Cowboys Moves: 'Likely' to Franchise Tag Dalton Schultz and Cut Amari Cooper? But ... Why?

For Dallas, another "threat'' exists: No Cooper. No Schultz. No Jarwin. No Michael Gallup (rehabbing and a free agent). No Ced Wilson or Malik Turner (both free agents).

WHITT’S END: 3.4.22

Whether you’re at the end of your coffee, your day, your week or even your rope, welcome to Whitt’s End …

*I’m not at all worried about Dak Prescott’s “clean-up” surgery to his left shoulder. But Blake Jarwin’s serious hip surgery is indeed troublesome for the Dallas Cowboys. He won’t be ready for the start of the season, meaning tight end is suddenly a priority in free agency and April’s NFL Draft.

Re-signing Dalton Schultz and his 78 catches and eight touchdowns now feels mandatory. ... but that might mean a $12 million APY contract. One ESPN report says it is "likely'' that Schultz gets the franchise tag, but leaves it at that ... failing to explain what Dallas would then do with Randy Gregory.

Our Mike Fisher has the scoop on Gregory ... and maybe the only explanation, if ESPN's report on Schultz is correct.

Meanwhile, ESPN is now reporting that Amari Cooper is "likely'' going to be cut before his $20 million salary gets guaranteed on March 21.

We sort of already knew that ... and I wonder if the Cowboys haven't leaked that to Adam Schefter for the purpose of a sort of "veiled threat'' to Cooper to re-do his contract in order to stay.

Meanwhile, a source demonstrates to me here one of Dallas' concerns with paying Cooper.

But another "threat'' exists, if Gregory is tagged: No Cooper. No Schultz. No Jarwin. No Michael Gallup (rehabbing and a free agent, though CowboysSI.com is reporting that the two sides are "closing in'' on a deal). No Ced Wilson or Malik Turner (both free agents).

Cooper, Schultz

Cooper, Gallup, Wilson

Cooper, Jones

CeeDee Lamb and ... who?

*Dallas Mavericks 126, Washington Wizards 0. So far, so great. 

Since the Feb. 10 trade of Kristaps Porzingis for Spencer Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans, it’s no secret the Mavs have slam-dunked the swap. While Porzingis has yet to suit up in Washington (he hasn’t played since Jan. 29 because of a bone bruise in his knee), Dinwiddie and Bertans are already paying dividends in Dallas.

After the Golden State Warriors rallied to tie Thursday night’s game at 104, Dinwiddie produced a nifty three-point play around Steph Curry and then set up Dwight Powell for an easy layup as the Mavs held on for another signature victory. 

Said Dinwiddie, “They’re telling me to be aggressive and make plays. It’s not rocket science.” 

While the former Wizards have combined for 126 points in helping Dallas to a 5-1 post-trade record, Porzingis remains sidelined with “no timetable” in D.C.

Upon further review, "No Timetable" is a much more fitting nickname for the former Mav than "Unicorn."

*Baseball hasn't postponed Opening Day or delayed Opening Day. Baseball has canceled Opening Day. Not to be made up. For Texas Rangers fans giddy about March 31 and the opening four-game series against the New York Yankees at Globe Life Field, my sympathies. Worse news for baseball: this time – unlike 1998 – there won’t be a steroid-fueled home-run chase authored by Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa to make fans forget about the greed and selfishness on both sides of the lockout.

*Headed to the 10th annual DFW Golf Show at Market Hall this weekend. Friday at 1 p.m. I’ll be on stage leading a discussion between the tournament directors of our three local tournaments: AT&T Byron Nelson (Jon Drago), Charles Schwab Challenge (Michael Tothe) and Veritex Bank Championship (Erin Gasbarro).

Cowboys defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence will be there Sunday.

Bet that dude can hit it a mile. Wonder if he can break his uniform number?

