- 2 days ago
The K&C Masterpiece broke down a post–free agency off-season tiers list, highlighting each tier and which team goes where. They discussed how the Cowboys were categorized, what it means for the draft, upcoming season, and more.
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00The moves that most of these teams have made so far in free agency, what do they say?
00:04What does that tell you about what their intentions are?
00:07And I think yesterday, was it yesterday that Jalen Waddell was traded or two days?
00:11That was two days ago, right?
00:12Two days ago, yeah.
00:13Two days ago, whenever Jalen Waddell was traded, we kind of asked the question yesterday during NFL overreaction to reality,
00:18were they just that player away from the Super Bowl?
00:22I mean, they were a quarterback away from the Super Bowl.
00:24Yeah.
00:24I think they beat the New England Patriots maybe handily if they had Bo Nix in that game.
00:33Now, I'm not saying that Bo Nix is the greatest quarterback out there.
00:36He has really good moments and then really what moments?
00:40Like, what happened?
00:41But he's also got this little bit of a clutch factor when it matters that I really like.
00:47And, again, Cortland Sutton can turn it on and be a true number one receiver very easily.
00:53Having Jalen Waddell next to him.
00:56We'll talk a little bit about the number one receiver in the C-Block today.
01:00Actually, just after the C-Block because Jalen Waddell is supporting positionless football,
01:04which is something I adore, and I like that.
01:07Now, that being said, the Athletic put together a list.
01:13Everybody loves a list.
01:15That's right.
01:15Jordan Rodriguez.
01:16Rodriguez?
01:17Rodriguez?
01:17She put together a list of, after these first waves of free agency, what are all these moves telling you?
01:24And she's kind of got it broken down into categories.
01:29The first one, win now.
01:31These teams aren't just building towards the postseason.
01:34They are overtly going for Super Bowl.
01:37And the first team that she has on there is Denver.
01:41Their re-signing of Justin Stranod is a three-year deal.
01:47It's a great deal.
01:48But the addition of Jalen Waddell, when this was written, they hadn't traded for Waddell yet.
01:54Oh.
01:55So, that was kind of a, everything they did was re-sign their own.
02:00And their defense was phenomenal.
02:03They re-signed their own.
02:04They stick with that.
02:05But losing a couple of the voices in that defensive coaching room, quite a big question mark there.
02:11The Los Angeles Rams, the moves they made, their most interesting move, getting Trent McDuffie and extending him.
02:18Yeah.
02:18Trent McDuffie said, them getting me, or trading for me, tells me they want a Super Bowl.
02:25Which I love when a quarterback is that confident and has that much swagger.
02:29And then San Francisco, the 49ers and the Seahawks are also in the win-now category because the moves that
02:37they put out there.
02:38Signing tight end Jake Tongs, and then also for Seattle, re-signing Shahid on their three-year deal.
02:45They say that is win-now, even though they moved on from Kenneth Walker in Seattle.
02:50So, that's where those four teams are the win-now teams at the moment.
02:55I don't hate it.
02:56But the one that intrigues me is San Francisco, just because it feels like they're so beat up still.
03:04I mean, knowing John Lynch, they're a good draft away.
03:07But, I mean, the move for Osa was great for them.
03:10Fits their system.
03:12Good player.
03:14I just don't know what that offense is going to look like without George Kittle.
03:20Brandon Ayuk didn't play last year, but they're going to get rid of him.
03:23So, they've got questions at wide receiver.
03:26Like, Mike Evans, is he going to stay healthy?
03:28That's a question now after last season.
03:30They brought in another A&M, or they're bringing in another A&M guy, Casey Concepcion.
03:35So, that might be.
03:36Oh!
03:36Yeah.
03:37They might be looking at him.
03:39That would.
03:39Can you imagine having those two A&M receivers out there?
03:42That would be nasty.
03:43Now, healthy, that's another factor, but that would be pretty sick.
03:47That's such a 49ers thing to do.
03:50Like, make the obvious steal of the draft.
03:53Like, he's in the second round, and they somehow get a hold of him in the late second.
03:57I could see that.
03:58And I would hate everything about that move because it would be so perfect.
04:30Yeah.
04:32Since the Baltimore Ravens, they are in must-win situation, they're probably going to the playoffs
04:39and likely have a chance to go to the Super Bowl, but it is the stakes that are on the
04:44line.
04:44Their biggest move was losing Tyler Lindenbaum, and that hurts more than the addition of Max Crosby,
04:51is what they say there.
04:53It does, honestly, because that's one of the best offensive linemen, or at least qualify,
04:58interior offensive linemen in football.
05:00He is really, really good, despite the fact that he looks like Buford from Phineas and Ferb.
05:05But that was huge because, just like the Max Crosby trade being reversed, it had ripple effects.
05:13They really thought they had a chance to keep him, and that's a big chunk of change that
05:17they were expecting to give to one player.
05:19So after that, they're left scrambling like, okay, a lot of the free agent offensive line
05:25market had already figured itself out before legal tampering by players just re-signing
05:31with their teams, or, you know, like Tyler Biotish getting cut by the commanders, and he,
05:36within days, is with the Chargers.
