Was Franchising Dallas Cowboy Anthony Spencer a Wise Decision?
Dallas Cowboys GM Jerry Jones used the Franchise Tag to lock up OLB Anthony Spencer for at least one more season. Spencer is labeled by many in the media, and even more of the fans, as a classic underachiever. Our question this week asks whether franchising Anthony Spencer was a good decision.
Those of you who are visiting from the Landry Hat know that we have a tradition of interacting with our readers by picking the best questions you submit and offering it to all of the Landry Hat staff for an opinion. We want to continue that tradition here.
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"Duane Johnson, Dallas: What do you think of the decision to franchise Spencer? Do you think he is worth 8.8 million? How will it affect their plan for the draft?"
Todd Toombs: I think the Cowboys are overpaying for what Spencer has produced. But, I also don’t think there was any other viable option. Spencer’s not great but he’s solid and better than anyone else realistically available as a free agent. They might have been able to replace him through the draft but as we Cowboy fans know all too well that is a crap shoot (Barbie Carpenter anyone?) at best and that player does not likely come in and produce right away in a complicated system like Rob Ryan’s. I’m more upset or concerned that they had to chew up almost $9 million in cap space for a slightly better than average player which means their chances of signing a big name free agent just went down exponentially. I am just not getting a good feeling about the team making any major improvements for next season that will make us better than 8-8. Dark times for Cowboy fans. Click here to see Todd’s recent’s articles at The Landry Hat.
Steven Phillips: The decision to franchise Anthony Spencer was one that I knew was coming and did not like at all. I think he is a good player that has the ability to play anywhere in the league and I think Jerry Jones got nervous and had to slap the tag on him. I don’t think Spencer is worth the $8.8 million for what we need him to do on our team, which is get steady pressure opposite DeMarcus Ware. He’s shown flashes at times, but he’s way too inconsistent for my liking. In the end I think Jerry will cut a deal with Spencer and get his base salary down on a multi-year deal, but if he doesn’t Dallas will have overpaid again for a player that hasn’t shown he can make an impact every game. As for the draft, I don’t see it changing Dallas’ plans at all. We need another consistent pass rusher, and even if we do get Spencer signed to a long-term contract I think it would be beneficial to have a young guy behind him to apply the pressure. Click here to see Steven’s recent posts at The Landry Hat.
Seth Jones:I do not think that Spencer is worth 8.8 million. However, there aren’t any key players becoming free agents at this time, so why not slap the tag on Anthony Spencer? Does anyone else feel weird talking about how much other humans are worth? I have offended myself. Good day to you all. Click here to peruse Seth’s recent articles at TLH.
Johnathan Barger: Franchising Spencer helps the Cowboys draft the way they want to draft. Yes, paying him 8.8 million is probably a little bit more than they wanted to, but a long term deal is going to be worked out between now and July (if a deal is not reach between now and sometime in July then we start all over again next year), and his cap hit will be significantly less. Having one less hole to fill allows them to focus on the other holes on the team so they can go with a BPA (Best Player Available) approach.
Ahmad Brooks, (OLB San Francisco 49rs) just signed a six year contract extension for approximately 7 million a year. Here’s the kicker though, only $8.25 million is guaranteed, and there are tons of clauses that can increase the contract, or decrease it depending on performance. This might be just what the Doctor ordered in getting a deal that both benefits the Cowboys by having some insurance for a dropoff in production, but also some insurance for “Almost Anthony”. Click here to see Johnathan’s recent articles.
Brad Austin: Sacrificing 44% of the Cowboys estimated $20 million in total cap funds on Anthony Spencer is a move that will greatly hinder the upgrades needed to strongly improve the Cowboys roster. Of the 22 starting OLB’s from 11 teams that run a 3-4 base defense, Spencer ranks around 10-12. Against the run he is top 5 and leads all OLB’s with 53 tackles. In pass rush he ranks around 9-11. And in pass coverage he’s in the bottom 5 with a 74% completion rate and 11.1 yards per catch allowed. All of this combined leads to Spencer being a slightly above average player at his position. And it also means his true value is around $4-6 million / year. With so many key roster spots needing to be filled, this move will possibly lead to Jerry refusing to pay Laurent Robinson his market value of roughly $4 mil / year. If that’s the case, these two moves combined make the Cowboys weaker than last year and at a far greater expense. Dallas could get adequate production from an OLB in the 2nd round of the draft and wisely spend the $9 million on a huge upgrade at guard, center, or cornerback. Click here to review Brad’s recent work at TLH.
Mark Contreras: Financially, I understand that it is a deal. He has yet to produce like a first round guy should and he’s certainly not the dominant pass rusher you want opposite of DeMarcus Ware. However, I don’t like the message it sends. To me, it says, “just okay is just good enough for Dallas.” I wouldn’t franchise “just okay” for MY franchise. Click here to take a look at Mark’s recent articles at TLH.
C. Joseph Wright: I know this was yet another unpopular move by the Cowboys braintrust, and it will result in legions of Cowboy fans to call for Jerry Jones to fire himself, but I think it was a good move.
The biggest issue is, at least for me, was what would they do if they didn’t sign Spencer. With the Cowboy’s salary cap issues, you can never be sure they would get the free agent they wanted. Hence, if they didn’t re-sign Spencer they would have gone into the Draft desperately needing an OLB in the first couple rounds. As we all now, being in a position where you must draft for a specific need is an easy way to a disastrous draft. Having Spencer means that they still want an OLB, but they don’t absolutely need one.
I don’t expect that he will play for the 8.8 million. I expect that the Cowboys will work out a multi-year deal that results in less of a cap hit next season. If they don’t, then I think that is a sign that Spencer will leave after that one year. Whether or not they sign him to a longer deal will likely depend on whether or not they can draft someone they believe is an adequate replacement.
Similarly, the free agent class of OLB’s is not exactly full of guys who are significantly better than Spencer. The two or three elite OLB’s available would likely cost more than the 8.8 million that Spencer may receive.
I also think that Spencer is much more valuable to the Cowboys defense than the average fans thinks. A quick look at his statistics shows that he is not as bad as people think:
– According to www.dallascowboys.com , Spencer had 74 tackles, which was the fourth highest total on the team. He had more tackles than DeMarcus Ware!
– He also led the Cowboys’ in forced fumbles (four); Ware had two.
– Spencer led the team with eight tackles for a loss; that’s more than Ware.
– Spencer had 31 quarterback pressures; DeMarcus Ware had 40
Spencer’s production last season should seem even more impressive if you consider the fact that Spencer has to fall back into pass-coverage and play contain on the end against the run far more often that DeMarcus Ware ever does. Spencer has never had the luxury of rushing the passer on 90% of the plays like Ware.
Also, don’t forget that Spencer’s Head Coach, Jason Garrett, named him the Player of the Game twice in 16 games last year.
I don’t necessarily think that Spencer is worth 8.8 million for the 2012, but I do know that the Cowboys could not afford to lose him, not just yet anyway.
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