Cowboys Break: Gilmore or Cooks?

season eighteen, episode number one two three. Welcome to the latest edition of The Break, live from the s WBC Morgan Studios at the Star. We're presented by Miller of Light, the only Beard of the Dallas Cowboys, and I'm back in studio. I've gotten back loud Amber now to kind of sit over there and be on her phone and not have to worry about in this thing. So thank you for hosting while I've been out over I mean, this is one twenty three. Um, oh my gosh, you're

right it actually we would have flipped over today. This is actually episode number one of season nineteen. Nick, Okay, thank you. Thanks. That looks so scripted, but it really really I was just like, when does it when you first it's the NFL. Yeah, calendar, Our calendar year starts in April, so yes, that would be okay. Yeah, that season nineteen, episode number one, do the whole intro against nineteen. I wore a sweatshirt from the first show that we've

ever done. This is a Bill Parcel special. It is actually two thousand and three. You need us some ice? This is this is the one that This is the sweatshirt that Bill had on when he started undressing in front of me and it was making me very uncomfortable. Captain Morgan Captain Morgan style, Yeah, that was. This was a sweatshirt that they yeah, on that day. Well, welcome to the nineteen season over there. Oh no, I'm sorry. I'm sorry about that abort. All right, welcome to the

nineteen seasons of The Break. Nineteen seasons. Nick, It's been nineteen seasons of doing this show, and uh so let's let's have some fun today. I know I was out during the meat of free agency and when everything was going. It was crazy because I was on vacation the first week and literally calling Nick and bothering him. Well, he was actually trying to work, like can you believe they're doing all this? Like this is crazy and they're not

would turn over here. It's like, can you believe someone would be on vacation, right, Yeah, it happens usually the front office. No, it happens. It happens every year for me because that's huge. Two Bryan brought us last season of the twenty season. Probably not, probably not, but no, it was. It was an interesting free agency start the free agency because it's not something we've been used to

seeing with this front office. So I do what I would love to do today is I want to take a little bigger picture view of this now that we've gotten past the initial wave of free agency, quite frankly, the meta free agency. Anything else that happens at this point, they will be kind of those those deals that really won't probably make as big of a difference for your team.

They're kind of fillers at this point. But we do Before we get into that conversation, I want to talk about a couple final deals that got had done or I shouldn't say final, but a couple more deals that got done last week. Since the last time you were guys were on the air. Jonathan Hankins Cowboys signed him to a one year deal. What does this move do for this team clogs up the middle man. And I

thought when he came in, they made that trade. To me, I don't remember the dates exactly, but I thought after that Eagles game up there in Philly where they had to get off the field on defense and they just couldn't. They just couldn't, they couldn't stop the run, they said, we gotta, we gotta make a change. They got Hankins in. You know, they didn't face Hurts and the Eagles again, like you know until well, they didn't face him again.

But but I still think they you could tell they were stopping the run better, and then when he gets hurt, you can see a difference. So to me, he solidifies the middle. He's older guy, you still need some more help, but I do. I do think it's a it's a nice nice Uh. Yeah, he's the he's the type of guy from season seven. We still don't know. We still you didn't hear the drop, but we still I know that I know that you know exactly, I don't know. We don't know who who I was referring to. Yeah,

I'm pretty sure. I'm pretty sure it was probably like a Monterrey Holland or somebody like that, a party node a song about Yeah, yeah, it was one of those kind of guys. But anyway, so California treatment right, No, no, I don't even know what you're talking about. Entre Holland is now the starter. Monterrey Holland is now the starter. You know, he keeps on block, he keeps it has California Archer help with that, those little sounds on the field as they're stretching, you know, and it was just

it was being he was playing. There's some other, you know, other versions of it, maybe some radio edits and some explicit that we won't get into. But for the most part, yeah, it's good and I love Montre Holland. He's one of my favorites. Thank you, and keeps on blocking, keeps. I don't remember what I was about to say. Why he's good,

Hankings he well. To me, he's the type of player that you don't um necessarily me from my own perspective, I don't really pay attention to him what he's doing on the field, but you just know that the type of difference maker he is, just like Nick said, you know when he's on the field, because you see how it affects the run versus when he's not on the field.

