Watkins: Should the Cowboys make long-term investments in DeMarcus Lawrence or Randy Gregory?

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Dallas can’t afford to pay both players substantial contracts this offseason.





By Calvin Watkins



8:00 AM on Feb 4, 2022



Update: This is the fifth in an occasional series exploring key questions facing the Dallas Cowboys this offseason.



The Cowboys’ best pass rusher is having a good time in Las Vegas at the Pro Bowl. That would be Mr. Micah Parsons, the Professional Football Writers of America’s NFL Rookie of the Year and Defensive Rookie of the Year from the 2021 season.



While Parsons begins his career with a Pro Bowl berth and postseason awards, two veterans on the Cowboys’ roster have uncertain futures.



Defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence is coming off a season in which he missed 10 games with a broken bone in his foot. He is due a tremendous salary of $19 million for the 2022 season that might not be feasible.



Fellow defensive end Randy Gregory enters the offseason as a free agent for the first time in his troubled career. He underwent minor surgery to his knee when the season ended and also missed five games with a calf injury and COVID-19.



When it comes to the Cowboys’ pass rushers, who should get paid?



Do the Cowboys want to pay Lawrence his $19 million salary given the health issues he’s endured and the fact he’ll be 30 years old when the 2022 season starts?



A source has said Lawrence is not willing to take a pay cut, and a restructuring of his contract doesn’t seem logical because it would extend his deal beyond 2023.



On the field, Lawrence remains a threat. In just seven games, Lawrence had three sacks, 16 quarterback pressures, seven quarterback hits and two forced fumbles. Lawrence also returned an interception for a touchdown. He continues solid work as a backside run defender, and his leadership was noted when it came to developing Parsons.



The Cowboys are an estimated $21 million over the salary cap. Releasing Lawrence creates all sorts of room, but it also raises questions. If Lawrence is cut after June 1, the Cowboys would save $19 million.



That’s good, right?



Well, tell us who the starting defensive ends are in 2022.



Parsons can play defensive end, in a two-point stance, but he’s better suited to playing linebacker in the long term. Defensive end Dorance Armstrong is an unrestricted free agent, veteran Tarell Basham is signed through 2023 but had an uneven performance in 2021. There also is Chauncey Golston, a 2021 third-round pick who is coming off ankle surgery.



So that brings us to Gregory.



Jerry Jones told the Cowboys website he’s spoken with Gregory’s agent at the Senior Bowl and the preliminary discussions went well.



If you let Lawrence go, then the Cowboys had better re-sign Gregory. The easiest way to keep Gregory is the franchise tag, where the projected number for defensive ends is a $20.1 million salary for the 2022 season. If the Cowboys use the transition tag on Gregory, he’d get paid $16.6 million and the Cowboys would have the right of first refusal if another team tries to sign him.



And what is the market for Gregory?



He’s coming off a season during which in 12 games he compiled six sacks, 19 tackles, a career-high 17 quarterback hits along with 30 quarterback pressures and three forced fumbles.



Gregory has settled his life down following several years of suspensions because of substance abuse issues. He missed the 2019 and 2017 seasons and was lost for the first 14 games of the 2016 season with suspensions.



The Cowboys stuck by Gregory through his off-the-field problems. He’s not considered a bad guy at The Star. If anything, he’s well-liked. However, how do you weigh the production, which isn’t great, against the off-the-field issues?



Gregory is a talented player but giving him a three- to five-year contract in free agency, when he turns 30 on Nov. 23, is risky.



He’s displayed an ability to play through injuries, so his toughness can’t be questioned. You would like to see more production, but at what cost?



Do both Lawrence and Gregory fit in the salary structure for the Cowboys?



At this stage, it seems only one of these two players can fit with the Cowboys for the 2022 season.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

To me it's probably Lawrence. I don't want any guy gone but he was injured most of last year and it didn't impact us much at all. I'm already interested in pass rushers in this draft anyway. So that could easily end up my first round pick. With Gregory and Parsons we would still have ends that can pass rush. And clearly we can hold the fort for the other downs with other guys.

Cooper to me isn't so easy to replace. We don't want to have to take a first round WR. We have 2 other free agent WR's who are good players. And if you release Cooper your WR room is literally Lamb and nothing. So then you have to rebuild the entire unit in the offseason.

 

[Simpleton]

We can, and should, keep them both and then likely cut Lawrence after 2022.

The DL draft class is stacked so we could rather easily find a new edge rusher in the first 2 rounds but I'd rather not be forced into that position and if we let Lawrence go we're basically forced into it with only Gregory and Parsons, who shouldn't be over-used on the edge in the first place.

And the savings in 2023 would be much larger than if we cut him now.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

What Dak Prescott’s contract restructure means for Cowboys’ offseason

by Lauren Barash3 days ago

It’s no secret that the Dallas Cowboys are currently struggling with cap space for 2022. Ranking third-worst in the NFL, America’s Team is currently more than $21 million over the cap. But, as teams always do, Jerry Jones and company are making and will make moves to get the Cowboys back at even. Making some changes to quarterback Dak Prescott’s lofty contract is one of them.

