Cowboys 1st & 10: CBA Is Approved; Will NFL Free Agency Be Moved?

Our Sunday morning Dallas Cowboys 1st and 10 begins with news on the CBA being approved by the players. That's a positive start to the NFL year that is set to begin on Wednesday (with the new salary cap locked in at $198.2 million) ... and with the franchise tag deadline still set for Monday morning ... though that seems up for discussion.

1) IF FREE AGENCY STARTS THIS WEEK, A PRIMER

So, the NFL is SUPPOSED to start the free agency cycle this week. Now, that could change. The players’ vote is in, so we're good there. And, as it stands right now, free agency is supposed to begin Monday with the legal tampering period and the tag decisions (you have to love legal tampering, right)?

So, if we really do get started next week, it’s time to bone up, right? Well, we’ve got you covered.

First, start with our free agency tracker. I mean, EVERYTHING is on here. Every story that our Mike Fisher has filed in the ramp-up to free agency, analysis on every meaningful Cowboys free agent (and even some of the not-so-meaningful ones) and what to expect from the Cowboys and each player. That includes a report on the Cowboys’ ACTUAL cap space and inside information on what both sides are thinking, especially for players like Dak Prescott and Amari Cooper. (Of course, with the CBA approved, only one tag is available to use.) It’s meaningful information. If you want to be ready for free agency, there is no better place to start.

Oh, and we’ll update it as free agency develops, too. So save the link.

The Cowboys have a whole lot of decisions to make this offseason.

Who's staying, who's going and who could be the top targets in free agency? https://t.co/hknj7cJCmZ
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) March 13, 2020

Plus, in that link you’ll find free-agent targets. Now, naturally, we know a bit less about this at this point because the legal tampering period hasn’t started yet. But Fish has found some cracks in the dam, including information on a former Cowboys wide receiver named Dez Bryant and a former Cowboys offensive lineman named Ron Leary. But, earlier this week, he filed this piece on a player that could be on the Cowboys’ radar, one that could help the Cowboys out at safety. How do you feel about Raiders safety Karl Joseph?

#Cowboys #NFLFreeAgency : What Does Personnel Dept. Think of #Raiders Safety Karl Joseph? https://t.co/CNhQ6MED7t via @SInow pic.twitter.com/culubTF7zF
— fishsports ✭ (@fishsports) March 11, 2020

When free agency starts, count on Fish and the rest of us to keep you up to date on what’s happening and to break down every move so you know why it’s happening and how it’s going to impact the 2020 Dallas Cowboys. We’re just getting warmed up.

2) MY SIXTH COWBOYS SI 7-ROUND MOCK DRAFT

Earlier this week I published my SIXTH Cowboys SI 7-Round Mock Draft. In this mock I did two things. First, I let the computer (the Machine) pick for the Cowboys. Then I picked for the Cowboys. Find out the results here. And while we did have some names you’ve heard before, the second, third and fourth rounds are filled with names that are new, if you’ve been following along.

And, don’t forget, links to my previous 7-round mocks are below:

Mock Draft 1.0 (Jan. 27)

Mock Draft 2.0 (Feb. 4)

Mock Draft 3.0 (Feb. 11)

Mock Draft 4.0 (Feb. 18)

Mock Draft 5.0 (March 5)

Next week we will hit Mock Draft No. 7.

3) POSITION-BY-POSITION BREAKDOWNS

Our position-by-position breakdowns for the Cowboys, and how it could impact the Cowboys in free agency, are now complete. We’ll explore the draft needs further once free agency is relatively complete in April. But, for now, here are our current assessments:

4) CORONAVIRUS AND THE COWBOYS

No part of the sports hasn’t been touched by the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak. Our staffs at CowboyMaven and DallasBasketball.com has been all over it this week. From a Cowboys perspective, our Mike Fisher has been keeping up with the doings at The Star as Cowboys officials sought to figure out how they would manage their employees during this public health crisis.

To make it easy for you as a Cowboys fan to keep up with what’s happening in the NFL when it comes to the coronavirus, we’ve put together this tracker that you can use to get up-to-the-minute news. We’ll update it as we get more information. This includes the cancellation of head coach Mike McCarthy’s pre-training camp trip to Oxnard, Calif.

Meanwhile, I filed this piece for DallasBasketball.com that may be worth your time. We love sports, but we have to give it up for a while. I wrote about why I’m OK with it and why I know our games will come back.

#Coronavirus and Sports: The 'New Normal', For Now, is Life Without Something We Love https://t.co/IhyUUpTstf via @SInow by @PostinsPostcard pic.twitter.com/VTX5JFe5W9
— fishsports ✭ (@fishsports) March 12, 2020

5) IT'S STEELERS AND COWBOYS IN THE HALL OF FAME GAME

Yes, the first preseason game of the year doesn’t always attract big names or big teams. But, thanks to a whopping five Hall of Famers from the Steelers (Bill Cowher, Troy Polamalu and Mel Blount) and the Cowboys (Jimmy Johnson and Cliff Harris), it feels like a natural for the two teams to play each other in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game in August.

How did it happen that the Cowboys are going back so soon after playing in the game the year Cowboys owner Jerry Jones went into the Hall of Fame? It all has to do with Jimmy Johnson. Read more here.

6) CELEBRATING THE COWBOYS’ 60TH

The Dallas Cowboys are celebrating their 60th season in the NFL in 2020 and our new contributor, Richie Whitt, is counting down the 60 biggest moments in franchise history. Here’s the link to the full list.

7) WHITT’S END ON … SO MANY THINGS

From the coronavirus to DFW sports radio ratings to Triskaidekaphobia, our Richie Whitt takes you through a crazy week in sports and, frankly, the world.

8) PRO ATHLETES HAVE SPARE TIME. WHAT ARE THEY DOING?

While it may seem a bit trivial to track, we all know that pro athletes now have some time on their hands with the suspension of pro sports during the coronavirus outbreak. Well, our staff, headed by Bri Amaranthus, is tracking what our favorite DFW athletes are doing during the break, thanks to their social media accounts. So, if you need a break from the overwhelming events of the day, just click here and see what Luka, D-Law and the rest of the DFW sports populace are up to.

9) COWBOYS BLITZCAST IS BACK AT IT

It's full of landmines and rewards. Let's walk you through Jerry and Dak and Amari and the delicate NFL game of 'Tag, You're It!'

Welcome to ‘The Blitzcast – A Dallas Cowboys Podcast’ by Drunk Sports in partnership with CowboysSI.com. “BigRed” Lance Dorsett and Timm “IndyCarTim” Hamm are your hosts as we discuss all things Dallas Cowboys and all things NFL on our weekly show.

On today’s episode, the boys discuss all the numbers that are being thrown around with regard to possible offers made to Dak by the Cowboys — CowboysSI.com had the scoop on the offer being upped — as well as attempt to straighten out the timeline of them allow. And how does the new CBA and the new NFL/TV contract coming in 2022 affect all of that?

The Blitzcast can be found and heard here each and every week, on CowboysSI.com, as well as your favorite podcast app. Wherever you listen to your podcasts, we would appreciate if you hit that ‘subscribe’ button and leave us a great review. We’ll also be launching our show YouTube page as well very soon so look out for that.

Click here to listen to the podcast

10) TWEET OF THE WEEK

PRO TIP: If you see @dallascowboys lineman La’El Collins running at you, get out of the way. 💫

(via @thecheckdown) pic.twitter.com/ySMO6bltAi
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) March 10, 2020

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