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Cowboys Weekly - The Window Is Now

The Musers The Podcast

Thu Feb 19 2026

Summary

The Musers The Podcast – Cowboys Weekly: "The Window Is Now"

Hosts: George Dunham & Bob Sturm
Date: February 19, 2026
Episode Focus: Dallas Cowboys' Urgency & Team-Building in Their Championship "Window"

Episode Overview

This episode is a deep dive into the Dallas Cowboys' current roster construction, salary cap strategy, and the importance of maximizing what the hosts call the urgent "Dak/CD/Quinnen window." George and Bob discuss what the Cowboys must do in the next two to three years to capitalize on their best shot at a Super Bowl, touching on player contracts, draft and free agency strategies, coaching shifts, and the critical evaluation of players like George Pickens. Throughout, they mix banter with data-driven breakdowns, aiming their insights at die-hard Cowboys fans bracing for big offseason moves.

Main Themes & Key Points

1. Defining the Window: Why Now is Vital (00:33–06:28)

Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, Quinnen Williams Form the Core: The team’s highest-paid, most talented trio are all in their primes and form the basis for “win-now” urgency.
- "We're going to fix this. In '26, Jerry's going to get this right. He and Will McClay are going to join hands and they're going to figure this whole thing out..." — George Dunham (00:47)
2–3 Year Contention Horizon: The realistic chance at a title likely stretches through 2028 at most given player ages, contracts, and cap realities.
No Time for Slow Rebuilds: Every move—draft, trades, contracts—should maximize the team’s short-term title chances.

2. Roster Moves: Building for a Narrow Window (06:28–16:47)

Aggressive Approach Needed: The Cowboys must prioritize immediate contributors over developmental prospects or long-term projects.
- "I think you have to flip that on its ear and say, 2026 is vital, 2027 is even more vital, and 2028 is where we're going to feel the window's closing." — Bob Sturm (06:45)
Draft ‘To the Window’: Willingness to draft older, NFL-ready rookies despite less long-term upside (e.g., Hakeem Mazador, a 25-year-old rookie).
- "That's a great point that I have not even considered—drafting to the window." — George (11:54)
Exploring Bold Trades: Example raised—trading for Max Crosby—met with significant skepticism due to age/cost but shows the kind of urgency being considered.
Free Agency & Internal Re-signings: Priority is placed on locking down George Pickens long-term and considering moves for players like Jadavian Clowney.

3. Cowboys' Salary Cap – Myths & Mastery (18:24–36:10)

Cowboys CAN Be Aggressive: Despite some media perceptions, the team is highly capable of freeing up enormous cap space through restructures.
- "(The Cowboys) can create $131 million just by sending emails (restructuring contracts). So if anyone's trying to tell you the Cowboys don't have cap space, they have more cap space available than anybody in the league." — Bob (32:45)
Eagles as a Contrasting Example: Philly has fully committed to win-now with restructures and have very little remaining flexibility, in contrast to Dallas’ “unplayed cards.”
Cap 101: Bob articulates the voidable years/restructure process, reassuring fans that big numbers on paper (like being $61 million over) are misleading when not accounting for standard team maneuvers.
- "You save 31 on Dak, 19 on CeeDee, and 18 on Tyler Smith... So already we're under the cap now by like 7 or 8 million." — Bob (28:00)

4. Player Prioritization & Negotiation (41:47–59:09)

a. George Pickens Contract

Must-Keep Foundation Piece: Both agree to pay market value to keep Pickens in Dallas; see his chemistry as transformative for the offense.
- "George Pickens was, you know, we kind of vilified him before he got here. He couldn't have been better for this team." — George (43:25)
- On contract value: "I think four times $28.7 million or so is probably what you're looking at." — Bob (52:25)
- "Priority number one—get this long term deal done (with Pickens) for flexibility for this year and also guarantee him for this window..." — George (53:01)

b. Additional Moves

Javonte Williams: Lock down the running back with an eye to his rising value. (Suggested at 2 years, $8M per year range).
Jadeveon Clowney: Seen as a practical veteran edge rusher addition, preferable to overpaying for a trade like Crosby.
Defensive Free Agents: General skepticism about investing heavily except for specific, proven fits.
Offensive Line Decisions: Debate over whether to keep Terrence Steele versus moving other linemen into tackle spots; the balance between floor and ceiling across this position.