05:38A lot of, anytime a good offensive lineman hits the market, you have about maybe 12 hours
05:46to figure out if he's going to be on your team or not, because they are at a premium.
05:50So that's a massive, massive loss, especially with a first-year head coach that's bringing
05:55in a new staff.
05:56You're going to have to figure out, because as a defensive-minded coach, he's going to
06:00figure out his side of the ball, and they're probably going to be decent there.
06:04Offensively, it's always been about keeping Lamar Jackson healthy.
06:07And if you can't protect him when he is just pure dropping back, you're not going to protect
06:14him when he's running either.
06:16The next team on this list is the Buffalo Bills, and I like this line, it's now-ish or
06:21never for the Bills, because Josh Allen is in his prime, he's in that place right now.
06:27They go and add DJ Moore, they add Bradley Chubb, they sign CJ Gardner-Johnson to a one-year
06:34deal, and I just don't know, I just am not in love with that player anymore.
06:38No.
06:38But they need younger, better pass rushers that are on their way up.
06:42They need offensive line, defensive line, and help in the secondary.
06:46And so I don't know, this is one of those situations where you're like, alright, we're
06:50putting a lot on the quarterback, and we do need to do stuff for him, but because of
06:54what we're putting there, the assets and all the stuff we have there, we kind of aren't
06:59able to do all the other things, but you did see must-win situation because their coach
07:04got fired in the offseason.
07:06That was one of the keys that says, yeah, now you're going to give your head coach some
07:10time, but with Josh Allen, this team, they're right there, they've got to make some moves
07:15to do something.
07:16I don't think they did enough this offseason to actually make that happen.
07:19No, not at all.
07:19They're not aggressive enough when it comes to adding that true missing piece.
07:24That's why they settled for DJ Moore, in my mind, because there were wide receiver ones
07:30to be had out there.
07:31Jalen Waddell, which Jordan Schultz, friend of the station, did say that the Bills were
07:35in talks before he got swept away, and that would have been a massive upgrade for Buffalo.
07:43AJ Brown was a name that got thrown around in that conversation, too, but I do know Philly's
07:49asking price has been very, very rich, but again, if you're serious about winning,
07:54with a former NFL MVP at quarterback, you go and make those moves right now, regardless
08:00of the price, because you can afford to mortgage the future whenever you have a guy like that
08:05at the helm.
08:06So they've just never seemed serious enough to deserve a guy like Josh Allen at quarterback
08:11because they don't make the complimentary moves around him.
08:15And then, again, it feels like they're late to the party all the time in free agency in
08:19the trade market where everything has already figured itself out at this point.
08:23There's nothing of value left out there defensively to help them.
08:28Like you said, it feels very Cowboys-ish.
08:30They need pass rush help.
08:32They need maybe a linebacker.
08:34They need help in the secondary.
08:35And then there's still other pieces on the offense that they could upgrade at.
08:41They could figure out.
08:43You know, like for the Cowboys, it's George Pickens.
08:45Are you going to sign him or not?
08:46Like, there are so many questions left to be answered when they have the ultimate puzzle
08:51piece there already.
08:52They just can't seem to figure out the rest.
08:55From the 214, Waddle's not better than DJ Moore.
08:58And then from the 214, Jalen Waddle, wide receiver one.
09:02I'll take Waddle over DJ Moore.
09:04That's like...
09:05A thousand times.
09:05I had problems all year last year with DJ Moore.
09:09Actually, the last couple of years with some of the effort.
09:11And then in the biggest moment for Chicago, that lack of effort was there.
09:16Yes.
09:16And so, like with Waddle, when it comes to that, there's a lot of talent that goes into it.
09:21He had a miserable quarterback in Tua.
09:23But, you know, we'll see how that goes.
09:25He might have another miserable quarterback in Bo Nix.
09:28Sure.
09:29But maybe they have some clutch factors that work in.
09:32The Chargers are in this mix as far as what must win.
09:36Eh.
09:36With the Chargers.
09:37That's just how I am about the Chargers.
09:38They're just always like, what's going to happen there?
09:40But they did throw the Eagles in there.
09:42And she said, to me, the Eagles have the highest variance of any NFL team in 26.
09:46As far as going good or bad.
09:48Signing their own good players.
09:50Keeping a roster strength.
09:51Kind of checking in on defensive linemen Jordan Davis.
09:55Signing Wollin to a one-year deal was interesting.
09:58Him and Dejean and Quinion Mitchell.
10:00Looks like it could work.
10:01They'll see how that figures out.
10:02But that's a must win team, according to Jordan.
10:06Success Builder is the next one.
10:09Now, Success Builder, I was like, okay, maybe the Cowboys can fall into this category.
10:14They're not a win now team.
10:16In the reality of things, not a win now team.
10:18Probably in the middle of the pack somewhere is where I would put them on all these categories.
10:24They're not a must win team.