So I just know the running defense stopping the run improved tremendously when he was on there, and the way he was blogging he's a guy that has a lot

of strength, so very very big move. And the dan Quinn and keeping the main guys that he needs on defense, I thought, I think they've done such such a good job this offseason and free agency and keeping key players and maintaining a defense that you're pretty much set in all areas, or at least you got guys that you're like, Okay, this is going to be competitive, So very big signing for the Cowboys. Nick, you get a really good memory. What was the game he made the stop on fourth

and one and got hurt? The game this year? You got me on that one. Yeah, yeah, but that's what I'm saying. I mean, I probably could have looked it up and messing up looking at other things here, but the thing at Ambar's absolutely right. When he was on the field, you you knew because not only you saw what happened up front, you saw Layton Vanderesh running and

making plays. You know the way that he affects and then you know, maybe he even helps Diggi Zua next to him, because all of a sudden, now he's doing a lot of the dirty work. He's taking up blocks. Vanderesh's running downhill. Osa's like, you know he's now, oh, he's on a one on one with somebody, and now he's winning. You know, they just seem like when he was on the field, they got more bodies to the ball, and when he wasn't on the field, it was guys

having to deal with blockers in their laps. They couldn't get off. And then you know, what would have been a game of maybe two three yards is now a five or six yard game. And you could see it just watching the games. You're like, well, who's who's playing? Uh, oh, it's you know, it's Bohannah. And again I'm sound like I'm slamming Bohannah here, But you know, Bohannah is a big guy that doesn't know how to play like Hankins does.

Hankins is a big body that knows how to play, knows how to take up blocks, knows how to hold guys up, knows how to be in the right gap when it's fourth and one, and somehow, some way, he's got a guy in his chest, but he's reaches back with his arm and makes a fourth and one stop. That's the kind of stuff you notice. It's like, my gosh, he might have one or two plays a game that you notice like that, But the other sixty plays he's helping Layton vander esh have twelve tackles that day. That's

what this guy does, you know. And I think it's gonna it's maybe taking them out of the market. We're gonna have the draft show after this today. You know, we were talking about defensive tackles, one techniques, guys like that that. Oh maybe at twenty six they're gonna take I don't think they have to now, I don't think they have to. I think they had a checklist of how they were going to do this, and then they sprinkled in a couple of trades that we didn't really

see coming. You know, we saw a Jay I personally thought the start of free agency was gonna be Jake McQuay. I thought, oh, they're gonna sign the long snapper first, and you know they're going But no, they had a systematic plan in the way they did it, and Hankins just happened to be the last piece I think of that checklist that they went into free agency with. So let's flip the script. There was a guy that I think they probably had some marginal interest in bringing back

that they did not bring back. He signs, Carlos Watkins signs with Arizona on a one year deal. How much did the Cowboys miss him? Not a lot. I really don't believe that, and I'm not nothing against him. But sometimes when you give anybody this is to a football player, or if you say it to your kids, if you say take it or leave it, sometimes they leave it, you know. And that's what the deal was, take it or leave it to a lot of those guys. Hankins

was one of them. Watkins too, Carlos Watkins, take it or leave it. We're not we're not negotiating with you. He found the Initially they were interested. Yeah, they wanted to bring him back. But but under their time to the trying right right, Ryan, I just wasn't sure if they were interested, Yeah, bring you know, but he was a guy also they put on the practice squad and

he you know, they they were. His attitude changed when he got released, It's true, it changed it really and he realized it's like, whoa wait, I'm not one of the fifty three guys they think I'm important. I'll tell you where I noticed him the most. The Cowboys throughout the season had several games so they had goal line stance, and it was like, you know, up front, it was wow Walkins, I oh you know, oh he you know, oh, Tank Walkins. I mean they were kind were they were

playing on that same side. Maybe not so much noticed him in the field, but noticed him when it got tight, and it's like holding up guys and him. Yeah, And that's that's where I felt like, that's where I felt like that they wanted Walkins back with Dan Quinn and those guys, because he he went from being a guy that played extremely tall and let people wash him to a guy that would play with good bass and would

hold up right there. And I just remember, like from our end zone seats, guys are a little further down than me where I sit, but being right down there, you know, you kind of focus in on when that's happening in front of you. And I just remember Carlos Watkins and then going and watching the film the next day, like that makes sense. He made that was a good play, it might not have been. It's the same thing with like what you're getting. You know, with Hankins, it's one

