Sensabaugh expressed interest in playing for the Texans

[WMH]

http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/...medium=twitter

Veteran free agent safety Gerald Sensabaugh might be leaving the Dallas Cowboys and rejoining former Valley Ranch boss Wade Phillips with the Houston Texans.

Sensabaugh expressed interest in playing for the Texans and Phillips, who's installing his 3-4 defensive alignment in Houston as the new defensive coordinator.

"I could definitely see that if Dallas doesn't work out," Sensabaugh told ESPN 103.3 in Dallas. "Wade's a good guy, I already know his system and it would be an easy transition for me. I wouldn't have to learn anything new, and at the same time, I'd be able to help the other guys learn Wade's system. I could see that becoming an option."

Sensabaugh intercepted five passes last season.

"I'm going to make myself available to all 32 teams, shop myself around and see exactly what happens," he said. "I'm just really excited about my chance to cash in. I would like to stay in Dallas, but at the end of the day, it's a business thing. I've got to choose what's best for myself and what situation fits me the best."

How much money is Sensabaugh looking for?

Well, he made $1.75 million and $1.82 million for the Cowboys in 2009 and 2010.

He's looking for a lot more as a free agent.

"No, no, no, no," he said. "Not in the same zip code."

The Texans could relocate Sensabaugh, and they could sure use the help in their secondary.

[NBT]

He would be a great addition to our secondary, but I fear he is just trolling to see where he can get the most $, while still signing with the Cowpatties.

[painekiller]

The same story from a different source, espn.com

A part that concerns me

Sensabaugh made $1.75 million and $1.82 million over the last two seasons in Dallas. That's not the kind of money he's looking for in the open market.

"No, no, no, no," Sensabaugh said, laughing. "Not in the same zip code."

How much will it take to keep Sensabaugh in 75063? We'll probably find out next week.

If we are in cap hell, like it is being reported, overpaying for Sensabaugh is not my preference. Sensabaugh is an upgrade for us, but he is not a pro-bowl level safety either.

I like the idea of going after one of the higher ranked safeties if we have to pay in the $3 or 4MM range. Biggest problem I see is most of the higher ranked guys are FS types and we appear to already have one of those.

Guys on my radar: Eric Weddle 26 yrs, Quintin Mikell 30 yrs, Donte Whitner 25 yrs, Gerald Sensabaugh 28yrs. Most of these guys are FS with Weddle being the most versatile. And I am curious can Jason Allen play safety? Didn't Miami play him there?

[chuck]

How the hell did this team end up with salary cap troubles when most of its few good players are on their first contract and haven't even been re-upped yet? Schaub and Andre, sure, Smith, another. Who the hell else is strapping the team? They have very little real talent and don't have the cap space to get any more? Insane.

[painekiller]

Originally Posted by chuck

How the hell did this team end up with salary cap troubles when most of its few good players are on their first contract and haven't even been re-upped yet? Schaub and Andre, sure, Smith, another. Who the hell else is strapping the team? They have very little real talent and don't have the cap space to get any more? Insane.

My understanding is Mario, Schaub, AJ, Smith all have nice sized contracts, and guys like David Anderson and Eric Winston are being over paid cause they are nice guys.

[Keith]

Originally Posted by painekiller

My understanding is Mario, Schaub, AJ, Smith all have nice sized contracts, and guys like David Anderson and Eric Winston are being over paid cause they are nice guys.

Yeah, this is about right. This is old cap data, but rough 2011 cap figures I had were:

Mario - $20.3MM
Schaub - $9MM
Andre - $9.1MM
Antonio - $7.1MM
Winston - $5.5MM
Myers - $3.5MM
Dan O - $3.5MM
Cushing - $3MM
Amobi - $2.8MM

Toss in newer deals too for the likes of DeMeco, OD, Walter, and Rackers, and this adds up quick.

[Nconroe]

Maybe its good bye Dan O and hope Mario can redo his deal somehow.

Sounds like there is two 3 mil exceptions to get this years cap up to 126 mil

Looking forward to fa soon

[chuck]

How the F is Mario getting paid $20MM? This is from his rookie contract, right?

[painekiller]

Originally Posted by chuck

How the F is Mario getting paid $20MM? This is from his rookie contract, right?

Most top of the draft rookie deals are back loaded so the teams will be forced to sign an extension or cut the player if they are a bust. VY is due $13MM this season, so this is not too out of line.

It makes the agent look smart because they say I got XYZ a $50MM deal, when in reality the team is really on the hook for $20MM in guaranteed money. Most contract like this never play out completely.

[Keith]

Originally Posted by chuck

How the F is Mario getting paid $20MM? This is from his rookie contract, right?

Yeah. I don't have the contract summary handy, but this is his final year where he has a $13.6m base plus his signing and option bonus prorates.

This reported $120+MM cap is really low... based on the prior trajectory, I originally had the 2011 salary cap at close to $140 million a couple years ago.

[painekiller]

Originally Posted by Keith

This reported $120+MM cap is really low... based on the prior trajectory, I originally had the 2011 salary cap at close to $140 million a couple years ago.

My take is that it's better for the players to have all the teams spending 100% of a $120MM cap than having some teams like Tampa Bay at $65MM with a cap of $134MM.

So I get the lower cap, but it will make the FA period a lot of crazy with some teams like Dallas having to dump salaries and some teams like Tampa Bay having to overspend to get to the cap.

Also there is still some issues with the interpretation of things like how workout bonus count towards the cap. So this is still not complete.

[edo783]

One of the things that was reported a week ago, but not mentioned since is that it seems that dead money won't count against the cap. Not sure if that dropped off the table since or not. That could get us a couple more nickels to spend.