FREE Mailbag: 3/9 Your Questions & My Answers
Our March 9 version of our mailbag takes us to every corner of our sports universe.
Welcome to the weekend. If the time is available, we often can find a mailbag that is offered to everyone who would care to read. Free for anyone who takes the time to peruse our little community with the one caveat that you are willing to hear what the paid subs received this week (this could be you!) and ponder what it might be like on the other side of that line.
First, here is what we have done here this week:
On Monday, we asked the question of whether or not this is how it all ends for Tyron Smith as a cornerstone of the Dallas Cowboys?
Then, on Wednesday, something I don’t do very often, I strongly suggested that a local team reconsiders who its head coach is. I really have to wonder if Jason Kidd is right for this job.
On Friday, I allowed my sports brain to wander aimlessly and to try to reorganize the DFW “top athletes under 25” from the big 4 teams. It proved to include some controversial answers.
And about six a week, we keep turning out draft prospects for the upcoming NFL Draft in Detroit. This week, I have been working on the best edge rushers in the player pool and next week we are on to the linebackers. You can follow along with any or all of them here:
So, as you can see, each week I attempt to give you plenty that you can enjoy on your schedule. All a guy like me will ask is that you consider giving the sub a try. If you know my personality, it is to make sure you are satisfied with your investment in growing our community. I don’t like to imagine anyone feels I am not delivering on the content.
And with that business attended to, it is time to put 60 minutes on the clock and respond to the feedback from this week’s writings and also anything else that made the cut.
Commence Mailbagging!
From Sandy Any chance that comments from people like Dalton Schultz (y'day on Pat McAfee) and the ensuing mockery lead to any real changes at the way business is done at the Star or is that gross naivete on my part? Thank you.
First, let’s allow folks to see his comments and hear his tone to let everyone know what we are talking about.
This made the rounds this week and everyone was interested in a former Cowboy echoing what we have heard Troy Aikman and others say a hundred times about the Jerry Jones Cowboys: they don’t focus on football in this organization and it almost takes guys who go elsewhere to have something to compare it to.
I always think this is interesting about Cowboys fans, too. They have, in many cases, never followed a team as an adult that was not owned by Jerry Jones unless they are roughly 50 years old. In that case, like the players, a fan is so conditioned to “this is how it is in the NFL” that they confuse the very odd circumstances of the Dallas Cowboys with how it is for everyone else in pro football.
As someone who did not grow up here and also follows another team very closely, I can tell you that it isn’t a business that also plays football. But, here, I often get the impression that the Cowboys are a business first and a football operation second. I wish it wasn’t the case and I also wish we would know how things might change if the Jones family “kept the main thing the main thing.”
That said, I also think it becomes a convenient excuse to blame tours or other nonsensical reasons for the state of Cowboys football.
So, it is complicated. But, to all of the lifelong fans of this franchise that still care, I assure you, there are 31 franchises that do not understand why Jerry Jones has to have a post-game presser in the middle of the player lockerroom. It is madness and it has undercut every single coach since Prince Bandar was on the sidelines making Jimmy Johnson lose his mind.
But, to Sandy’s question: There is no chance that the franchise will take a look in the mirror and make changes because Dalton Schultz said things out loud. They don’t care at all about that.
From Brent - related 3 parter here: - if Tyron is deadset on demanding what the market will pay (which is likely considerable, both yrs and $$, after last year) after playing on a discount for the balance of his career, does Bob the Cowboys GM give him that deal? - if Tyron is indeed gone, do you prefer Tyler Smith at LT, or an external solution that leaves him at G? If external, would you rather we address LT with a premium pick or a notable FA signing? - Similar question on C, prefer Biadisz or something new? I know you love JPJ. I’ll hang up and listen and/or read!
Brent, I pay Tyron until it gets crazy. So, if he wants $15 million for one year we do it. If he wants two years, $30 million with $20 million guaranteed, we do it. If he wants three years and $50 million, I probably need to walk, but I bet he gets it somewhere else. He is still that good.
I also keep Tyler Smith at guard because I am convinced that is his best spot and I want to make that my GM policy: we will play guys who can be great in the position where they can be the greatest version of themselves.
So, where do I find my left tackle? This is the draft to do it, so I probably lock myself into a OL gem at pick No. 24 and it might be my left tackle, but, I would have some real concerns about a massive drop-off because the sure-thing tackles are long gone already, I would think.