or two plays a game that makes you go. That's why he's one of the forty eight today dressing because of that, those those types of plays, and frankly, at that position, that's kind of how it works. Like a defensive tackle, unless you're a warrant SAP type, you're probably not going to be a guy, especially at one technique, probably not gonna be a guy that's always like just flashing. You're gonna have a few plays again where you can

be like really make an impact. And that's one of the reasons why I thought Hankins was a very important signing because he didn't make that impact in those plays, and he was willing to do the dirty work on all those other plays. Don't necessarily now see he's he's I mean, they had to go get Hankins and they had to draft Bohannah because Nebell Gallamore gotten a dog house. You know, Nevill gall We're doing preseason games and Brad Sham looks up in Nevill gallam War's in the game

in a fourth quarter and you're going preseason game. Yeah, in the preseason game. You're going, wait a minute, what's going on here. That's a veteran guy, you know. But they were searching for somebody to be like Hankins and Carlos Watkins and those guys, just to make those two or three dirty plays a game. Yeah, all right, we're gonna check our first break. When we come back, we're gonna jump into our free agency. We're gonna call it

a recap. It's not over, but we're definitely gonna recap where the Cowboys are at this point and what they've done to this point. We'll do that when we come back. Dallas Cowboys dot Com Radio. Todd thought it would be secure to jog and the cheetah Savanta. Todd believed the big Cat repellent he bought online was reliable. And now Todd is trying to be faster than this cheetah that

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Dallas Cowboys Youth Camps presented by Invisilign. Athletes ages six to sixteen are invited to learn from the best this summer at at and T Stadium and Ford Center at the Star in Frisco. Visi Dollar dot Com slash Camps Welcome Back. It is the second segment of the Break Life in the s WBC Mortgage Studios at the Star. The segment presented to you by Blockchain dot Com. Awesome.

Let's let's recap this free agency thus far, I'm going to read out this these lists of the players that were added, the players that were resigned, the players that they lost, and the players that are still available. Let's look at who was added Stefan Gilmore, Brandon Cook's both in trade, Chuma Idoga, Ronald Jones, and long snapper Trent Siege. Who they resigned, Donovan Wilson, Laton vander Esch, Cooper rush, Tony Pollard, Tack McKinley, Jonathan Hankins, c J. Goodwin, Dante Fowler,

and Rico Dowdle. And here are the players that they lost, Noah Brown, Luke Gifford, Connor McGovern, Jake McQuaid, Dalton Schultz, and Carlos Watkins. Here's first question I got for you guys, was was there anybody that was lost that you think the Cowboys really wanted? No, not really wanted. I think they wanted Jake mcquad but I don't mean if you really want him, you can pay for him. Yeah. Do you feel like the ship sailed on Dalton Schultz after

the San Francisco playoff game? Because do you think it was a moment when they were just kind of like, Yeah, we're good. I was earlier than that. I think that.

I do think now now that I hear stuff, I don't there was something going on for a while, or you can just send some kind of discontent from like at times and Nike you've seen him, and I don't know if you saw Derek Got any moments like after a game, during the locker room, at times, you just seem even when he had a good game, or even when the Cows won like Dalton, would just be kind of, you know, a bad mood for whatever reason. Some of

that might have been. Well, I think some of that might have been I got the impression and people that I know in the media had mentioned things that suggested he was upset with the media, So it might have been some of that. And I don't know if that I don't know if that necessarily goes to the organization.

But I think part of what we may have been seeing in the locker room was maybe there was some discontent with the media in how they covered when you saw him um U interacting or even on the field, you could see his relationship with the younger tight ends and it was really good. I mean, at least that's what we all got to see on the field and all that. Yeah, I mean he brushes his teeth with saltwater. I mean he's salt. I mean he always has been, and and that's just he was this real smart guy too.