5. Philosophical Insights & Fan Engagement

Emphasizing Realism over Hope: Both emphasize sobering realism about what it will take to win—and about the cost and risk of bold moves.
Nuanced Player Evaluation: Discussion on how hyper-focus on single plays or “effort” can skew perceptions of players like Pickens, with references to Michael Irvin's intensity and receiver responsibilities.
- "You could have 50 losing snaps and go get one sack a game and people would lose their mind about you. But are you actually doing a great job?" — Bob (48:16)
Modern Media/Fan Perspective: Acknowledgment of fans being more informed, scrutinizing contracts and player effort with unprecedented access and analysis.

Notable & Memorable Quotes

On urgency:
"Every move you make this offseason should be about maximizing that two or three year window. You don't have time for a slow build." — George Dunham (01:05)
On front office spending:
"The Cowboys are routinely at the bottom in real dollars spent, and that's frustrating and makes no sense to me." — George (21:12)
Rationalizing Pickens’ occasional loafing:
"Hey man, every route is not full speed. It's just not. That's just the way it goes." — George quoting George Pickens (44:02)
On the reality of roster churn:
"There’s a number of ways to talk this out, but obviously it would help if we knew anything about Christian Parker and his staff. They’re all guys, like, in their mid-30s...I love the direction; I just don’t know what to make of it yet." — Bob (61:01)

Timestamps for Major Segments

Defining the window & roster priorities: 00:33–16:47
Detailed salary cap mechanics & restructuring: 18:24–36:10
Offseason philosophy & draft approach: 11:00–16:47, 58:09–62:30
George Pickens interview discussion: 41:47–46:34
Player contract debate (Pickens, Williams, Clowney): 50:20–59:09
Fan/media expectations, evaluating ‘effort’: 44:02–50:20
Front office/ownership spending habits: 21:12–22:29, 32:45–36:10

Style, Banter, and Notable Moments

Banter & Chemistry: The episode is laced with the signature Musers blend of dry Dallas humor and friendly argument; George is more emotional, Bob more analytical.
Media Savvy: Both reference the Twitter-driven increase in fan scrutiny, and the irony of fans now understanding contracts better than owners might want.
Pop Culture Sidebars: Reference to George Pickens’ cameo on Micah Parsons' podcast, including his quirky ritual:
"To get hyped for a game... George Pickens watches cooking shows." (42:57)

Conclusion & What’s Next

Bob and George wrap with agreement on the need for bold, targeted moves—the off-season’s about “drafting to the window,” securing Pickens, Williams, and Clowney, and leveraging Dallas' cap flexibility. They tease future deep dives into draft prospects and express optimism about a wild Cowboys off-season, urging fans to “keep the faith.”

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Transcript

Bob Sturm (0:01)

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George Dunham (0:02)

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Bob Sturm (0:09)

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George Dunham (0:19)

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Bob Sturm (0:20)

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George Dunham (0:24)

and every single one is Zero Sugar Tap.

Bob Sturm (0:27)

The banner to learn more foreign

George Dunham (0:33)

it's the Musers. The podcast Cowboys Edition Football friends is what we call this George Dunham, Bob Sturm talking Cowboys well into the off season. Football is a it's not played year round, but it's talked about year round, especially in these parts and around the country where there are so many Cowboy fans. And thanks for tuning in, all you Cowboy fans who still keep the faith despite just getting hit upside the head for the last 30 years. But Bob, we're going to fix this.

Bob Sturm (1:04)

Yes.

George Dunham (1:05)

In 26, John, he's going to get this right. He and Will McClay are going to join hands and they're going to figure this whole thing out. And we'll talk about some numbers, we'll talk about some players on today's episode, but let's start here. And that is the way we think they should operate and the way they are operating. And I think those two things are in line. I think the Cowboys, based on who they have committed to, namely their quarterback for 60 million plus a year, CD Lamb, his favorite wide receiver, who they've committed right at 30 million to. And there's a lot of investment just in those two players alone. We're going to talk about George Pickens here in a second, but the way they're operating is we got two, maybe three years to make this count. And this is not about, hey, let's slowly rebuild the defense, man. It's let's get as many good players as quickly as we can and let's maximize the Dak Prescott era. It could last for another six years, but realistically you're looking at a two or three year window.

