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Offseason In Review: Dallas Cowboys

July 25th, 2017 at 6:51pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Cowboys appeared doomed when Tony Romo suffered a back injury during Week 3 of the 2016 preseason, but fourth-round rookie quarterback Dak Prescott — combined with an excellent running game — led Dallas to an NFC-best 13-3 record and a Divisional Round appearance. With Romo retired, the Cowboys headed into the offseason with clear needs on defense that could be filled either through free agency or the draft.

Notable signings:

Although Terrance Williams posted the fewest receiving yards of his career in 2016, underlying metrics show that the 27-year-old actually produced an above-average season. Among wide receivers with at least 50 targets, Williams finished 11th with a 72.1% catch rate. The former third-round pick ranked 17th in Football Outsiders‘ DYAR (which measures total value) and fourth in DVOA (per-play value), and while run-blocking isn’t that important a skill for a wide receiver, Williams contributed in that realm of offense as well, finishing No. 22 in the run game, according to Pro Football Focus.Terrance Williams (Vertical)

But despite that production and his relative youth, Williams re-signed with the Cowboys on a deal that pays him just $4.25MM per season. Reports prior to free agency indicated Williams could score an annual salary in the $6-8MM range, but Williams instead landed a per annum average that’s below the likes of Travis Benjamin, Markus Wheaton, Rishard Matthews, and Jermaine Kearse. Clearly, soft factors could be at play here, as Williams indicated he took less money to stay in Dallas because of his comfort in the locker room, and there’s some incalculable benefit to playing on a young, contending team. But the Cowboys found a value in Williams, allowing them to spend cap space elsewhere.

Dallas made a concerted effort to retain the skill players on an offense that ranked third in DVOA a year ago, and that included re-signing veteran running back Darren McFadden to a cheap contract. McFadden, 29, was sidelined by injury for the majority of the 2016 campaign, but he’s still a high-quality backup who — along with Alfred Morris — will allow the Cowboys to tread water if and when Ezekiel Elliott is suspended. In 2015, McFadden, buoyed by the league’s best offensive line, topped 1,000 rushing yards for the second time in his career while averaging 4.6 yards per carry.

Kellen Moore was also re-signed to act as a reserve, but it’s very surprising that the Cowboys haven’t entered the free agent market to find a more experienced backup quarterback. While Dallas did express interest in Josh McCown, it hasn’t brought in another veteran to compete with Moore, and may be content to allow the former Boise State Bronco to be Dak Prescott‘s No. 2. Moore, who entered the league as an undrafted free agent in 2012, has only attempted 104 regular season passes in five NFL seasons. The best signal-callers remaining on the open market include Colin Kaepernick, Christian Ponder, Shaun Hill, and Robert Griffin III.

While the Cowboys brought back the majority of their offensive skill players, the club did sustain two losses along the offensive line in Ronald Leary (free agency) and Doug Free (retirement). Dallas plans to move La’el Collins to right tackle, meaning former first-round pick Jonathan Cooper will get the first crack at left guard. Despite being selected seventh overall in 2013, Cooper has never been a full-time starter through four NFL seasons. As such, it’s fair to wonder if Byron Bell, another free agent signee, will get a shot to overtake Cooper on the left side.Nolan Carroll

Dallas didn’t use the free agent period to overhaul a defensive unit that ranked 17th in DVOA last season, but it did bring Nolan Carroll aboard, signing the former Eagles corner to a three-year deal. Carroll is now on the wrong side of 30 and wasn’t effective in 2016 (No. 92 CB among 109 qualifiers, per PFF), so he won’t be the answer for a secondary that lost the majority of its starters. But the Cowboys can get out the Carroll deal after one season and $4MM, so it’s a worthwhile risk to add the veteran to a beleaguered defensive backfield.

Defensive tackle Stephen Paea is a fair bet to improve upon the 321 snaps he played for Cleveland last year, and the 29-year-old might be the best interior lineman on the Cowboys’ roster. Cedric Thornton, signed to a four-year deal last spring, seems to have been miscast as a 4-3 defensive tackle, while Maliek Collins struggled mightily during his 2016 rookie season. Paea, meanwhile, has been quietly effective for several years, and should help a front seven that Pro Football Focus ranks 26th heading into the regular season.

Notable losses:

After months of trade speculation, Tony Romo officially announced his retirement and signed on as a CBS commentator. While the Cowboys seemed intent on acquiring draft pick compensation for Romo if he decided to continue his career, Dallas instead saved $12MM in 2017 salary cap space by designating Romo as a post-June 1 release. While that move gave the Cowboys more financial breathing room, it also means Dallas doesn’t control Romo’s rights if he ever makes an NFL comeback. Romo recently indicated he’s “done” playing football, but many NFL clubs reportedly believe Romo will suit up again at some point in the future.Tony Romo (Vertical)

Although Romo’s retirement represents the loss of a franchise icon, his absence on the field shouldn’t have a significant impact if Dak Prescott can repeat his 2016 production. Changes that could affect Dallas’ 2017 success, however, include those along the offensive line, where Doug Free retired and Ronald Leary joined the Broncos in free agency. The Cowboys have already made long-term commitments to Tyron Smith and Travis Frederick, and will likely soon reach an extension with Zack Martin, as well, so it would’ve been difficult to make a competitive offer for Leary.