So yeah, the media always was dumb, the dumb questions and stuff like that. But um, I think I think he tried to be a good team player with the young guys. You know, you saw he was. He was, you know, a plan with all the you know, he jumped in, yeah, what was the whack the mole and then the one where they were getting roped. I mean he was the one down there. I mean like he

was trying. But I think he was still you know, it's it's kind of tough when you when you know you're on a one year deal and you see these young guys and you want to help you replacements. Yeah, yeah, I mean that's the thing. It was. It was interesting. It was it Austin Hooper. I think they played for the Browns or whatever, and he was in a situation and he said, yeah, we're trying to help these young tight ends. Wherever he was, he goes It's not like

Jason Witten. Okay, No, Austin Hooper wasn't with Dallas, Yeah, but his college teammate Dalton schultzon was So you kind of just connect the dots and you're like trying to read between the lines. But how would you know that other than Dalton Chulton? Did Dalton feel that way? And then ironically here he is in a situation and you

kind of kind of heard the same stuff too. All I know is when his price was lower lower lower and he was not signed, he got to the point where the cowboys that's the question I had, you know, And that's why I just asked you this because I just was there. You know, he was this, he was a he was a franchise tag player. Then he got out there and nobody wanted him, and you're and then now you're thinking, was the was there a bridge burned water under the bridge where the cowboys completely happy with?

You know, they love they love Hindershot, they really do. I mean, they like Ferguson too, but they love Hindershot that that they feel like they stole one there that might be the next one. But she kind of wondered if did with the number would ever get low enough. But to me, it was like if the number ever got low enough, Dalton Schultz probably wouldn't come back. He would probably say, I'll take that deal with somebody else. I'm good to go to Houston, who is doing a

total rebuild with a new quarterback, knew everything new. You know, he got three times the money. I think he was going to get here at that point. At that point, yeah, I just don't think they were going to offer him anything. And then they knew that wasn't a great deal yet. See it's funny, Nick and I and I don't know if you guys have heard this stuff, and I mean and just talking to people around the league that kind

of had an idea about the money. He turned down a pretty significant offer from the Cowboys that would have been it was gonna be a longer year deal. And people think, oh it was three I think I think it was. Here was something like five years did he turn down? That was roughly going to pay him like ten to twelve million dollars a year. He turned that down? I think thirty six guaranteed? Yeah it was. It was Yeah, Yeah, I was here. I mean again, I was talking. That's

the whole thing up. Yeah, I was Indians up on a one year deal. Yeah, and by the way, here's the tough part. And obviously he and his agent no more than I do about his situation is but I have to wonder if if I'm him, I'm going to a team like Houston that's in a total rebuild, no guarantees of who the quarterback's gonna be, let alone, if that quarterback is going to be good enough to be able to really help him get what he needs to

be able. Because he's taken a gamble on himself saying I'll do a one year deal like that, that just it creates a really tough situation for him going back into free agency next year after not really knowing who your quarterback's going to be or that quarterback numbers. The numbers could be, Yeah, the numbers could be really really good. If it's a young quarterback and he's throwing the time. Dalton Schultz knows how to play the game, he knows how to get open and all that will they will

they find a way to get him open. I just feel like though that I think there was a lot of bitterness you talked about towards the media and the way that contracts stuff was covered. I think there was a little bit bitterness towards the Cowboys about about not getting something done long term. You know they were like you know the Cowboys when they did it, they when they franchise tagged him. You guys could correct me if I'm wrong. You move on from Amari Cooper. There's the

unknown about Michael Gallup and stuff like that. They just couldn't totally gut the offense of pass catchers. Yeah, they couldn't just totally move on from Dalton Schultz and Amari Cooper. And you know, they just couldn't do it. So you know they say, Okay, well, franchise tag me. Personally, I feel like that the Tony Pollard deal could be very similar to what we saw with Dalton Schultz one year. Hold you you know see what we got. I personally

meet this is my opinion. I don't think you're going to get a long term deal done with Tony Pollard. I think I think they'll find a way to move I mean, he'll probably draft a guy and then you know, you'll you'll have that guy, and that guy will be he'll take over. The Tony Pollard rule is what will happen. All about what happens in the draft. In my opinion, it's all about what happens in the draft exactly. Guy that really can take off. Yeah, that's just my opinion.

I think they're using this tag to say, Okay, fine, we need to have you here. But let's see, there's a lot of unknown about Pollard coming back from this injury. We could all talk about it. We've done it for years around here. Well, Dak coming back he should be, you know, Gallup coming back, he should be. You know, I'd always talk about these these guys and you don't know how their bodies are going to respond. I've seen Pollard twice this offseason. Both times I thought it was Zeke.

