Tank, Amari & Cowboys 'Bottom-5' in This NFL Offseason Category?

FRISCO - We call them "The Big Calculator and Sharp-Pencil'' people, and yes, here inside The Star, the Dallas Cowboys cap management brains know they are in for a challenge.

They've known it for years, as there has long been a road map in place for how to manage the cap. And they know that once in a while - a $40 million APY contract for Dak Prescott, for instance - the road actually offers a bump to be navigated ...

And they do the deal and re-draw the map.

So we, and they, are again as the 2022 NFL business year begins in March. It is at that time that the road map needs to fit the Cowboys' spending under the $208 million salary cap, and of course it will fit under it.

That's the law.

But along the way, there will be decisions and challenges. Some are built-in and easy; read here for the Dak contract plan. Some are difficult; read here for the Amari Cooper options.

Add it up, and right now? ESPN isn't wrong when it ranks "the offseason capital'' of every NFL team and has Dallas down at No. 27 slot.

Why so low? Here's Bristol's breakdown:

27. Dallas Cowboys

Draft capital AV sum: 68.1

First-round pick: No. 24

Current cap space: minus-$17.7 million

There is not much to nit-pick here (except that we have the Cowboys at $21 million over the cap.)

If you're over the cap and have a late-in-the-round top pick, that is often the result of having a good roster (which costs) and having had a good season (which is how a team ends up with the No. 24 pick).

The cap number on Dak Prescott is going to change. The cap numbers on Cooper ($22 million) and defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence ($27 million) might as well. That can make the cap problem go away ... and if the Cowboys nail their pick at No. 24 - which they've had success with in recent years - that problem disappears as well.

Free agency? COO Stephen Jones has already downplayed Dallas' plans of activity there, but remember, he's talking about "big-fish'' free agency. There are going to be 15 to 20 roster spots to fill; hit on a bunch of minimum-wage vets, and the roster is rejuvenated, the cap problem is solved, and the Cowboys are back in the NFC East driver's seat.

See how easy that was? (We're kidding.)

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