As for center, I have no issue at all drafting a center, but given that the picks are not in a huge supply this year, we better be careful that there are not too many vacancies to be filled. That said, I do think the free agent market might help a bit, but starters are very expensive, too. There might be a price where you just keep Biadasz if you are committed to replacing Tyron. I had my mind a new center, but I also had my mind on keeping Tyron.
From John Who’s seat is hotter-Nico or Kidd?
Great question, John.
In my opinion it is absolutely Jason Kidd because (and I want to write about this next week) I believe Nico Harrison has done a really impressive job with this roster and I want to make sure that people know that. He has turned the roster over without a lot of materials to work with and I think it is a considerably better group that they have to work with.
I definitely said in the piece above that I think better schematics might help the Mavericks on both ends of the court.
My biggest question would be the following: Are Harrison and Kidd a package deal? They seemed to be when they were hired and so if you attempt to push one away, does the other feel like that is their end, too?
Also, is Mark Cuban even in charge anymore? He sold the team! I am honestly confused as can be how the power structure works within the organization now and that would be useful to know in weighty topics like this one.
But, the answer to me is absolutely clear. It has to be Kidd on the hotter seat.
From Drew At what point do we start worrying about Oettinger and him potentially derailing this thing?
Great question!
I am definitely aware that he is not nearly the stud he was earlier in his career and I think he is, too.
The idea of the Chris Tanev trade was to help improve that sort of thing by having a better defense in front of him and not asking too much of your goaltender too often.
Below, please find in this first graphic the NHL averages for goalies in this particular season. It is very important we know what average is because it does fluctuate quite a bit from year to year and decade to decade with rule changes or advancements in the game.
So, as a measuring stick, 90.4% save percentage and a 2.91 GAA is the league middle. The leaders in save percentage right now are Winnipeg’s Connor Hellebuyck at 92.2% and Florida’s Sergei Bobrovsky at 2.29 GAA (minimum 25 starts for both categories).
Now, let’s use hockeyreference.com to examine the four years of Oettinger:
As you can see, he has been considerably below his numbers this year and we could argue with these two very important metrics that this is the worst season of his career if we just look at these.
Now, I know my hockey analytics guys are rolling their eyes at how I am using these two stats to measure performance. But I will leave it to them to dig way deeper for those who are inclined, but I want to keep this simple. If Hellebuyck is stopping two more pucks per 100 shots and Oetter is allowing those as goals, well, we can see the issue in a seven game series vs Winnipeg.
What about last year’s playoffs?
Oh my. That’s even worse! After almost beating Calgary by himself in 2022, things were not great against Seattle and Vegas at times.
Now, a quick confession: I try to learn everything about sports I can learn, but evaluating NHL goaltenders for me is a blind spot. I think it is a team sport so when my goalie gets lit up I usually blame his defensemen. But I don’t know enough about the fundamentals of the position to fully know that a goalie is blameless or not. So, in short, I just want to be forthcoming about this.
That said, I believe he is a good goalie, but he needs to be a better one between here and June if the Stars even get out of a very difficult Round 1.
From Jim Lollar: Bob, what happened with the Deuce? He has the same size speed and elusiveness he had when he was embarrassing my Longhorns! Is there really THAT big of a difference between the 12 and the pros? Or is it a minimum size/weight thing for pro RBs?
Jim, Year 1 for Deuce Vaughn was not very good and I believe the coaches didn’t want him on the field after they saw defenses attack him with blitzes early.
But, I will remind you loud and clear what Bill Walsh used to say in his book. In fact, I might also use this in an upcoming Mazi Smith piece, but since you guys are great, I will show it to you now, too, from my piece in 2018 on Taco Charlton.
In his amazing and very expensive book “Finding The Winning Edge,” Hall of Fame Coach Bill Walsh spends a fair amount of time in the chapter titled “Developing Players” talking about rookies, their paths and the challenges they face.
“Although organizations need first-year players (particularly high draft choices) to contribute to their team’s success, in most instances, first-year players encounter too many obstacles which must be overcome for them to make a significant contribution.”
He then elaborates on what the issues are that face a young player trying to transition from the college game – even at a major program – to the NFL game where the level of competition takes a significant jump, to say the least:
-Lack of Physical maturity.
-Being prone to injuries.
-Survival mode in training camp.
-Possible lack of focus.
