Antrel Rolle Goes To Giants; Cowboys Fans Celebrate

I know, I didn't and can't defend Roy. I have defended that it wasn't an awful trade in the sense that we gave up too much for a pro-bowl WR. But there is no reconciling it considering we could have had Michael Oher, or any of the other productive players at the bottom of that draft.

And over the past 10 years, there have been 310 teams that have been unable to seal the deal. 110 of them have been playoff teams. Heck, the Patriots and Colts have been the best 2 teams in 2000's, and they have one SB victory combined in the last 5 years.

Winning a Super Bowl makes a team great, but winning consistently makes an organization great.

The Cowboys from something like 1966 to 1988 had a winning record. That's just unheard of. While I hate to do it, the Steelers have never had to rebuild from scratch. They have had an occasional bad season, but in the Super Bowl era, they never had three back to back 5-11 seasons. Usually they hang around 7-9 or better. That's damn impressive.

Oh did I forget to mention that "great trade" for the underachiever Mr. Williams....yikes...but on the plus side Miles Austin developed nicely and Feliz Jones seems to be a player....the defense is better....so what is the problem?????

Joe,
You certainly do offer some nice explainations, but, again, the Cowboys have had the talent for years, but can't seal the deal...and, IMHO, it all falls back on one person-Jerry Jones.
Maybe things will change this season, but I wouldn't bank the house on it.

OK Nick,

What were the alternatives? Hindsight is 20/20. What other coaching prospect is there other than Wade who has a proven record of winning regardless of the talent. Not Shanahan, not Cowher, not Gruden. They may have Super Bowl's behind them, but there are so many wasted years and poor personnel decisions. Cowher won his Super Bowl partly due to god awful officiating. Shanahan got his with arguably the greatest QB of his generation, if not ever. Gruden took a Super Bowl caliber team and slowly turned it into a joke.

Remember that Parcells left a few weeks after the season was over. If you want to claim Tomlin or Wisenhunt were available, they weren't. They were snatched up quickly. If we fired Parcells immediately after the playoff loss to the Seahawks, then yes, Jerry would have shown him the door.

TO wasn't the best WR and considering Moss was available for a 3rd or 4th round pick (I don't recall), there were better personnel decisions out there. Until that final year, TO was a productive player and a great signing. And then he went crazy, again. It wasn't his fault that season went to pot. The Cowboys suffered a ton of injuries on both sides of the ball, and they weren't a good team. Though, TO and his antics certainly contributed to an unpleasant work environment.

Tank Johnson wasn't that awful. Everyone likes to point out that he is a bad guy, but he wasn't a problem off the field while in Dallas. The reason he's not in Dallas, is because he wasn't a factor on the field.

And Adam Jones... it was a great risk reward move. We were giving a guy his last shot and if it worked, we got a top 10 cover corner and were paying him like a 4th round pick. Jerry hedged his bet and when Jones was suspended, we got a pick back from the Titans. It didn't work out, but I thought it was a stroke of genius.

Parcells left of his own volition. Jerry wanted him to stay. It wasn't even because of TO that Parcells left. A year after, he threw Romo under the bus and said that he couldn't believe that such a fundamental play as the hold on a field goal dictated the outcome of the game. I love Parcells, but that ticked me off.

Joe!
Not managerial?
Por favor, que no seas bobo pues!
Do not the names T.O., Tank Johnson, PacMan Jones ring a bell? Or letting Jerry's ego get in the way and allowing Bill Parcells to leave and hire Wade "What have I ever won" Phillips run the show?
Of course there were managerial errors made by Mr Egomaniac Jones.
The Cowboys have more talent than any other team in the NFC East, and what have they won these past dozen years?
I don't mean to sound rude, but, come one!!!! If Jerry wants to get all the credit, then he also gets all the blame when it comes to failing to win a Super Bowl since....when was the last time exactly?????
Gee...the Rams have won....the Pats have won....the Saints, the Colts, the Giants, the Steelers, the Packers, the Broncos...need I go on?
But is Jerry better than Snyder?
Well that is like asking which was the better cruise?
The Titanic or the Lusitania?

I acknowledge that you have valid concerns, but in a season without a cap, the biggest spender was the Bears. The Cowboys haven't signed one free agent, nor have they resigned their stars to ginormous contracts front loading all the money into the uncapped year.

The problems with the team have not been at a management level.

On offense, 8 starters were drafted or free agent rookies (Romo, Crayton, Witten, Austin, Barber, Felix Jones, Adams, and Gurode).

