Dallas Cowboys have decisions to make on free agents Adams, Hamlin
IRVING – San Diego running back LaDainian Tomlinson was cut this week. So was Philadelphia’s Brian Westbrook. Miami will jettison Joey Porter on March 5, freeing the veteran linebacker to go elsewhere.
The free-agent market does not look to be filled with many high-quality, young players, like a Leonard Davis from a few years ago or Albert Haynesworth last year. The addition of these high-priced veterans will make the market a little more palatable to some teams, just not the Cowboys.
But can the Cowboys contribute to the player availability?
With 2010 all but assured of being an uncapped season, teams can kind of look at this year as a get-out-of-jail-free card when it comes to contracts. Because there will be no signing-bonus proration with no cap, teams don’t have to worry about cap hits when cutting a player.
Let’s look at two possibilities: Flozell Adams and Ken Hamlin.
Both are mainstays – Adams at left tackle, Hamlin at free safety. Both mean a lot to their positions. Despite his flaws, Adams remains a solid blind-side protector. Hamlin’s ability to keep the secondary composed is valuable.
But everything comes at a price, even when there is no cap.
Adams has a $2.5 million roster bonus coming his way. He has a $5 million base salary, too. If the system didn’t change, the Cowboys could cut Adams and save $932,000 (give or take) against the cap. Hamlin is guaranteed around $1 million of his $5.596 million base in 2010. If the system didn’t change, it would cost the Cowboys about $2 million of cap room.
Under the upcoming system, it would cost them the $1 million or so Hamlin is due.
To move on from Adams, the Cowboys have to be willing to go with Doug Free or find a guy in the draft. Free played well in Marc Colombo’s absence late in 2009 to the point where the team believes he will be a starter. Is it too much to ask him to protect the blindside right off the bat in a division of solid pass rushers? At some point you have to make a call, and Free is ready.
On the current roster, the Cowboys don’t necessarily have a replacement for Hamlin, although second-year man Mike Hamlin has a lot of fans in the building. Hamlin is a calming influence, but he has not made enough plays the last two years. To make a move on Ken Hamlin, they have to show faith in the Mike Hamlin, find a free agent or take a safety high in the draft and hope he can jump in with a veteran group.
Q: The topic of Julius Peppers coming to Dallas might be an interesting one to toss out there. Could he play a 3-4 outside linebacker for the Cowboys? Not sure how he would fit it with Spencer in the mix . . . more curious to what others think.
Elliott Herndon
ARCHER: You sort of answered your own question. Peppers wouldn’t be an option here because of Anthony Spencer. Peppers is clearly the biggest prize available in free agency, but he should come with a buyer beware tag. He has a knack for disappearing for long, long stretches. For all of the times the Cowboys played him over the last seven years, I don’t remember him dominating games.
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Q:With Jerry Jones having to decide on Marcus Spears, what are the chances we finally give the guy his due? We always base him against other draft picks (hey Ware!) but the guys playing a different position! We got lucky with the Canty/Igor thing, that won’t always happen.
Alan Bradford
ARCHER:Wow, a Marcus Spears fan. There doesn’t seem to be a lot of those. I’m with you. I think Spears does a really good job for this defense and he would be a loss. I like Jason Hatcher and Stephen Bowen, who are restricted free agents, but I think Spears doesn’t get enough love around here. His numbers will never be over the top but he is solid. Being solid helps teams win.
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Q: Why is it that players like Tashard Choice and Kevin Ogletree can play really well with the limited time they are given but they don’t get more playing time? Wouldn’t you put them in there more to see how good they can do?
Zac Lehmann
ARCHER: This is the problem with having one football, but I think you’re right. I think they have to get those guys on the field more to see how they can produce with more touches. Some of it is reliability. Do they know where to go? Do they know the blitz stuff? Sometimes if you give a young player too much, he gets overwhelmed. I don’t think that would be the case for these guys, but I’m just trying to think like the coaches a little. In 2010, I would bet we’ll see more of Ogletree. Maybe not as a starter but certainly more than he played as a rookie.
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Q: How did the Cowboys do last season on changes to improve the team, and what do they need to improve on this year?
Steve Green
ARCHER:Kind of generic here, but we’ll go with the personnel side of things. It’s hard to argue with the contributions made by the free-agent signings of Keith Brooking, Igor Olshansky and Gerald Sensabaugh. They came at a good price, and they all made plays to improve the defense. Going forward, I think the Cowboys need to find another Sensabaugh in free agency. A good player at a good price. They need to find a kicker as well, and I’ve been mentioning Matt Stover as an option, which probably means they won’t get him at all. In the draft, they have to go after offensive line help, and they have to go heavy there because they need to supplement the group with starters of the future.
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Q: Does the coaching staff believe David Buehler has the potential to be a kicker for the team? I don’t see it? What is Connor Hughes’ range?
Ami Heda
ARCHER:I talked to Chris Boniol about Buehler on Tuesday, and he said he liked Buehler’s swing. It’s smooth, effortless. But my worry would be this: He wasn’t incredibly accurate in college. It’s easy to get away with some misses on kickoffs, where it’s mostly leg strength. He has to improve his technique. I think the ability is there, but it shouldn’t stop the Cowboys from going after another kicker either in the draft or free agency. Hughes is a little bit of an unknown, but I think he has a strong enough leg to handle 50-yard plus field goal tries.
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