Dallas Cowboys Want To Sign Rolando McClain To A Long-Term Deal
By Shawn Lealos
The Dallas Cowboys signed Rolando McClain in the offseason to a one-year deal after acquiring him from the Baltimore Ravens. McClain was seen as a risky acquisition since he retired twice already in his young career. However, McClain has paid immediate dividends for Dallas and is one of the leaders on a much improved defense. According to ESPN, Cowboys Executive Vice President Stephen Jones said Monday that he feels that McClain is a part of the Cowboys defense of the future.
"We want to keep good football players that do the right thing on and off the field," Jones said. "Everything we see so far from Rolando is he's one of those guys."
When McClain opened the season playing strong, questions were asked about his future, especially since he plays the same position as Sean Lee. With Justin Durant really coming into his own as the weak side linebacker and Bruce Carter playing the best football of his career on the strong side, where does that leave McClain and Lee?
Jones said that Lee could move to the weak side, which could help reduce the wear and tear on his body and keep Lee healthier. That is a huge deal since Sean Lee is the best player on the Dallas Cowboys defense when healthy. Justin Durant and Bruce Carter are both unrestricted free agents in 2015, so signing McClain would probably mean letting one of them go.
Justin Durant is easily the better of the two, but will also cost the most. If they sign McClain, they may not be able to sign either Durant or Carter. With rookie Anthony Hitchens playing so well this year, he could move into the starting lineup at the strong side and Dallas would be set in 2015.
In some other great news from Jones, he mentioned that signing Rolando McClain was important when building a long-term foundation and compared it to how the Cowboys feel about DeMarco Murray. Over the past month, Murray has exploded and is the top rusher in the NFL by a long measure.
The thought of signing Dez Bryant to a new long-term deal and having money left over for Murray and McClain seems difficult, but if Dallas really wants to contend in the long-term, keeping Murray is important. It is easy to say that any running back could run well behind this offensive line, but Murray is one of the best in the NFL in making tough yards after contact. If it wasn’t for Murray, Dallas wouldn’t be 4-1 right now.
As Dallas continues to impress in the 2014 NFL season and fights to make the playoffs for the first time in four years, it is important for the front office to consider the future. With the salary cap so tight, Dallas seems to be finding the players they really want to run with in the future. The three biggest names they need to sign are Dez Bryant, Rolando McClain and DeMarco Murray, and it sounds like the front office is content on trying to keep all three.
For more Cowboys news and updates, visit Cowboys Central.
Shawn S. Lealos is a freelance writer who graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 2000 with a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism. He writes for a variety of national publications and has over 15 years of sports journalism experience. Follow Shawn on Twitter @sslealos. Examiner.com.