For the Dallas Cowboys Richard Sherman Makes Sense If…

Speculation and rumors have linked cornerback Richard Sherman to the Dallas Cowboys for some time now. Here’s where it makes sense to trade for him…

The Dallas Cowboys are pretty thin in their defensive secondary these days. Free agency has poached two starting cornerbacks (Brandon Carr and Morris Claiborne), one starting safety (Barry Church) and a valuable reserve safety (J.J. Wilcox). This has left the Cowboys tragically thin and in the market for all things defensive back.

When news broke this offseason that the Seattle Seahawks are looking to move Richard Sherman, Dallas was an obvious trade partner. One team had the supply and the other team had the demand. Match made in heaven, right?

Not exactly.

The Fit

Simply put, Richard Sherman is the perfect fit. Seattle, who predominantly run an aggressive single high safety coverage scheme, are the model from which the Dallas Cowboys are built. Seattle head coach and defensive architect, Pete Carroll, has ties go back quite a ways with Cowboys defensive coordinator, Rod Marinelli.

At 29, Richard Sherman is no spring chicken, but he’s durable (never missed a game) and tough enough to play through injury.

The coverage scheme demands competency from its secondary, particularly from the deep safety and outside cornerbacks. The Cowboys think they have that safety in Byron Jones but remain a work-in-progress on the outside.

Richard Sherman would instantly headline a cornerback corps that otherwise figures to start oft-injured, Orlando Scandrick, and second year pro, Anthony Brown.

At 6’3” he can shut down the NFL’s most physically imposing receivers and do so without much safety help over the top.

The Asking Price

Seattle is said to be looking for a first round pick in return. ESPN recently mocked an NFL trade that would send Sherman from the Seahawks to Dallas for Dallas’ first round pick AND a 2018 fifth rounder.

I’m pretty sure Seattle would have to throw in Earl Thomas (the best safety in the NFL) to make that one happen.

In other words, that ain’t happening. But since everything has a price (yes, everything), at what price does it make sense for the Cowboys?

Ability and Economics

Every NFL teams needs to be proficient in two areas in order to find success. Obviously they must be able to properly evaluate ability or they won’t be able to compete in the first place. But coming in right behind is managing the economics of a roster.

Richard Sherman is a good player. Everyone knows that. He may be overrated a bit, but he’s better than anything the Cowboys have had since Deion Sanders, and as we discussed earlier, he’s also the perfect fit in the Cowboys’ system.

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But Sherman is 29-years old. According to Spotrac, he’s also due $11.431 million next season and $11 million in 2018. The Seahawks have already used the discount years of Sherman’s deal and now are looking to move him for the expensive ones. After that, he’ll be nearly 32 and looking for another significantly priced deal. The kind the Cowboys usually avoid.

At the very least, first round picks are drafted to be NFL starters. They are under a reasonable contract for five seasons and then usually become cornerstones of the franchise beyond that. Trading away an inexpensive five-year starter for an extremely expensive two-year starter is bad business, pure and simple.

The Price

The Dallas Cowboys like to gamble with second round picks and given their success rate, I’d be open to the idea of using a late second rounder on a player like Sherman. He would vastly improve Dallas in the short-term without making them feel obligated to re-up big on his next deal.

At 29, Richard Sherman is no spring chicken, but he’s durable (never missed a game) and tough enough to play through injury. Re-working the deal on Dez Bryant would make it affordable and theoretically, the Cowboys could keep him for three seasons if they used a franchise tag in 2019.

As long as a team can afford it, having an Pro Bowler for three seasons is better than having just an affordable starter for four (assuming that’s what the second round pick would be used for).

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At the end of the day it all comes down to compensation. Richard Sherman costs a lot of money but it’s worth it. He’s just not worth a first round draft pick. As much as it would pain me to forfeit a second rounder for him, I’d rather see that than Dallas gamble another pick on a questionable player and/or position.

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