-The lack of attention he will receive in training camp once the veterans arrive.
-Major changes to his lifestyle.
Walsh continues:
“In fact, the performance of a first-year player may be a disappointment to the coaching staff for some time – possibly the entire season. Eventually, a rookie may lose his poise and his ability to focus in some competitive situations. At some point, he may even appear to have forgotten everything that he supposedly learned.”
You must establish a specific role for him – pass rush specialist, special teams, etc.
“By establishing his role on the team and taking pride in the fact that he is contributing in a tangible way, a rookie can achieve a sense of control in his professional life. Not only is he able to earn his keep, he also is able to acquire the acceptance of his teammates.”
He wraps up the session on expectation levels for first-year pros with the following big paragraph:
“Too much is happening during the regular season for coaches or his teammates to give much detailed coaching to a second-line back-up player. A first-year player who is not ready to be thrust into a starting position may only have a minimal sense of “urgency” to learn. As a result, his skills and level of preparedness may actually erode over the course of the season. Consequently, most of the development of a first-year player occurs in training camp and the subsequent off-season.“
I am not saying that Mazi Smith, Deuce Vaughn and this class is going to return with a vengeance in 2024 and be much improved. But I am going to say that Bill Walsh says to plan on your rookies adding very little in Round 1 and I have found that to be true.
From Brooks W. Klein: Bob, if, on the outside chance that Amarius Mims and either Byron Murphy or T’vondre Sweat are still on the board at #24 who do you pick? The classic, do you draft for need, a defensive tackle which the Cowboys desperately need or draft the best talent available which imo is Mims also a position of need but a problem the Cowboys could work around by putting Tyler Smith at left tackle and Bass at guard. FA may make this decision easier but it’s enough to drive me batty along with other Cowboy fans I’m sure.
I would have a hard time passing on Mims, but if Sweat is there I think I would have a hard time not grabbing him. I know this will upset folks who are still mad about Mazi Smith, but I think having both of them would be very fun moving forward.
I think Sweat would change the Cowboys defense overnight and he would probably be my “best player available” amongst those three at a position that could alter everything this season.
I reserve the right to change my mind, but since I have done those three players already, I believe I will lock in my answer.
From NTX Oilman: With all your ⚽️ knowledge, do any FC Dallas players make the list?
OK, confession. I have sort of fallen out of touch with FC Dallas in the last year.
It is my fault, but since I went to see Messi play FC Dallas in Frisco, I haven’t had them properly on my radar. They are important to me and I have followed them since the days the great Ariel Graziani played at the Cotton Bowl for my friend Dave Dir.
But I have not given them my time or attention this season and that is my bad. There is also the Apple+ issue that seems to suppress the ability for us to see their matches.
I also didn’t know how to write that piece – best under 25 in DFW – and weight that properly knowing how few of my readers would be able contextualize their values compared to Rangers, Mavericks, Stars, and Cowboys. I am a huge soccer fan, but I still don’t know the answer when this sports entire salary budget is less than what Josh Green will make for the Mavericks in 2024-25.
That said, I should have included them. And for that, I have brought back my main soccer expert friend, Peter Welpton, and asked him to take on this topic and slot in a few FC Dallas players to my list as he sees fit:
PETER: Sure Bob, this should be easy-peasy. FC Dallas Burn is known worldwide for its consistent production of young, promising players - churned out from that little football factory up in Frisco… Hold on while I pull up a list…. uh. hmm… well, can this be correct? Stand by, let me re-run it……. oh. cripes.
It would seem that while Dallas has nine players that qualify, it’s not clear that many of them should, quite yet, be on a “top” list.
The reality is Dallas’ production in this area has fallen off, both with a manager who is not big on playing young, unproven talent as much as his predecessors and because the factory has hit a bit of a dry spell. Not on the list is Alan Velasco (21), the young Argentine midfielder who was the club’s biggest transfer spend, but is out with an ACL. There is also the newest big spend in Petar Musa and the rising star center-back Nkosi Tafari but both just recently turned 26.
But, here are two interesting stories that I think qualify for Bob’s list:
Jesus Ferreira: His dad, David, was an MLS All-Star, one of the club’s all-time best and his son Jesus grew up and flourished in the club’s academy, became a USMNT player, went to the last World Cup, and now is making just about $2M annually as the highest paid Homegrown player in MLS. All that said, Jesus has yet to truly break through to the expected level. What once was the assumed move to a European club for a massive transfer fee no longer seems so clear. He’s also coming off a nagging injury. A hopeful sign is a shift this season to a more natural “off-striker” position will allow him to blossom into the final product fans have longed for.