On defense, only Hamlin, Sensabaugh, Brooking and Igor were free agents. The remainder of the players were drafted.

I hated Jerry in the mid to late 90's because our drafts were completely useless. Either he has improved, or he has found better individuals to whisper sweet somethings in his ear.

I do think he occasionally usurps Wade's authority which is counter productive to winning, but I'll take today's Jerry Jones over todays Dan Snyder.

Joe!
While I agree with some of your points, I repeat that Jerry Jones had agreed to follow the by laws of the NFL when he joined.
However once in the club, Jerry had his own ideas. I have no problem with that, but when you piss off old-time owners (i.e., Wellington Mara and the Rooney family) who backed his addmission, well I do have a problem with that.
Now Jerry wants to get rid of revenue sharing and he has already pissed of the NFL Commish...not usually a smart thing to do, but I digress.
Your reference to baseball is a valid one, but in baseball there is no parity, something that the NFL strives for.
What Jerry would like to do is become more like the Yankees. The Yankees have a vast revenue to draw from, especially now that they have partnered with the Cowboys and have tapped into the Japanese market...but again I digress.
But in baseball there is no parity and teams like the Yankees and Red Sox can and do outspend the competition while paying a luxury tax, which is baseball's way to maintain the illusion of parity. Teams like the Royals or Pirates never have ANY chance to compete.
The NFL wants to avoid this scenario. Jerry wants to change it.
The power struggle has begun. If Jerry has his way, he will maintain a competive edge at the risk of losing franchises in the league. So my question is, what would be the point of being more competive than the Cowboys already are, if Jerry puts the whole NFL at financial risk?
The Cowboys' problems these past seasons are not financial, but managerial. If Jerry wants his team to return to predominance in the NFL, he need to look no farther than the mirror when he shaves in the morning.

The NFL is comprised of Billionaires who are used to doing things their way, which usually coincides with doing things the right way (not moral way).

Yes, Jerry has kept the rights to the logo as it relates to clothing and made separate deals with companies, and I don't think that was the wrong thing to do.

If the league isn't maximizing your earning potential, then why go along. As a fan, it sucks not being able to get any licensed apparel on the clearance rack, and it especially sucks when I have to pay $50 for a nice sweatshirt. But on the flip-side, the sweatshirt I'm getting is a good quality item that lasts me for several years. The stuff from Kohl's, K-mart, gas stations, will last a few months.

I'm part of several committees for my daughter's school, and the more decision makers you add, the hard it is to get anything done.

This may be a tangent, but the Pittsburgh Pirates are one of the most profitable baseball teams in the league. The NY Yankees are constantly in the red. There are owners who don't care about winning and are just looking to line their pockets with revenue sharing. If you take some of that away, maybe they will start making a greater effort to market their team, sell the stadium naming rights, etc. so they stay in the black.

The NFL is a collection of capitalists attempting to work in a socialists environment. It's amazing the system works at all.

When Jerry Jones joined the NFL he agreed to abide by certain guidelines, all of which he has tried to to undo once he got into "the club."
Merchandising profits were shared by the league, but Jones decided that he wanted the profits from the Cowboys all to himself. The NFL had an agreement with Coke, but Jones negoiated a seperate deal with Pepsi. Now he wants to undo revenue sharing. As a me-first business man, he can try, BUT the commish has already told Jerry, enough is enough....Why should Jerry breast feed smaller markets? It is for the health of the NFL. If you and Jerry want a smaller NFL, okay...but the commish and the majority of the league owners are not in agreement with Jerry.
While I agree with you concerning the issue of building new stadiae (or is it stadia?? My latin is a bit rusty), Jerry should realize that a healthy NFL means a healthy Cowboy franchise....but that greed gene seems to run deep in Jones.....

Nicholas,

We want to pay attention to the Cowboys, but they aren't doing anything. They aren't losing anyone, they aren't gaining anyone. It's driving the fans nuts, and people like me and Marion are trying to think of stuff to write. It's difficult to write about nothing.

So, we have to consider how the moves of the teams we play affect our team.

Jerry was a big proponent of the salary cap when it was first instigated. I think he is justifiably tired of breast feeding the small revenue teams (not small market). Pittsburgh an Green Bay bring in enough revenue that they aren't readily accepting a handout. But there are teams, the Bengals for instance, who don't maxamize their revenue. They could have sold the stadium rights for several million per year, but instead of doing that they named it after a family member. I believe they also have the smallest scouting staff.

In Minnesota, the area is refusing to build a new stadium. Why should Jerry have to shell out 700 million to build his stadium and give welfare to the Vikings because their local population and owner aren't willing to do what is economically necessary.