While Free was probably the link weak link along the Cowboys’ front five, he was still a starting-caliber player (No. 40 offensive tackle in 2016 per PFF), and his decision to hang up his clears forced the club to assess its options to replace him. For now, the plan seems to be to shift La’el Collins from left guard to right tackle, while allowing Jonathan Cooper to take over left guard. Overall, the swap of Leary/Free for Collins/Cooper is a downgrade, and it’s no longer apparent that Dallas fields the NFL’s best offensive line.

Even more impactful than changes along the Cowboys’ offensive line will be the team’s changes in the secondary, where Dallas lost four of its top seven defenders. Brandon Carr, Barry Church, J.J. Wilcox, and Morris Claiborne all played more then 400 defensive snaps a year ago, contributing to a pass defense that ranked 18th in DVOA. While no member of that group figures was a massive defection on his own, losing all four at once figures to have a negative effect on the Cowboys’ ability to slow opposing passing attacks. While Dallas has options to fill in at corner, the team may have trouble replacing Church/Wilcox at safety — at present special-teamer Jeff Heath and free agent Robert Blanton look like the favorites to take over snaps at safety.

Trades:

Draft picks:

Though the Cowboys didn’t use free agency to improve their defense on a large scale, Dallas attacked the defensive side of the ball in the draft, using its first three selections on defenders. Taco Charlton should step immediately into the starting lineup opposite fellow defensive end Tyrone Crawford, and give a boost to a Dallas pass rush that already ranked 12th in adjusted sack rate. Charlton, who posted 10 sacks during his final season at Michigan, is a “high-impact defensive end with all-pro potential is his ceiling,” according to Lance Zierlein of NFL.com, and he figures to see the most action of any Cowboys rookie in 2016.Taco Charlton (Vertical)

Dallas also went after several corners in the draft, and while Chidobe Awuzie was the higher pick, Jourdan Lewis might be the more talented player. Lewis, a Michigan product, fell in the draft due to an alleged domestic violence incident, but now that he’s been found not guilt, he should be able to contribute during his rookie campaign. Lewis allowed a reception only once every 21.8 snaps in 2016, good for sixth-best among this year’s draft class, per Pro Football Focus, which ranked Lewis as the No. 3 corner available.

The Cowboys turned to offense in the fourth round to draft Ryan Switzer, who is essentially a replica of incumbent slot receiver Cole Beasley, at least from a stature standpoint. Both stand 5’8″, while Switzer weighs in at 181 pounds and Beasley comes in at 174. As their player profiles at MockDraftable show, however, the pair performed very differently at the combine. Beasley finished in the 81st and 83rd percentile in vertical jump and broad jump, respectively, while Switzer ranked in just the 13th and 23rd percentiles in those same categories, an indication that Switzer may not be as explosive as Beasley.

Extensions and restructures:

Jason Witten‘s extension is one of the odder contractual cases in recent memory, as the veteran tight end didn’t receive any guaranteed money as part of the new deal. Additionally, the Cowboys didn’t pick up any cap space through the extension, as the contract only added extra years to the end of Witten’s current deal and didn’t contain a signing bonus.

Dallas can release Witten without any dead money accruing once the 2017 concludes, so Witten essentially signed away his rights to the club without securing any sort of leverage for himself. Perhaps Witten simply has no interest in ever playing for another team, and at age-35, wants to lock in his future salaries to help the Cowboys with their cap. Of course, Dallas can still restructure Witten’s deal at any point, converting base salaries into bonuses to create cap space.

Other:

Top 10 cap charges for 2017:

  1. Dez Bryant, WR: $17,000,000
  2. Jason Witten, TE: $12,262,000
  3. Tony Romo, QB: $10,700,000 (dead money)
  4. Tyrone Crawford, DL: $10,350,000
  5. Tyron Smith, T: $8,820,000
  6. Sean Lee: $7,300,000
  7. Ezekiel Elliott, RB: $5,671,895
  8. Orlando Scandrick, CB: $5,281,021
  9. Travis Frederick, C: $4,531,000
  10. Cole Beasley, WR: $4,500,000

With enviable talent on offense, and a serviceable defense under coordinator Rod Marinelli, the Cowboys should continue to pursue division titles in the NFC East for years to come. Losing key players in the secondary, changes along the offensive line, and regression to the mean from Dak Prescott could lead Dallas to take a step back in 2017, but the Cowboys still figure to be in contention when the season concludes.

Information from Over the Cap and Roster Resource was used in the creation of this post. Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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