It's like kind of from far As. He bulked up, getting bigger, Sam, I might need to need lasic again, but grow his hair. But yeah, I mean it was it was. It was a lot of things. Drink you're just looking at him, Yeah, yeah, multiple stop But no, it just I do think he's bulked up somewhere. It looks he looks different. He's gonna work hard, and Britt Brown and those guys are gonna work. You know, I'm just saying the unknown, it's not the work ethic can get him right. But you just don't know how the

body's gonna respond. Yeah, I mean, look at Michael Gallup, it was like it seemed like it was ten weeks before. We kind of felt like, you know, but he had some games or it was zero you know, zero catches, zero yards, and you know, you're like, going, is it the is it the knee? Is it that? You know, and you're hopeful that he's better. I mean, we're just

that's that's the hope. But let's also be clear, any conversation we have about running backs is all, especially veteran running backs, is always going to go back to the point of replacement value for running backs in the NFL is actually a pretty favorable things for teams. I get a lot of fights, so many young backs coming out of college that can produce if you can put them in the right situation immediately. And and and the longer that goes, the more years they're in the NFL, the

more there's a drop off. And that drop off can be pretty precipitous. So that's what that's what it's more about than than even in the in any individual player, lack of Tony Pollot. It's more about like, are we gonna bet this is start talking about long term deal. Are you going to bet that he defies the odds of what's happened to all these other running backs over time. Yeah, I don't think. I don't think the Cowboys want to get into the running back business anymore. I mean, I mean,

with the with big contracts and stuff like that. I just don't I think that. You know, they're grateful for what Zeke did, but I don't think they want to get in that business. This is a very rare year when you watch in the draft for the running backs. This thing is going to go from the first round of the fifth round easy with quality of players, really good players. You know, your University of Texas has got

two of them. You know, you could take one of them in the first and it might be one of the best players of the whole entire draft, and his backup you could take in the third round and he might be just as good as the guy that was taken you know. First. Overall over the running backs, all right, we're gonna take our final break here. When we come back, I'm gonna ask you, guys, which addition to this team

you think will have the greatest impact. There are a couple of players that really have turned some heads and have a lot of potential of what they can be. I want to find out from you guys which don't have the greatest impact. We'll do that in just a second. The stoas Cowboys dot Com Radio. The season is finally here. For months, we've been gearing up to win. Now it's

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Tours Welcome Back. It is the final segment of the break Life from the s WBC Mortgage Studios at the Star presented by mill Like the Only Beer of the Dallas Cowboys. They're talking about free agency and taking a bigger picture look at what the Cowboys have done to this point. My question for you guys opening this segment is which player that was added will have the greater

impact this season. Stefan Gilmore, Brandon Cooks, Chuma Edoga, Ronald Jones, Trent Sieg Gotta have a good snap starts with the operation. I would say that other can can't start to can't have a field goal without that guy. Uh Now, I am see I think I think to me, I feel like that the corner is going to have the bigger impact here Gilmore. I really do, because I feel like he's going to be very steady with the way that he plays, and there's going to be a lot of

questions that Diggs is going to have to answer. I hope he handles this contract extension thing well. I don't want him to get distracted and all that, you know, with what's ahead for him and having to play. And I say that in a way that I think you're gonna need some really really steady guys. Bland Gilmore, We'll see you with Lewis coming back. We'll see how that. But I worry a little bit about that with the

secondary and stuff with Diggs. I hope he just doesn't get too emotional about what's ahead for him and all of a sudden they keep asking him questions about it and it affects the way he plays. So you'd better have some guys that could kind of pick up the slack if there's some rough stuff going on in that secondary. I mean, I don't disagree. I think this is as a tie. I could go both ways. I'll I'll just

to play the other side of it. I'll say Cooks because what I love about what he's done is that he has been very quarterback friendly, and we we've said the term Dack friendly, Romo friendly and all that. Here's a guy that's come in and he's had a thousand

year our seasons with the best or the best. He's at thousand yard seasons with Deshaun Watson and Davis Mills and you know, along with the Breeze and Brady and so Dak fits right in between them somewhere, and I think that he'll come in and he'll be really good for this offense. So which is what they need. They need more playmakers. We saw it in San Francisco, they didn't have playmakers. I think Cooks has shown he's a playmaker,

