Cowboys news: Jake Ferguson might have been snubbed in tight end rankings
Jake Ferguson snubbed from execs, coaches, scouts top 10 tight end list- Koby Skillern, Sports Illustrated
Ferguson will get his flowers in due time.
Executives, Coaches, and Scouts Top 10 Tight Ends
10. Dalton Schultz
9. Evan Engram
8. Dalton Kincaid
7. Dallas Goedert
6. David Njoku
5. T.J. Hockenson
4. Sam Laporta
3. Mark Andrews
2. George Kittle
1. Travis Kelce
It is hard to dispute the top five, but based on Ferguson’s performance last season it wouldn’t have been a shock to see him land as high as number six.
His absence from the list likely stems from the extensive experience of the other tight ends. Except for Laporta and Kincaid, every tight end on the list has been in the league for at least five seasons.
This is just adding fuel to the fire for Jake Ferguson who is already working to take his game to the next level in 2024. If and when Ferguson continues to improve in 2024, Cowboys fans should be confident in seeing him earn a spot on the list next season.
More doubt cast upon Dak Prescott’s future with Cowboys beyond this season – John Buhler, FanSided
Training camp will be the most important time for the Cowboys and Dak Prescott.
As the regular season approaches, it is seeming more and more likely that the Dallas Cowboys will not be able to retain franchise quarterback Dak Prescott beyond this season. He is entering the final year of his four-year deal worth $40 million annually. Jeff Kerr wrote about it for CBS Sports in his NFL pre-training camp overreactions and reality checks article. He views Prescott leaving as the reality.
It is a combination of things that have led to this point for Prescott and the Cowboys. There has been very little dialogue, if any, about getting him an extension. Unless something manifests very quickly, Prescott will almost certainly be hitting free agency after this season. For a quarterback of his caliber, we are looking at a deal somewhere in the $52 million range, possibly even higher than that for him.
Another huge factor is that Dallas still needs to figure out how to pay wide receiver CeeDee Lamb before his free agency as well. Let’s not forget that pass-rusher extraordinaire Micah Parsons is in the penultimate year of his rookie contract. Almost always getting lost in the shuffle, future Pro Football Hall of Fame guard Zack Martin is in the final year of his contract, too. He may retire, but he can walk.
Outside of the Cowboys’ awful contract situation, it is also the final year of Mike McCarthy’s deal.
This is all culminating in a season where the Cowboys have no choice but to win, but will they?
Is the Cowboys’ front office setting their players up to fail? – Richard Paolinelli, Inside The Star
Another poor review of the Cowboys’ offseason.
Self-sabotage. As a noun, it means the sabotaging, whether consciously or subconsciously, of oneself.
As a verb: To sabotage oneself or one’s own plans.
We’ve brought up in the past that despite protestations to the contrary, Jerry Jones doesn’t really want to win another title.
He already has the most valuable franchise in the NFL. There’s not much more he needs to do to keep the money flowing in.
As he already has three Lombardi trophies won under his watch, he’s not fully motivated to win another.
That’s where the “subconscious” self-sabotage enters the discussion.
The rub is, the sabotage that is keeping the Cowboys far from another championship might just be found in the team’s front office.
Too Many Wrong Moves in Dallas
Most General Managers try to put their team and its players in the best possible position to succeed. More often than not that hasn’t been the case in Dallas.
The last three decades have been littered with questionable moves.
Trades that never really paid off. Contracts that did not bring a return on the investment, including some that should never have been offered in the first place.
And then there are the drafts.
3 potential Dak Prescott suitors the Cowboys need to be worried about – Jason Reed, The Landry Hat
If Dak Prescott isn’t in Dallas next year, where might he end up?
The 2024 season represents Daniel Jones’ last chance to prove he can be a consistent starting NFL quarterback. If he cannot prove that this season then the Giants will almost certainly cut bait with the former first-round pick, freeing up $19.3 million in cap space in the process.
If that were to happen the Giants would have $41.5 million in cap space and that is before making any other cost-cutting moves and without a concrete cap projection. If Dallas had a chance to sign Prescott the team certainly has the means to create the salary-cap space.
New York may not seem like the most intriguing destination, especially since the Giants are a division rival, but that could change depending on how the 2024 season goes. Brian Daboll does appear to be a good head coach and the Giants may have drafted a legitimate franchise receiver in Malik Nabers. Those two things, along with a fat contract, give Prescott plenty of reason to potentially consider New York.
Will 2024 be a breakthrough year for Cowboys, or epic collapse?- Ben Grimaldi, Cowboys Wire
Is the season destined to follow one of two paths?
However, despite all the top-flight talent on the roster, the Cowboys could bottom out because they don’t have much depth. Thanks to a front office that stood by and watched free agency, the team didn’t sufficiently improve this offseason. The team lost much of their veteran depth and solid rotational pieces without adding much to replace their production. Linebacker Eric Kendricks was the only quality addition in free agency, with the team relying on the draft to patch their other holes.
The Cowboys have questions at running back after losing starter Tony Pollard, and not filling the void with a better option than RB Ezekiel Elliott. The team also took a chance on drafting Guyton in the first round, despite his inexperience and the work that needs to be done to refine his game. Guyton may thrive in the future, but he may need time to develop, perhaps not the best way to improve their offensive line in 2024.
It’s also a defensive line that lacks quality on the interior. Osa Odighizuwa is solid player, but the Cowboys are expecting DT Mazi Smith to make a big jump in Year 2. That task has been made more difficult due to shoulder surgery that has kept Smith out this offseason.
Management failures could foreshadow the Cowboys’ downfall as well. The front offices lack of movement on extensions for their key players could come back to bite them. The have been rumors about an uneasiness inside the Cowboys’ locker room and it’s tough to buy into a team with a lame duck coach, defensive coordinator and QB all on the last year of their contracts. Not having Prescott locked into a new contract at this point is as negligent as it can get from a front office.