Doug Free might not be done in Dallas

[Midswat]

Posted by Josh Alper on February 21, 2013, 8:08 AM EST


When looking at ways that the Cowboys can solve their salary cap woes without causing too much damage to their chances of winning, it’s hard not to turn your attention to right tackle Doug Free.

Free was awful in 2011 as both a run and pass blocker while tying for the lead for the most penalties in the NFL. By the end of the season, he was splitting time with undrafted one-time defensive end Jermey Parnell and the Cowboys didn’t suffer at all from his absence. All of that comes with a $7 million salary and a cap hit of a little more than $10 million, a combination of factors that doesn’t add up to a guy you’d expect to see back in Dallas.

The Cowboys might not see things the same way. The Dallas Morning News reports that executive vice president Stephen Jones said Wednesday that he “wouldn’t rule Doug out” for the 2013 season and that it is “speculative” to suggest that they’d cut Free two years after giving him a four-year, $32 million deal.

There’s no trade value to protect, so it’s not like Jones is trying to find a buyer for Free’s services by feigning interest in keeping him around. That leaves a pay cut, but it would have to be a pretty severe one since it is hard to believe the Cowboys couldn’t find someone to do even a little bit better for a fraction of the cost.

 

[Midswat]

Pay cut? Aren't there rules about those, like a players salary can't drop more than something like 10% what it was the previous year or something? I could be way off.

 

[dbair1967]

Free will be gone.

 

[jeebus]

Pay cut? Aren't there rules about those, like a players salary can't drop more than something like 10% what it was the previous year or something? I could be way off.

I thought that was Deion rule, and it had to do with front loading the contract into years with a sh1t ton of cap space.

 

[carphalen5150]

I think you can cut him, then bring him back at a lower rate...so it is a pay cut in the form of a new contract. I don't endorse this though, he is terrible.

 

[superpunk]

I think you can cut him, then bring him back at a lower rate...so it is a pay cut in the form of a new contract. I don't endorse this though, he is terrible.

Didn't Baltimore do that with McKinnie this season?

 

[ZeroClub]

It doesn't matter how much of a pay cut Free is willing to accept ... he's still not the answer.

 

[superpunk]

It doesn't matter how much of a pay cut Free is willing to accept ... he's still not the answer.

He's capable. He's done it before. If he can get healthy (I think theebs has posted some reasons he might not have been) and we get him back at a reduced rate then I think if we replace Livings we could have at least a "solid" line. I think if we go with this wholesale replacement, no matter how good the replacement parts are - we'll see alot of the same next year. Just because it takes so long to develop the chemistry to get the line calls right. It's maybe not the best solution but it might work.

 

[Cowboysrule122]

Free sucks. Cut him.

 

[ZeroClub]

He's capable. He's done it before. If he can get healthy (I think theebs has posted some reasons he might not have been) and we get him back at a reduced rate then I think if we replace Livings we could have at least a "solid" line. I think if we go with this wholesale replacement, no matter how good the replacement parts are - we'll see alot of the same next year. Just because it takes so long to develop the chemistry to get the line calls right. It's maybe not the best solution but it might work.

It is a tough situation, isn't it?

Free was good for a while there, but over the past two years he's fallen off rather dramatically. I'm in favor of cutting ties with him now. But you are right, it'll cost significant resources to get a higher quality replacement and it'll take a while for the rebuilt OL to play well together.

Jerry seems content to field a ragtag OL with JAG spare parts starting at G,C,G ... and perhaps at RT too. So the chances of allocating a lot of resources to rebuild the OL seem rather slim. I wish Jerry would try it, though.

(It irritates me when I remember the way Jerry went on and on about the UDFA from Memphis, as if Jerry scored a starter for nothing.)