Bernard Kamungo: Here simply because he’s the most amazing MLS story in a very long time. You can read (listen to) all the details here, here, and here - but this is a kid whose family first lucked out on getting to immigrate to the US, and ended up in Abilene, Texas where Bernie was playing high school UIL soccer. Not club. High school. A push from his brother for him to go to an FCD tryout turned into him scoring a few big goals in MLS last season, getting a USMNT call-up, and potentially repping the US at the upcoming Olympics. A very raw, but wildly promising talent that still has a long way to go.
I’d like to do this for the rest of those on the above list, but frankly, they’re stories of “not done quite much, yet” (looking at you, Dante Sealy) or “poor guy just is injured all the time” (looking forlornly at you, Paxton).
There is a lot of talent up Frisco way, but converting that into production at the MLS level, or beyond, isn’t at the pace it was a few years ago with Ricardo Pepi (PSV), Chris Richards (Crystal Palace), Weston McKennie (Juve), Tanner Tessman (Venezia), Reggie Cannon (QPR) and more.
Tremendous work, Peter! Follow him on line here and listen to the KickAround, too!
From ELange: There are almost 1700 players in the NFL but the average salary is around $4.8m. Why have the rank and file allowed the top earners like QBs to take the majority of the salary cap and not tried to spread the wealth more?
I believe that the QB position is so vital that most would admit that they probably deserve even more of it.
If Patrick Mahomes was really a free agent and there were no ridiculous franchise tag rules and just a pure free market – say how World Soccer works and he is Kylian Mbappé – would Mahomes get $100 million a season? More?
I think so.
Spreading the wealth should happen more and there needs to be a middle class, but trying to curtail what the best QBs make would not be fair to how much Mahomes, Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, or many others have moved the needles over the years. I think the NFL knows this, too. Which is why I might look into the idea of having your QB1 exempt from the team salary cap at some point to make things more equitable to the rank and file players.
From Brent: Since there’s still time here, @Bob following the Tanev acquistion how would you ideally like to see the Stars set the D lineup, maybe even just the top 4?
I know it has been tough to fully see so far, but if I am king, we are putting Miro Heiskanen and Chris Tanev together. Then Esa Lindell and Thomas Harley and we are rolling with into the playoffs. My third pair is probably Ryan Suter and Jani Hakanpaa, but I want Nils Lundkvist to know he can crack this group, too.
I think Tanev is a perfect addition to the Stars and I am very excited for him to find a groove and when he does I think the goaltending will get mysteriously better.
From David Anderson: Can Liverpool’s young guns get it done over MNC? Massive EPL tilt this weekend at Anfield!!!
I have enormous concerns about Liverpool trying to beat Manchester City at home because I think everyone in the match on both sides knows what is at stake and who is actually a better side.
City is awesome and has a chance at amazing history – to win this league four years in a row – and have been the Liverpool nemesis the entire Klopp run.
With 11 matches to go, the top 3 cannot be tighter. If Liverpool wins, it will feel that it can get to the finish line. If City wins, everyone will think this is their league again. If it is a draw, Arsenal will be celebrating wildly.
I cannot wait for this match, but I am also terrified of it. I also plan on writing about it on Sunday afternoon for no other reason than because I want to do it. :)
Anyway, enjoy your weekend and pull for Liverpool if you don’t mind. I need this.
Agree that the comments by Schultz and every other former player have no impact at all. Jerry and Stephen are happy being king. On-field success is secondary.
Speaking of on-field success, I happened to be on the same flight from PHX to DFW as Darren Woodson recently. He could not have been any nicer to me and everyone else who interacted with him on the plane, including the flight attendants. He was incredibly kind and polite. Just wanted the Cowboys fans on here to know that some of the great players we’ve invested a lot of energy and emotion into seem to be pretty good people, too.
Wonderful crown on a great week of writing, sir. Particularly glad to see your candid, realistic, and spot-on comments about Cowboy Culture and Mavs coaching. Sad thing about Cowboys Culture is that it would almost certainly be a stronger business/brand if football came first... Too bad that doesn't fit the psyche of the owner. Appreciate all you do.