so I think he helps too. But I mean Gilmore on the other side of Diggs sounds pretty good too. Yeah to me would be I mean, either are good, but to me, definitely Gilmore. He's a guy that seems that he would be able to step right in, fit in with the locker room, the guys here, and I do think that he will be able to elevate Digg's game up because if you think about it, who else was playing corner quite a decent level nobody, So when you're lacking no no, no, okay, yes, absolutely, but I'm

talking on that other side. Yeah, I know what You're actually take two guys off the street late in a year Togo play the level corner. I mean Bland did a really really good job. I think the question that what you're talking about really is Anthony Brown and with the way he played last year and whoever came after your second and third round picks from two years ago

that they didn't want to put on the field. True. True. Yeah, So where I'm getting at, I think there's a thing when you don't have even within your own team, within your own group of the cornerback room, when you don't have somebody else creating some type of competition and like level, like turning up the level, like the intensity of things even at practice and you're the best one out there, it can't lead to you kind of lowering the way that you play or maybe not going at out there

and competing as much. And I'm not saying that's what happened, But where I'm getting at, I think by Gilmour coming in the fact that Dix respects him a ton, I think you will just elevate his game and it's just gonna elevate the whole defense to another level, and that's definitely an area that we all know the Cowboys were lacking last year. Let me ask you guys this question on Brandon Cooks, and I apologize if this is something you guys have talked about, but something that just still

kind of lingers in the back of my mind. I love the Brandon Brandon Cooks trade. Why does he bounced around so many places? Why has he been at so many teams? Because you look at his numbers. I mean he's had one, two, three, four, five, six, six seasons where he's been over a thousand yards. Yeah, teams don't typically let guys like that go, And to now be on his fiftheam my man gets traded for first round

picks all the time. I just don't understand why teams were so willing to let him go when he's been productive, even as you said, Nick, when it's been with quarterbacks that aren't premier quarterbacks in this league. Do you guys have any insight on that now? And they asked him the same question, and of course he's definitely a glass half full guy because he said, well, what why are

teams trading for me? Then you know why are teams? Yeah, and sometimes it just it happens like that, and you know a lot of it is, you know, do they view him as a progress stopper? Because what happens is is that you you make those you have those those seasons, and then you're like, okay, what usually comes next when a guy balls out what happens? He wants money? You're like, okay, well it was good for this number, but now that you want this, I don't know about that. And so

it's it's kind of just a unique, unique thing. I mean, there's only two guys in the history of the NFL that have had four one thousand yard seasons with four different teams, you know, and Brandon Marshall and him. And you can say the same thing about Brandon Marshall. Why why did he never stick to and you don't really know. He was a good player, good player on a lot of teams. So but I don't think it's attitude. I really don't. I don't. I don't think. I just think

it's kind of more circumstantial. Well, my computer got locked up? Is that you I guess? Oh, I don't know what happened just here? Okay, Okay, I had the microphone, I had had it turned off. I guess he just got

locked up. Sorry about that. Um, yeah, because And honestly, the one that really sticks out to me looking at Brandon sites, it's two thousand and seventeen with the Patriots, where he had one hundred, he had one thousand and eighty two yards, he had seven touchdowns, he evered sixteen point six yards per catch, and he was a one and done season. Like after that, Denis off to the Rams, and that just that one really just seems weird to

me that after one year he was traded. He was traded, Yeah, after one year of really good production, like that's good production to just be like, yeah, we're good. And again, it could have been a contract I don't know the history there. It could have been a contract situation where they were like, we know he's gonna be asking for this amount of money, We're not willing to pay him that. And so you know, well, when the Cowboys trained him next year, well we'll ask you know that that question.

I guess after the season he gives you a thousand yards. Yeah, yeah, that'd be great. And by the way, this is a good problem to have because he's product produced everywhere, so hey, you're gonna get the production. I'm just interested to know more about why. I wish I could talk to some of the teams that made these deals and why they thought it was okay to get rid of a guy who was disproductive. Yeah, yeah, that's an interesting thing to wonder. But as of right now today, I'm just like, I

don't know, I don't care either bring him here. It just feels like, at least for this year, it just feels to me that the Cowboys finally are on the better side of the deal. Sometimes you talk about free agency, and you know, it's been known in the Cowboys history of free agency that they tend to go for bargains and you don't know how it's gonna pan out, and they always get them. Oh my god, what's the word in English? I'm thinking in Spanish. My brain switched to Spanish.