Bob Sturm (2:27)

Yeah. And I think that's a real important conversation for them to have and by extension for us to have is just, okay, look at your pieces that you do have and then ask yourself the question, what is our plan? Is our plan to, you know, grow something that is, you know, sustainable for, for a big window or a small size window? And I think we're both on the same page here that the best way to do that is to look at Dak Prescott's age. We understand There are better quarterbacks in the world than Dak Prescott. But we also understand this is far and away the best plan they have moving forward. Partly because they gave him a no trade clause and partly because he's really good and he. And make no mist have to have that conversation again. I guess I'm willing to. We have like eight months before there's a game, but it's. Hopefully we don't have to convince too many Cowboy fans that they have a good quarterback. Now there's a difference between having that conversation, George, and asking do they have a Super bowl winning quarterback? Because sometimes it's a different answer. Also sometimes we see people like Sam Darnold win and we say that there's way too, way more to it than just a quarterback. But, but let's keep our eyes on the prize here and say in a vacuum, the three best pieces of property the Cowboys have in their portfolio is Dak Prescott, CD Lamb and Quinn and Williams. And then so what we do is we look ahead at saying, okay, if they're all in their prime right now and in order to do that you have to I guess acknowledge that quarterback primes are later or longer, depending on which one you want to use. You would say a quarterback can be elite well into his 30s, usually a running back can't. So we, we have a sliding scale cd. Lamb is, is still a very young man. He will be 29 in 2028. Just to give you an example. CD will be. Or his Dak will be 35 at that point and Quinn and will be 31. So to me, we're getting close to the end of the road with those three by the 2028 season. So let's, let's say that one will include. But anything beyond that is probably kind of crazy, especially now we'll have to be talking another DAC contract if you want to keep going into 29. So, so let's, let's walk it back to 26, 27 and maybe 28 is the window. Therefore I think that informs many, many other decisions you make, don't you?

Bob Sturm (13:45)

Yeah, and now. So that's, that's tricky because we need a lot of guys, but we also need the high quality guys. And so that's, that's what we're dealing with. The other idea and there's a couple thoughts here that are draft specific is people say, well, would you trade down from 20 to try to pick up a couple day twos? What if we flipped it on its ear and say, well, wait a minute, what if we trade down from 12 to, like, 19 or so? Let's say Carolina's at 19 and Carolina's also, I think, at 51, or Pittsburgh's at 21, and they're also at 53. I wonder if the idea is actually hold where you are at 20 and then grab 19 as well and 51 or 21 and 53 and get, you know, pick up an extra second to lose a little quality for those people that do want, you know, some of the red, red meat at the very top of the draft. There's a number of ways to look at this, is what I'm saying. And the other thing, like when you talk about linebacker, I think I want a veteran linebacker for sure. But when I started going through the top linebackers in this draft, you. You have, like, two versions of it. You have the really, really young guys, like the Ohio State kid, Sonny Styles, but even younger is Arvel Reese, although there's no way he gets to 12, I can't imagine. But. But then you have guys who have some age to them, like Texas Tech's Jacob Rodriguez. Would I feel like Jacob Rodriguez will slide into, you know, that 50 range? And if I trade back and pick up that second, am I actually preferring a guy who has played a lot more football and maybe is a little more ready? You know, again, we're thinking out loud in concepts here, but I think that's what you have to do when you're team building this time of year is you have to have, like, one overriding philosophy. And for me, the overriding philosophy has to. I mean, the only conclusion I can come up with, Georgie, is, you know, the idea that we're in win now mode and now we have to have a whole separate salary cap discussion. But I want to say before we even get into that, there's a lot of optimism. When you talk about the money, it's not nearly as bad as you've been led to believe. And we have some numbers on that that I'll walk you through. But the point is, they're actually in a position that if they said, let's get super aggressive and try to rattle cages in the next 24 months while Dak Prescott can still be elite, well, then I think they're in a position to do so right now, especially with George Pickens and CD Lamb, as, you know, maybe your best assets that you have.

Bob Sturm (22:29)