Jerry was fined because he was trying to cajole those in Minnesota to build a new stadium. He did mention revenue sharing which brought the fine, but his intentions were to help the Vikings franchise.

In the CBA, I am actually siding with the owners. Some are making less than their star player. Sure 15 million per year is great for the average joe, but it is a horrible return on investment for 1 billion dollars. They would have a better ROI from US Savings bonds.

MBIIIEffect,
Whether the siging of Rolle is a bad idea or a good idea is indeed debatable, however I believe that the Cowboys and their fans should concern themselves first with their team, as should fans of any team.
You have a point about Rolle's signing...a Sports Illustrarted article points out that most free agent signings do not work out, and paying Rolle that much money is an act of desperation, in my opinion.
However, if you wish to debate economics, then start with your own owner, as Jerry wishes to do away with revenue sharing. Something that has been in place for years inorder ro insure the economic security of the NFL, especially that of small market teams like the Packers. BUT Jerry, ever the me-first greedmeister that he is, only cares about his money. Thankfully the commish has fined Jerry for his open-mouth, insert-foot comments about revenue sharing and will fight Senor Jones over the issue.

cowboysdude.

One or two plays can determine a game or a season. I think if Favre doesn't make that ridiculously perfect pass for a TD the game against the Vikes stays close. Heck, throw in Flozel staying healthy for the game, and things may turn out better.

The Cowboys aren't that far away, and sometimes staying with the status quo isn't such a bad thing. With the rookies, maybe the formula works in the next year because the players are one more year seasoned.

From what I can see this team is still a little ways away from a SB. We keep losing defensive players over the last 2 years while Jerry continues to sign and overpaying the likes of Hamlin..etc.

Still need another WR, more DL players, some new O line players and most importantly a REAL O Coordinator.

MiCah..JJ stupid? The Giants sign the maybe 10th best safety to the largest contract of any safety in the NFL..Same bunch that overpaid for Chris Canty..How did that work out?

Hen..This article is insulting and stupid..and you ask what difference 11-5 makes? Now that is stupid..

I too don't get the Barber hate..The guy is a frigging warrior and averaged 4.4 yds a carry..

Jon..In the 3/4 scheme there is virtually no difference between the SS and FS..With 4 LB'S they are in coverage a lot more than in the 4/3..Are you getting that? Plus..Madden like? Dollars are still dollars..Last off season JJ spent millions to secure his players because he knew what was coming this off season..Pretty stupid of you not to notice that..

We are only a few days into Free Agency..So where were all the good teams?..Sitting pat waiting for idiot teams to reach..Detroit..Giants..Chicago..Want to look at their combined record from last season..

Good post Hat..but judging by the level of panic in the responses..seems Todd might be on to something..

MBII, we respect your post but I think Micah is right. Some of your statements are debatable and incorrect. First off, O.J. Atogwe usually plays SS not FS. We dont need that if we are keep Sensabaugh. You said what new blodd would make a difference. Well you name one and so did Micah. Secondly he is a RESTRICTED FA, meaning we would have to surrender compensation (You should Read up on rules of FA). Third you say OJ was better...I dont think so...see below(Source: SI.com)

Year Team Tk Ast Sck Stf FF FR PD Int Yds TD
2009 O.J. Atogwe 58 16 1 0 3 2 5 2 21 0
Career T otals: 267 42 3 3 14 8 33 19 287 1

2009 A.Rolle 60 11 1.5 1.5 1 1 8 4 71 0
Totals: 289 41 1.5 4 3 1 36 12 394 4

By the way, what position did OJ play at the pro bowl this year. Opppps, I forgot he wasnt there. He is good but you make it sound like he is better than Rolle.I Dont think so!! You would have been better saying that they are comparable at worst.

Fourth, this year due to an uncapped season, we are actually playing MADDEN like. There is NO CAP DUDE. Are you getting all of this??? You can cut whomever you want with no repercussions man. C'mon every year teams dump players who underperforms. Its call waiving, cutting, and releasing. Please tell me that you've heard of this??? Thats what the rules allow and this is the year you can do it with no, repeat no hindrance .

Fifth, you are wrong AGAIN. We would not and are not on the hook as you say for Hamlin's 9 mil. its already paid dude. We only owe him 1.5 or so mil bonus money. The rest of his money is in the form of base salary and that is about 5 mil that we have to pay a scrub if we keep him. Now thats STUPID!