The crumbles that are left on the plate, you know, the crumble left of free agency. And for some reason, this year, everything that they've done in this free agency, even though nothing feels like a huge splash, it still feels that you've got a really, really good free agency, and every single guy that they've brought in from outside and the guys that they've signed in house, you just

feel like they're all going to contribute this year. Can I ask a question about to the panel here, of which which are you more surprised of the way this result happened. That they traded for two quality pieces or they resigned Donovan Wilson. I would say, well, that's a good question, because I would say the trade because we

don't usually see it often. But resigning the safety to a good to you know, resigning the safety to a big deal we haven't really seen since Roy Williams, and you could make that argument that maybe that wasn't even a great idea. Um, But yeah, I mean I think, I think, um, I'm probably I'm more surprised about the trades. Yeah, because they love draft picks. Yeah, even though fifth and six runners that they love drafts, those compensatory picks, and

they did a good job in moving those along. Now that you get traders, I'm more surprised that they got Wilson done because coming out of the combine talking to people, you know, it seemed like it was miles apart, I mean miles apart that that you know this, Yeah, but but here's The thing though, Brian, and you can go back.

Let's look at the history of the Jones family when they've had free agencies, free agents, it's not often that they really want a guy they lose, they don't get him, no, right, And so for me, the question I kept asking the people I was talking to around the building was how much do they want Donovan Wilson? And oh no, no. All I heard was they really want no no, Yeah that you got. It's funny because the coaching staff was adamant. Yeah.

You know, if you if you know people that know Dan Quinn, if you know people that know Mike McCarthy. Mike McCarthy I think was hinting to the media that hey, no, Donovan Wilson is important to what we're trying to do here, you know, and Dan Quinn and people I know were like, no, Dan, Dan loves Wilson, you know, I mean like that, like, really,

oh no, Dan loves Wilson, so to me. But then like there were people like Bobby Belts the world stuff that we're dealing with, you know, agents or whoever, and they're like, man, this is no, one's not going to be easy. But negotiation. Buton's family negotiates. They negotiate hard. Yeah, for players they love and they want to have here,

they're going to negotiate it hard. And Jesse Bates I think got fourteen a year from the former Bengal guy, right, And I think that's where his agent thought he was the range he was going to be in. And that's why it was miles apart because the Cowboys kind of stuck to their guns here and so they just said, you know, I always go back to the DeMarco Murray deal. You know, they wanted to Marco Murray rush for eighteen hundred yards an NFL rushing champ that year, and they said,

this is the number we're gonna pay you. If you find it over it, go for it, and he did. So. I think they were gonna do that with Donovan Wilson. I do. I think if it was got if it would have getten forgot over ten million. They were said nah,

but it didn't. It didn't get that far. The amazing thing is, and you know Adam Pacific and those guys upstairs, and what they do is you got a couple of players that never did you got money back from the Texans, you know, and got better deals and then you got a corner who said, no, I'm happy about being here. I don't need any new money. You know, you got two players, You got the Texans to pay the freight on one of the guys, and the other guy says, no, no,

I don't need new money. I mean usually it's like you make a trade, it's like, oh, we have to renegotiate, we have to put new money into this deal and all that. None of that, so good for them. Forget it done that way. Let's talk about another player that the Cowboys actually released this offseason, Zeke Elliott. He's still out there as a free agent. My personal belief is that it's more situation, where as is the case a

lot of times with veterans. I think it's gonna be one of those things where you get to training camp, a couple of teams looser, they're running back and they're like, man, who's available, and oh, wow, Zeke Eli is available. I mean, we should bring him in. Maybe that's when it happens. But we have still heard things around the Cowboys organization.

