downgrade?

Dallas drafted need last year, seemed to work pretty well with Tyron.

Tyron Smith was also the highest rated player on their board at the time, and they didnt move down because none of the other OL's carried a grade anywhere close to Smith's. They had the offer to mvoe in jacksonville's spot and turned it down.

I said I would rather he get a long term deal so his cap number would be low and Dallas could bring in quality OL. That was back when quality OL were on the market. Would have been nice to pass on the two pussies they signed and instead acquired a real OL with some history of solid play.

Eh. Why committ more money long term on a guy you question as the long term answer. Thast typically what creates salary cap issues to begin with. Spend the money in one yr and if he isnt vastly improved you can let him walk and we dont suffer any cap consequences later.

So draft a guy. It's simple, you have a number of picks use one of them to get a guy. Teams do it every year.

I think they shoudl draft a guy. And said player might even be really good. But judging from all the so called experts, there arnt any sure fire 3-4 OLB's capable of coming in from day one and being an everydown player. So keep Spencer for 1yr as insurance, draft a guy who can rotate in with him and hopefully boost the pass rush, then let Spencer leave for without any cap hit next yr.

Because if your only reason for keeping a guy is because you are scared to play someone else, it's all the fucking same. If Dallas had their preference or a set of balls, Spencer wouldn't have been tagged.

Right. Go look at the list of franchise tagged players again and get back to us. Looks like alot of teams would fall in that boat.

Maybe it hurts. Or maybe they get a guy who could actually take advantage of constant one-on-one matchups.

Maybe so, that would certainly be the hope. But can that player hold up vs the run? Can they play in space and cover? Maybe, but probably not. At least not initially.

Never know until you sack up a bit and quit accepting mediocrity.

Its called "covering your bases". You dont let him go free and clear unless you know you've got a replacement set. Otherwise you hurt an already shaky defense more.

 

[Hoofbite]

Sure they could, do you know for certain any of these guys are capable of starting THIS year, and not be a downgrade?

Not any more than anyone can say they would be a downgrade.

Tyron Smith was also the highest rated player on their board at the time, and they didnt move down because none of the other OL's carried a grade anywhere close to Smith's. They had the offer to mvoe in jacksonville's spot and turned it down.

Who's to say that the player available at #14 wouldn't both be a OLB and the highest rated player on their board?

Eh. Why committ more money long term on a guy you question as the long term answer. Thast typically what creates salary cap issues to begin with. Spend the money in one yr and if he isnt vastly improved you can let him walk and we dont suffer any cap consequences later.

Ahmad Brooks can play this year and get cut next offseason and his total cap hit for this year plus the accelerated bonus is only 300K more than the franchise tag for Spencer.

Imagine that, giving the guy a contract where he has to earn the amount of money he takes up and if he doesn't you are in a position no worse than simply franchise tagging the guy. If he does earn it though, you don't have to worry about renegotiating in a year.

Sounds cool doesn't it? What if Spencer plays exceptionally well after a tagged year? Fork out a big contract then?

I think they shoudl draft a guy. And said player might even be really good. But judging from all the so called experts, there arnt any sure fire 3-4 OLB's capable of coming in from day one and being an everydown player. So keep Spencer for 1yr as insurance, draft a guy who can rotate in with him and hopefully boost the pass rush, then let Spencer leave for without any cap hit next yr.

So don't make them an every down player. Identify what Butler and others can do and then draft a guy to fill the other role.

But who's to say you can't find a guy who fits into the system? There was an article a while back about mid-late round picks who played well at that position.

Right. Go look at the list of franchise tagged players again and get back to us. Looks like alot of teams would fall in that boat.

There's a distinct difference between tagging a guy because you want to keep him and tagging a guy because you're so inept at even identifying someone to fill the position.

Maybe so, that would certainly be the hope. But can that player hold up vs the run? Can they play in space and cover? Maybe, but probably not. At least not initially.

Any lack of coverage ability would be a lateral move. Spencer isn't good in coverage, he's good against the run. I'll trade some run stopping ability for better pass rushing ability.

Its called "covering your bases". You dont let him go free and clear unless you know you've got a replacement set. Otherwise you hurt an already shaky defense more.

It's called foolishness. Had they either agreed to a contract earlier and had his cap number lower or let him hit the market the team could have had anywhere from 6-9M to address any holes that may have been created.

You don't think Dallas could have done something with another 6-9M?

If the defense is so damn shaky to begin with it's ridiculously stupid to commit high cap numbers to a guy for a single year.

 

[Hoofbite]

Here's a portion of a reply at CZ I posted:

I think Dallas handled his situation about as poorly as possible. They seemingly were uninterested in negotiating and slapped the tag on him so they could buy more time figuring out what to do, all the while 9M in cap space was eaten up and Dallas passed on other players.

You look at the contracts that other players got and their cap hits for this season, Dallas could have passed on Bernadeau and let Spencer walk and instead they could have signed:

Scott Wells (2012 Cap Hit: 3.5M)
Ben Grubbs (2012 Cap Hit: 2.8M)
Kamerion Wimbley (2012 Cap Hit: 4.3M)

10.6M is almost a straight trade for Spencers tag number and Bernadeau's 1.8M cap hit.

Granted, their numbers increase by a cumulative 11M but given a minimal increase in Bernadeau's contract and the cost of replacing Spencer should they not re-sign him and draft no replacement, what's the total difference?

And speaking of re-signing him, heaven forbid he doesn't have a great year because his price will go even higher.

But just sticking to the tag number of 8.8M, that's essentially 40% of the amount that those 3 players above account for over the next two seasons. It's just irrational.

I'm not sure they could have handled the situation any more foolishly than they did. The only benefit to even getting a long term deal right now would be that they could extend a younger player like Sean Lee (Free Agent 2014) and apply the savings from Spencer to Lee's cap number in order to have Lee's number be a little lower in the future. Same goes for Felix.

At this point, that is the only benefit to giving him a longterm deal right now.

Scroll back some months and extend him before the end of the season and they still could have bagged both the linemen.

Part of me thinks the recent failures are FS and C are part of the reason Dallas is so hesitant to let Spencer go. For some reason they banked on nobodies to fill those other positions after cutting guys and to no one's surprise it failed miserably in both instances. Now they don't want to see that happen with OLB so they compounded one bad decision on another and ate cap space when they should have either extended him earlier or flat out let him go.