Dallas Cowboys: Brandon Carr should be released

According to reports from Rainer Sabin of the Dallas Morning News, the Dallas Cowboys and Brandon Carr’s agent met after the combine this week, most likely to discuss Carr’s contract. Carr’s $12 million-plus dollar paycheck for 2015 had to be at the center of the discussion. If the Cowboys don’t do anything with his current deal that contract is going to seriously hamper their chances at signing some other big names both from their team and others.

It’d be one thing if Carr was worth the money. If he was in the neighborhood of Darrelle Revis or even Aqib Talib both talent and statistics-wise, they’d have a real dilemma on their hands. But Carr isn’t in the same territory as those players and with the season he just had, he might be happy if Dallas just asks him to take a pay cut.

Jan 4, 2015; Arlington, TX, USA; Dallas Cowboys cornerback

Brandon Carr

(39) tackles Detroit Lions running back

Reggie Bush

(21) in the NFC Wild Card Playoff Game at AT&T Stadium. Dallas beat Detroit 24-20. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

It would be more understandable if they just cut him all together.

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Carr arguably had his worst year as a pro since coming into the league with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2008. This past season was the first year he did not register at least one interception, and missed tying his worst tackling performance in a season by one. In terms of passes defended, a stat that can reveal a cornerback’s true worth, he had his second-worst year as a pro with eight knockdowns. The only season he performed worse in that category was his rookie year.

It’d be more explainable if he had missed several games due to injury or even played at least than 100 percent. But he didn’t. Yes, it’s true that the Cowboys weren’t exceptional at rushing the passer, ranking 29th in the league with a lowly 28 sacks in 16 games. Obviously, that makes covering a receiver harder since the quarterback has more time to throw usually. Arizona and Seattle were in the bottom half of the league this past year in the same statistical category, however, and it didn’t seem to slow down their marquee cornerbacks too badly.

Sep 21, 2014; St. Louis, MO, USA; Dallas Cowboys cornerback

Morris Claiborne

(24) celebrates with defensive end

Tyrone Crawford

(98) after intercepting a pass during the second half against the St. Louis Rams at the Edward Jones Dome. The Cowboys defeated the Rams 34-31. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports

The bottom line is that Carr had too many situations where he looked overmatched. Whether it was the defensive scheme or the fact that Morris Claiborne was injured for part of the year, Carr never seemed comfortable in the secondary. According to Rotoworld.com, Carr played at or under the average NFL cornerback production level all but three games last year, hardly worth the kind of money he is looking to pick up in 2015.

The Cowboys have several other options if they do cut Carr. The draft will have some good value at the cornerback position late in the first round or early second round. If they wanted to go the free agency route to replace him, there are other low-cost options like Brandon Flowers or Darius Butler. Both have shown they can start and cover number-ones receivers and it won’t cost the Cowboys anything close to $12 million a year.

Brandon Carr should be happy he might be facing a pay cut instead of looking for a new team. If he isn’t careful, he could back himself into a “corner” quickly.

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