DeMarcus Ware has amassed 130.5 career sacks, and all but 13.5 of them were in a Cowboys uniform. Along with that comes 624 tackles, 24 defended passes and 34 forced fumbles. What was Jerry thinking?
DeMarcus Ware has only had two seasons in his entire career that he didn’t post double digit sack numbers. 2005 his rookie year (8.0) and 2013 (6.0) which was not only the year he was pretty much playing with one arm, but the year prior to it being time for Jerry Jones pay up. Ware had restructured his contract several times to help Jerry get under the cap. His gratitude? Jerry sold the fans a story that it was best to cut him because his production didn’t match his cap hit. The fact is, Ware had already earned that money and it went in to the future to help Jerry get under the cap.
The Denver Broncos not only signed DeMarcus Ware after Jerry cut him, but gave him an additional $800,000 in base salary. They let him begin the healing process and didn’t force him to play injured like Jerry did. They eased him back in to things in 2014 and in 15 starts he still amassed 10.0 sacks not being an every down player like in Dallas. The staggering reality to all of this, is the fact that he only had one less sack by himself (10.0) as a part time player than the two Cowboys sack leaders combined. Jeremy Mincey 6 and Henry Melton 5.
The Cowboys only had 28 as a team, which I believe is a franchise record low or close to it. Wait there’s more: Demarcus Ware amassed 31 sacks by himself over the 2011 and 2012 seasons in Dallas and right now Wade Phillips is boasting the #1 ranked defense in the NFL. I’m sure he is thanking Jerry for reuniting him with DeMarcus Ware who is thier current sack leader. The Broncos have 11 sacks to the Cowboys 3.
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Over the course of his career, DeMarcus Ware averaged 10.6 sacks per season, despite the career low of 6 in 2013 when he was injured. and the 8 his rookie year. Entering week 4 of the the 2015 NFL season, DeMarcus Ware has 3.5 sacks which is more than the Dallas Cowboys have as a team and puts him on course for at least 16 on the season. Whats worse? Two of the Cowboys three sacks came from Sean Lee and Anthony Hitchens. who are not even pass rushers on the defensive line.
Jerry Jones responded by giving a potential boat load of money to Greg Hardy, who not only brought off the field baggage with him, but has contributed squat so far this season because he is still serving out his suspension. Hardy has only averaged 8.25 sacks per season over the course of his career. He only had 3 his rookie year as compared to 8 by Ware and 4 his second years as compared to 11.5 by Ware. In fact, the guy hasn’t even suited up for a regular season game since week one of the 2014 season.
There are no guarantees of what we will even get after him being on the couch for so long. The bottom line is, he had two productive seasons so far (2012 & 2013) and followed them up by getting arrested (per the protection order filed with the courts) for throwing a woman in to the tiled tub area of a bathroom. He then dragged her into the bedroom, choked her, picked her up again and threw her onto a couch covered in assault rifles and/or shotguns (a major sore spot with me) in 2014. DeMarcus Ware has never had an off the field issue and has been consistent for 10 seasons. At the end of the day, the Cowboys pass rush represents Jerry’s general management skills. With the signing of Hardy, he lost all credibility with me for condoning domestic violence and he blew the right kind of guys mantra right out the window.
I like Randy Gregory as much as the next person, but here we are again with a high draft pick getting paid to watch because of injury. This has been par for the course in Dallas. They gave him the number 94, I hope and pray he can live up to it. The fact remains that Jerry did too little too late. You don’t cut your best pass rusher and wait til next year to draft his replacement. Smart GM’s make sure the next guy is ready to step up first. This just continues a long pattern of bone headed moves by the Cowboys owner, president and general manager, Jerry Jones.
Ok I am going to say it: Not only trading a draft pick, but $2 million in cap space to sign a QB (Matt Cassel) who already failed in this league when they already had Kellen Moore on the roster, will only prove to be the next boneheaded mistake made by a GM who I will bet never watches any tape. This has been his legacy since he fired Jimmy Johnson and then when Bill Parcells quit. How many QBs did he go through after Aikman retired? Before Parcells and Sean Payton saved his butt with Romo? Scott Linehan gave him a gift wrapped QB and Jerry kicked him aside for a never was. Mark my words, had it not been for Parcells, he would have done the same to Romo. Enough said.