As you likely remember, Prescott signed a 4-year, $160 million contract with the Cowboys last year. He is set to earn $20 million for 2022, but the organization is going to restructure it to help with their lack of cap space. Sources told CowboysSI.com that this maneuver will get America’s Team about $16 million in cap relief. That’s huge considering the Cowboys have 23 players set to hit free agency, including big names like Randy Gregory and Michael Gallup.


So, what are they doing? If you take a deeper look at Prescott’s contract, he is strangely set to earn $0 in the final “void” year of his contract when he is 33 years old in 2026. Weird, right? Not anymore. This was all planned ahead of time as a way for Jones and his crew to handle future cap issues.

The front office is essentially moving some of this money to that final year in order to free up money for 2022. Prescott will still get the money; he will just get it at a later time.

__

Seems like people are looking at the 21 mil over the cap, looking at the two highest paid guys below Dak, and assuming someone will get cut. That's silly. As you can see above we will clear probably 16 mil in room just by doing what Dak's contract was always intended to do.

 

[boozeman]

I would not invest in Gregory given what I saw in the 49ers game.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

I would not invest in Gregory given what I saw in the 49ers game.

I would but that's just me. He is a better pass rusher than Lawrence. I can fill Lawrence's shoes. Gregory is harder in my opinion. But cost is what it comes down to. Lawrence will cost 27 mil against the cap next year. No way I'm giving Gregory a 20 mil type contract and I don't think anyone else will either.

 

[Simpleton]

We should be able to get Gregory for about 10-11/year, which would be completely fair.

 

[Genghis Khan]

We can, and should, keep them both and then likely cut Lawrence after 2022.

The DL draft class is stacked so we could rather easily find a new edge rusher in the first 2 rounds but I'd rather not be forced into that position and if we let Lawrence go we're basically forced into it with only Gregory and Parsons, who shouldn't be over-used on the edge in the first place.

And the savings in 2023 would be much larger than if we cut him now.

This is it.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

This is it.

That's what I would do unless Lawrence is willing to take a pay cut. I don't know if you save enough cap room to justify cutting Lawrence right now and we need Cooper.

 

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[ravidubey]

We should be able to get Gregory for about 10-11/year, which would be completely fair.

Is he worth that though? Dude has a total of 16.5 sacks in his career and is 29.

Tank outplays him, but Lawrence has grown too expensive for a guy you can't assume is going to play 17+ games.

The Bengals signed a bunch of young, stout players and did well for themselves.

Gregory and Lawrence's window has closed. Let some other team overpay for them.

 

[Simpleton]

Is he worth that though? Dude has a total of 16.5 sacks in his career and is 29.

Tank outplays him, but Lawrence has grown too expensive for a guy you can't assume is going to play 17+ games.

The Bengals signed a bunch of young, stout players and did well for themselves.

Gregory and Lawrence's window has closed. Let some other team overpay for them.

The going rate for a starter who can give you about 6-8 sacks is around 13-14M/year, so I think so.

10/year is basically an above average starter these days, which I think is fair for Gregory.

 

[ravidubey]

The going rate for a starter who can give you about 6-8 sacks is around 13-14M/year, so I think so.

10/year is basically an above average starter these days, which I think is fair for Gregory.

On the surface this is true, but it commits us to age and future cap troubles IMO.

I’m convinced when it comes to the DL that it is better to be young and solid vs older and above average.

Problem is it is both DEs who are getting older and less reliable. I don’t think we can commit to two of them, and we need to be grooming both successors no matter what.

Age will always betray you in the end, barring a Reggie White level talent.

 

[Simpleton]

On the surface this is true, but it commits us to age and future cap troubles IMO.

I’m convinced when it comes to the DL that it is better to be young and solid vs older and above average.

Problem is it is both DEs who are getting older and less reliable. I don’t think we can commit to two of them, and we need to be grooming both successors no matter what.

Age will always betray you in the end, barring a Reggie White level talent.

We'll I'd only give him 2-3 years ideally, I certainly don't think he should be getting a 6 year deal.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

We'll I'd only give him 2-3 years ideally, I certainly don't think he should be getting a 6 year deal.

Yeah 3 years would seem like max. He isn't going to get a longer deal in free agency.

 

[ravidubey]

We'll I'd only give him 2-3 years ideally, I certainly don't think he should be getting a 6 year deal.

You know the moment he’s paid he becomes a progress stopper preventing the style of defense the NFL needs IMO which is a strong rotation fueled by youth.

If Jerry pays him he’s going to demand PT, and I feel like too much PT is not good for older players. They really need their rest.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

You know the moment he’s paid he becomes a progress stopper preventing the style of defense the NFL needs IMO which is a strong rotation fueled by youth.

If Jerry pays him he’s going to demand PT, and I feel like too much PT is not good for older players. They really need their rest.

None of that fits Gregory's personality at all. Do you even know the player?

 

[shoop]

At this point, I'd rather bet on Gregory than Tank. He has less wear on his body and probably higher ability right now.

 

[ravidubey]

None of that fits Gregory's personality at all. Do you even know the player?

Gregory wasn’t whom I was referring to, it’s Jerry who will insist on PT because of Gregory’s contract.