Yeah, and, you know, it's extra frustrating when you consider the fact that, like, 10 years ago, they had the reputation of these guys. Boy, you just watch. They are the types of guys that are going to, you know, really spend, and maybe Dodgers, their way to the top of the NFL. And then we started waiting for the show, you know, the fireworks show of the Jones boys throwing their very impressive wealth at just sort of buying a championship or coming as close as you can in the NFL. And, you know, they could. There's a lot of ways you can fudge the cap, and I think the Philadelphia Eagles are the best example of that. They have shown us that there are many ways to borrow money against future caps. And this. I think this confuses a lot of listeners. And this is, you know, maybe we could do a public service here a little bit in cap 101. And that is, you know, I know the cap changes every year. It goes up every year. But let's say, for the sake of argument, there are $300 million under the cap each year. And the NFL basically allows teams with voidable years and restructures. And by the way, this also confuses people. The players have zero say in it. The only thing the players have to say is agreeing on the terms of their contract, on their personal payouts. They do not in any way, shape or form get a say on whether a team restructures or adds, like, fake years at the end of their deal. Because they are fake years. They are voidable years. They are on your contract as an understanding that these do not represent years. He will play for us. These are financial loopholes, okay? And they're built into the cap for a reason, because the NFL has a very hard cap. But they wanted to make. You know, they want to allow the owners to spend the money however they want, which means you get 300 million a year, but you don't have to spend 300 million each year. You just have to account for a minimum amount. And so what the Eagles have done is they have built a Super bowl team and a Super bowl champion. I mean, the Eagles have done it brilliantly in the sense that they have gone to two Super Bowls in the last four. Is it now? But. But that's a. That's a brilliant job by the Philadelphia Eagles and Howie Roseman and, you know, their ownership, Jeffrey Lurie, that they have said, we think our window is now, so we will spend against our 2030, 2031, 2029 caps now, and we will spend that money in 2025 to attempt to win Super Bowls. But the cap numbers for each of our players will be very, very small in this year. Which is why it's disingenuous for people to say Jalen Hurts is only costing 12 million against the cap and Dak is costing 80 million against the cap. That's not true. Which is why every time I talk contracts with anybody, I say you have to do the average annual value, and the average annual value is, is just division. So if a guy signs a four year, $200 million deal, you just have to say as a fan or a media member, it's 50 a year. Even if Stephen and Jerry put 100 on this year's cap and you'll see a tweet that says Dak is on the books for 100 this year, that's not true. It's 50 per year and the owners can massage it any way they want to sort of game the cap. Okay? So I apologize for that. I think it's important that people know that because now I'm going to give you information as to the Cowboys right now. If you look at any of the cap ologist figures on the Internet, if you Google cowboy cap space right now, you will see that the Cowboys are roughly $33 million over the cap. And then they're talking about tagging George Pickens. And we know that tag number is 28. So 33 plus 28 is now the Cowboys are $61 million over the cap for 2026, George.

Bob Sturm (47:05)

But yeah, yeah, as, as fans and as media, I do think we're. We're probably more informed, I hesitate to say smarter, but more informed than we've ever been about a lot of this stuff. Because can look at the film and we can. Heck, Twitter is amazing because not only do you look at the film, but J.J. watt may respond or, you know, guys who are in the NFL hall of Fame can look at these plays and say, no, no, no, this is what you're looking at. And we all get collectively smarter. The, the amount of information is absolutely remarkable. But I do want to say 20 years ago, 40 years ago, when you're watching Drew Pearson, we did not hold these guys to this standard that we hold George Pickens to. To a point where it was only like two years ago, George, where I would have to try to convince people that CD Lamb was good because there were a couple really weird moments between him and dak, like in 2022 or 2023, where like, like, man, I'm not paying this guy when he comes up for a contract. And I'm like, you're not going to pay CD Lamb? He's one of the five best wide receivers on the planet, man. You know, I realize that there's going to be 5, 10 bad snaps for Patrick Mahomes every year, and everybody below him, it's going to increase. And so, you know, that's, that's the give and take of watching the NFL in modern times. That you and I can sit there and break down a game and we can say, man, I think, I think Kenneth Murray is doo doo. But at the same time, you know, with that comes some sort of nuance that you can look bad a couple plays a game and still be a really good player. You know, I mean, this is, think about like life is a defensive end is that you play 16, 17 games and if you ever had 17 sacks, they would build a statue for you in 17 games. But you're playing 60 snaps. And so you could have 50 losing snaps and go get one sack a game and people would lose their mind about you. But are you actually doing a great job relative to somebody who plays really, really solid but only has eight sacks? And, you know, that's what, that's what like PFF has tried to, to quantify. And I know it's imperfect, but I do think imperfect is better than nothing. And so, so it's, you know, It's a fascinating game, George. There's 22 guys all doing their jobs to varied levels of, of success and, and it's so much fun to learn about and to study, but at the same time, I do think it produces wild opinions like, man, maybe George Pickens isn't worth the trouble. No, George Pickens had 1500 yards. He had more touchdowns than anybody, I think, for most of the season and was a real game changer for this offense. You're keeping George Pickens at age 24, that would be crazy. Are there some things about him that make you a little leery? Of course, but that's called being a human being in professional sports, I think.