10:25Success Builder, I could see, because you have to build some success with your defense.
10:31Carolina Panthers.
10:32After what they accomplished last year.
10:35The additions they made.
10:37Very interesting that they didn't come to terms with center Cade Mays.
10:41They run the ball really well inside of the pocket.
10:44Or inside of quarterback Bryce Young's pocket to get his best.
10:48That's a move that I thought that they would do.
10:50But they added Devin Lloyd to their defense.
10:52They're a better, stronger, faster defense right now.
10:55Also adding Jalen Phillips.
10:56They decided to be a little more skilled in those positions.
11:00And they already had a toughness factor about them.
11:03So their additions this offseason.
11:05Nice work there.
11:06Then the Bears.
11:08Success Builder as well.
11:09Because they were good last year.
11:11And they made some moves.
11:13They wore in on the Crosby sweepstakes.
11:15But they never actually pulled that off.
11:17But the Bears are definitely, so far, good job by them to shore up their defensive line.
11:25Add to their secondary.
11:26They lost five players.
11:27And so I'm looking for the Bears to continue to make noise.
11:30Not only in that division.
11:32But the other places as well.
11:34They finally figured out the quarterback, right?
11:36So now they can address everything else surrounding it.
11:40And I think that they still need some help offensively.
11:44But that defense is always gritty.
11:46It's always fun.
11:48And they've done some work to add to it as well.
11:51And in the NFC, you have margin for error.
11:56I really think you have more margin for error still.
11:59Even after this offseason.
12:00When some of these NFC teams have made some really big moves.
12:03Compared to the AFC.
12:05So they still have time.
12:07And they still have time with Caleb.
12:09And I imagine that he gets a second contract there anyways.
12:12But what's the golden thought process in the NFL nowadays?
12:16Is if you can get that star rookie quarterback contract.
12:20You find that dude.
12:22And you can win within that rookie QB deal.
12:26Because the cap hits are so low.
12:28And you can afford to build around them.
12:29They've got the coach in place.
12:31They've got the right idea.
12:32They just need to execute it.
12:34Which historically, they have not done recently.
12:37But they have the chance to change everybody's minds.
12:40New England Patriots are also in this success builder group.
12:44Where Romeo Dobbs is a good addition.
12:47You know, he's not a number one receiver.
12:51But he's really good.
12:53He's a very fun receiver to watch.
12:55They add Mike Vrabel guy and Kevin Byard to their defense.
12:59They signed Draymond Jones.
13:02And so, like, those are all good moves for the Patriots, who are already in the damn Super Bowl.
13:06So, like, they're already there.
13:08And now what else can they add to this?
13:10Now you get to neutral positive.
13:12These are the teams that have a good to great quarterback.
13:15A good roster that needs a few adjustments.
13:18Their free agency plans make sense.
13:21Although draft targets and issues are very obvious.
13:24This is a happy high ceiling for a team to spend a few years if it can.
13:29Teams in this bucket are either great quarterback play or an improved position group away from being in contention to
13:36be in must win and win now.
13:37All right?
13:38So, this is where the Cowboys are.
13:40They are a few moves away from being they have to improve the defense and they can be in that
13:45category.
13:45I agree with Jerry when he says, if we could have played a lick of defense, they were poor defensively.
13:51I think that if their defense was better, they would have been better offensively, too.
13:56And by the end of the year, they could have been in contention for something.
13:58Not necessarily a Super Bowl, though.
14:00We understand that it takes a lot more than that.
14:02But they have to add to this.
14:04Adding Christian Parker, biggest significant move there.
14:07Franchise tagging George Pickens.
14:09And then the Jalen Thompson addition is nice.
14:13But there's still so much more for them to do.
14:15They're in a category with the Lions and the Packers and the Texans and the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Chiefs,
14:22the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
14:23All those teams are in that neutral, positive area where it's like, you did all right, but you still have
14:29work to do for those teams.
14:32Yeah, there is still plenty of work to be done for Dallas.
14:35We all know that.
14:36But you're at least taking the right steps.
14:39Because we talked about it, you could be net neutral with the offense this offseason in terms of moves, and
14:46you would still be fine.
14:47All you had to do was make sure, in my mind, that Pickens was still on the team, which was
14:51easy to do by franchise tagging him.
14:53Now, you look at a pretty much historically bad defense last season, and you say, we need sweeping changes that
15:00the amount of work needed on that side of the ball, you just simply cannot do the entire body of
15:09work in one offseason.
15:10I went into this offseason knowing that.
15:13And they said, bust the budget and everything.
15:15I know some irritating things.
15:17You know better.
15:18I knew better, but I knew they were at least going to address one position, and then the draft would
15:23help fix some other ailing positions as well.
15:26So, yeah, you're pointed in the right direction.
15:30You've got to kill this draft.
15:31You do.
15:31Which, you have the ammunition to do so.
15:33You're very fortunate that you have two first-round picks this year.
15:36I will say that you are very fortunate that you have two firsts this year in this defensive class.
15:41Go.
Comments