What they said, yeah, never never close the door on anything. Sure, how realistic do you think it is that that Zeke Elliott is back with this team by the beginning of the season. This seems I'm not realistic at all. I just don't see it happening. I don't. I don't want to close the door because they don't. Um, they don't want to say that doors close out of just out of respect. But I think it's a you know, put the toothpaste back in the tube there. It's just not

this is not going to happen. I really don't believe it's going to happen at all here. Um, unless, like you said, there's an injury and then now you're looking for something you know, Um, yeah, if if you're needed guys on the street, you know, something would happen to your running backs. Yeah. Well, here's a guy that knows knows what he's doing, knows the environment, kind of knows the system. I means changing a little bit, but but you know, knows it enough. Yeah. But I just don't

see it happen. It's unfortunate that Zeke needed to jump in early with these teams. We saw like a week where running backs, the free agent running backs were getting signed up, and I felt like that Zeke needed to be part of that group. He needed to jump in with a team, because what's happened now is pro days are over. They're upstairs working on the draft, and nobody's

thinking about free agency anymore. Nobody's thinking about They're looking at They're looking at eighteen running backs and going, huh, these eighteen running backs for this or we have to pay a guy two and a half million dollars. You know that that that's not that's signed in May. I believe, like I say, but like I was hopeful that he would jump in with somebody and be with a team before the draft, before people started putting their boards together.

It's Fournet still out there. I don't know Leonard Fournette, Yes he is, I believe. I believe. I've seen him as similar tight guys on the free agent market, and that's where again, those will be the guy I think that teams will fill in if they get into a situation. Ran knows how this goes. I mean, it's almost like a pause. You know, we're like, all right now, we're going to shift gears and we're focused on you know, you're getting close enough to create to the draft, like

why would we sign this guy? And then somebody falls in our lap. And now we want to have to So let's just wait and see and we'll pause and then we'll revisit. And by the way, he'll be out there. That's the expectation. All these guys are out there now. They're probably gonna still be out there from now. So just see what happens to the draft. What do you think has been the difference as to why they're changing strategy or changing the way that they usually do things.

And when you summarize, you know, we talked about Zeke. We know sometimes they they kind of hold on to certain players that they really really like, even outside of what they're bringing on the field, just because of the relationship there. We we talked about the two trades, We talk about a contract with a safety. So little things like that that you're not used to seeing the Cowboys do. What would you say gives into the change in free

agency as a whole? I think I think that first of all, you're gonna you have to have a good football team, and I think that they believe that they do, just like they did last year. You know, they had a good team last year they lost in the playoffs

to the forty nine ers. Talking about two years ago, and then you go into the offseason, and they waited until they kind of made splash moves like you know, we need we're gonna get Anthony bar We're gonna get Jason Peters, We're gonna get They still got big name guys, but they waited a little bit. But I think it was it was an all in approach, like this is a good team. We're not gonna we're not gonna let

one or two injuries derail this team. And now that I think they just went a little bit more aggressive with it. And I will say the quality of the big name guys they got this year versus last year is different. Like these guys I think are still I think they are still closer to their prime trade for Yeah, but yeah, they say they kind of, you know, ramped it up a little bit. And and why not. Mike McCarthy knows if if he didn't go to the NFC

Championship game, we're gonna be talking about his job. I mean, he knows that, so he's gotta he's gotta go all in on this. Zeke Elliott, Kareem Hunt, Leonard Fournette still

on the street right now. If you're looking for a back so again, those are the types of guys that teams will be able to fill in their rosters after they get past draft and look at those guys, and I would be interested to see where Zeke falls in that category among those backs, like is he the priority guy, is he the top of that list, or is he kind of equal with him? And it's all about how much money you have to pay for him. I'd be interested to see with the market thinks of Zeke relatives

some of those guys. Here's what I wonder about Zeke. In really, all backs when you get to this point, you know all players. But with Zeke, he's gotta he's gotta stay in shape. He's got he can't he can't see social, but he's out there working and he's gotta be well. He needs to go to place two where he can split carries. Yeah, he learned that splitting carries is good for his health. Long term, he'll be good. I mean he had a lot of carries here. I mean, yeah, carries.

He'll be. He'll be good for a team. I mean he really will. I think I don't know when or where it'll it'll be, but you know he'll be good. It's just sometimes it just it doesn't. It's not the one. You know, it's not this team. You know it won't be this team. I don't believe. All Right, we appreciate you guys, you want us. We'll be back next week. Hopefully we'll get some question next week. I want to get some fan questions. We haven't done that in a

while until then. For Nick Eatman, Brian brought us Amber Garcia. I'm Derek Kielton. This has been The Break live on Dallas Cowboys dot Com Radio. This has been a production of Dallas Cowboys dot Com and the Dallas Cowboys Football Club.