Translation: If you have a scrub who underperforms, is old , oft injured or is a headache logic says DUMP THEM NOW WHEN IT DOES NOT...REPEAT COUNT AGAINST THE CAP.. Watch NFL network....listen to the analyst. Go to any forum,read what people are thinking. If the guy was any good would we be discussion it. Do you hear people saying cut D.Ware? Ummmm maybe lets Jettison Ratliff??? I think its time to trade Miles Austin. The answer is NO. Do you know why, cause they make plays according to skill set & contract.

FINALLY. dude Barber appears that he can not withstand his running style. He is virtually untradeable. WHo would want him. He cost a lot of money, is slow and now he cant stay healthy. LEts be honest. If your job was on the line and you were the GM, who you sign him for the money he is getting paid? If you say yes, you are a liar. Its not that anyone is hating on anyone. We are just telling it like it is. Running backs dont last long in the NFL. I'd rather we ask him to reduce his contract or cut him and resign him for an Equitable rate. Look, the Jets cut Thomas Jones just cause he was due 4 mil bonus and he is WAYYYYYYYYYYYY better than Barber. So please dont tell us that Jerry would be wrong in doing the same. Sorry to bust your bubble.

If Jerry resigns TO, all I ask is that TO stays with the number 81. I'm not buying another jersey!!!

Guys, we aren't in the middle of a Madden game with the salary cap turned off. . Jerry Jones knows better than to just jettison these contracts. He's not going to dump millions of dollars down the drain because players are underperforming. Micah, we would've still been on the hook for that 9 million we owed Hamlin and we would've had to pay Rolle's 16 million. That's not a swap. That's 25 mil up front and what's the difference? You guys have to think in business terms. What new blood out there could've really made a difference for the right price? We might move for O.J. Atogwe if we can because he's better than Rolle and he could be cheaper. Don't forget that we have right of first refusal on Sensabaugh. Teams can talk to him all they want, but if we give him more money than the other teams, he stays with us. Jerry isn't going to let Sensabaugh go anywhere unless he gets a good enough trade offer. Read up on the rules of free agency.

I don't get all this hate on Barber. Dude was a little banged up but still averaged over 4 yards per carry and almost broke 1,000 yards. You guys just see some failed short yardage plays-you have to blame the linemen as well as obvious playcalling-and you want to run the guy out of town. That's stupid.

This article is insulting and stupid. Of course we are upset. We need playmakers and all we get is a overpriced FS who just gets guys lined up. Is this writter trying to insult our intelligence. What does 11-5 have to do with anything? So does that mean we dont change a thing and where 11-5 and lose in the 2nd round again??? Huh? Dumb statement sir....dumb. We need to cut the dead weight while it is allowable. Heck the Superbowl is in our backyard next year, doesnt he want to get their and have the greatest home field advantage ever in the BIG GAME? Well we need to win now....make some moves Jerry. What is wrong with you man? Get rid of the old, underperforming and get the new blood in here ASAP.

Jerry is stupid. He keeps Ken (line em up) Hamlin who stinks, when we could have basically swapped out FS for only a little bit more money that Hamlin received. Hamlin got almost 9 mil guaranteed, while ROlle got 16. We need to start dumping these horrible contracts for the guys who are old, can produce or injury prone. Hamlin would have been #1 jettisoned, ROy # 2, Barber # 3 and Flo # 4.
To add insult there is an article on FOx sports that says Sensabaugh has gotten invites from three teams. Also Montrea Holland got two (Skins and TB). Not bad for a guy that Wade ,JJ or Garrett thought was worse than Procter. I dont see anyone beating down that STUDS phone line. This is the first time in awhile that Im upset with Jerra. You let a division rival get real strong. NY's safety could be the best tandem in the league. If they draft LB's and they fix their DL we will might be in trouble. JJ do something man!!!!

I will be happy with just some O-Line depth. THAT was a big factor in our loss to the Vikes

Hmmmm... T.O. Or Roy lol that's a hard one.

Good non-sequitur comment, Nicholas. Wade Phillips has a pretty damn good record with the Cowboys. He's going to be feeling the heat this season to improve on last year, just like he was this year. If Jerry doesn't see results this year, then Wade is out. Read the actual article this time and you'll understand why we're celebrating. Or I'll just sum it up for you: we didn't give a good safety the highest contract for any safety ever. This is a bad market to be buying high-profile free agents because teams know there's no cap and that only drives prices up.

Yea...Cowboy fans are celebrating? Celebrating that Wade Phillips is still the Head Coach? I am admittedly not a Cowboy fan, but until Jones gets himself a real coach, the Cowboys will not get to another Super Bowl, let alone win one.