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Cortland Finnegan takes crap off no oneThis is just intuition, but it feels like the Dallas Cowboys are involved more, at least at the rumor stage of things, than last year.
Not that the Cowboys have a ton of money to spend or anything. They don't. As noted earlier, after their fine from the NFL, they have about $5 million in cap space before any restructuring of contracts or cuts. I expect both to take place.
Two things I will not discuss here:
Back-Up Quarterbacks
If Tony Romo goes down and a back-up is forced to play significant minutes, the Cowboys are screwed. Might as well save some money and stick Stephen McGee in the No. 2 role because this is not a football team on the brink here. All apologies to Chad Henne, Shaun Hill and Drew Stanton, but you are of no interest to me.
Returning Players
The Cowboys could very well bring back Abram Elam, since he is A) cheap, B) somewhat not horrible and C) Rob Ryan's guy. As for Laurent Robinson, everyone is under the impression that the Cowboys will bring him back. I don't think so. Based on last season, Robinson is the fifth or sixth best free agent wide receiver. I can name you at least 12 teams in need of help here including some playoff teams. You do the math. No way Robinson does not get paid and no way it's the Dallas Cowboys.
With that said, here are guys the Cowboys could go after (this is all based on the assumption that they have an unlimited amount of money to spend, FYI):
Carl Nicks
Guard - New Orleans Saints
The Saints found themselves in a pickle. Their three best players -- Drew Brees, Marques Colston and Carl Nicks -- were all free agents. And only one franchise tag. They couldn't get a contract with Brees settled so they were forced to tag him and let Nicks float into free agency (Colston is probably gone). Nicks is maybe the best player in the free agent class. He's First-Team All Pro and we know how efficient those Saints offenses were. He will cost though, as you might imagine: Try $30 million guaranteed and $10-15 million a year. But if you want to solidify the left side of your line, this is how you do it.
Mario Williams
Defensive End - Houston Texans
I don't get the interest here. He doesn't fit into the 3-4 and even an idiot like me sees this.
Brandon Carr
Cornerback - Kansas City Chiefs
He'll be 26 when the summer starts and he's thought to be the best cornerback on the market. Certainly, he's the best cover corner on the market and if there's one guy the Cowboys are expected to sign by most, it's him. Carr is a small-school kid, who wasn't given much thought on draft day (the Cowboys took Mike Jenkins in the first round) and he's since turned into one of the best in the league. Signing him would make him the best corner on the team and would spell the end of Terence Newman's tenure as a Cowboy. Remember, it was a year ago that Nnamdi Asomugha was projected to sign and the Eagles swooped in and took him.
Cortland Finnegan
Cornerback -- Tennessee Titans
It's hard to not know who Cortland Finnegan is. He's a fiery lil' cuss, who backs down from no one. A decent cover corner, more suited for the slot (where Orlando Scandrick is), he is the superior blitzer compared to the more established, prototypical Carr. If the Cowboys get either, they'll be in better shape. Then again, if you don't fix things up front, the caliber of your corners does not matter.
Ben Grubbs
Guard - Baltimore Ravens
Nothing against Nicks, but for the price, Grubbs might be the better deal. Good and certainly not as expensive. And like Nicks he vastly improves the left side of your offensive line.
LaRon Landry
Safety - Washington Redskins
The overly bulked Landry is no longer a Redskin, at least. The main reason is injuries: he's missed 15 games the last two seasons. I suspect he'll be more expensive than Elam, so we'll go with Elam.
Carlos Rogers
Cornerback - San Francisco 49ers
Talk of former Washington Redskins in need of a environment change. Rogers went from being a nobody underachiever in Washington to a wrecking ball in San Fran. Probably the second best corner on the market and most are predicting he stays in Northern California.
Oshiomogho Atogwe
Cornerback - Washington Redskins
OK, I can't get enough of crapping on the Redskins. A year ago, it was thought the Redskins might have gotten a pretty sweet deal with Atogwe for five years and $26 million ($9.4 guaranteed). Several injuries later and the Redskins are cutting bait after getting hit with the fine and need to fish out cap space for Robert Griffin III. A year ago the Cowboys kicked the tires on Atogwe, a sort of overachiever on some bad St. Louis teams. If you want a cheaper option outside of Finnegan and Carr, this is it. Then again, you sort of get what you pay for.
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