*Ukraine’s best all-time athletes: 4. Oksana Bayul (16-year-old won gold medal in ice skating in 1994 in Lillehammer, which didn’t even have a recording of newly independent Ukraine’s national anthem); 3. Yana Klochova (nicknamed the “Golden Fish”, no Ukranian won more Olympic gold); 2. Vitaly and Vladimir Klitschko (World heavyweight boxing champions in 2011); 1. Sergey Bubka (considered the all-time greatest pole vaulter, he set 35 world records). Current best: Tennis’ Elina Svitolina, who has been ranked as high as No. 3.

And if you’ve been amazed at the courage and bravery of Ukranians in the face of the Russian invasion, watch Netflix’s Winter on Fire and you’ll understand what those people have endured. Ukraine is more “united” that our states will ever be.

*Hot.

*Not.

*Let’s face it, February sucks. Cold. Dark. Even hard to spell. But Luka Doncic just enjoyed one of the best months ever by a DFW athlete. He averaged 34.7 points per game in February, was named West Player of the Month, even had a technical foul rescinded and got Porzingis traded. That’s a lot of productivity for 28 short days.

*The bald eagles of White Rock Lake are rebuilding their nest. See for yourself.

*NFL schedule won’t be released until May 12, but put me down for Cowboys at Green Bay Packers at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

*First Greggo, then Wally. Weird, wonderful reunions last week. Happy report that Wally Lynn is alive, well and on good terms with friends and family living in San Marcos.

*Props to Jason Kidd for doing something his predecessor never would. While Rick Carlisle was a slave to his precious veteran rotation, Kidd on Thursday night stuck with who was hot and closed out the win over Golden State with one of his best closers (Jalen Brunson) on the bench. Kidd loves having two playmakers on the court in the clutch, and against the Warriors those two were Luka and Dinwiddie.

Hey, if it ain’t broke don’t … substitute.

*Gotta be a special place in white-collar Hell for Flower Mound’s Tamara Wallace. While the COO of a company that works closely with DFW non-profit charities, Wallace embezzled $1.3 million for her own luxurious lifestyle that included home improvements, med spa treatments, doggy daycare, designer purses and multiple vacations including a Disney cruise for herself and her family. One-off mistakes happen. They can be excused. But Wallace made the conscious, devious decision to steal from people who needed the money over and over and over again for 10 years. She only got caught - and arrested - when a company executive received a fraud alert about her company credit card as she tried to pay $5,000 for her son’s wedding.

I’ll never understand how – for a decade, no less – someone could muster peace of mind while living on dirty money.

*After all is said and done, the NFL lifted its COVID protocols and in two seasons never canceled a single game.

McCarthy

Cowboys and COVID

Prescott

Bravo.

*Another Batman movie?! I was joking to a buddy last week that 10 was more than enough. But then I got to actually listing them and there’s more than 10. Way more. Since Batman movies re-launched in 1989 with Michael Keaton we’ve had – in order – Batman Returns (Keaton), Batman Forever (Val Kilmer), Batman & Robin (George Clooney), Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (Kevin Conroy), Batman Begins (Christian Bale), The Dark Knight (Bale), The Dark Knight Rises (Bale), Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice (Ben Affleck), Suicide Squad (Affleck), Justice League (Affleck), Zack Snyder’s Justice League (Affleck), The Flash (Keaton, Affleck), Batgirl (Keaton), Joker (Dante Pereira-Olson) and The Batman (Robert Pattinson).

Only one man has more movies (27) about him than Batman: Bond, James Bond.

*Granted one came against a Warriors team playing without Klay Thompson and the other sans Draymond Green, but the Mavs beat Golden State in two distinctly different ways in the span of five days. Last weekend in Oakland, Dallas rallied from 19 points down with 10 minutes remaining. Thursday night in Dallas, the Mavs blew a 17-point lead before re-grouping down the stretch for a nine-point win.

Good for the regular-season standings. Better for the playoff psyche.

*The power of perseverance: 10 years ago she could barely walk. Two weeks ago she finished her 18th marathon in Fort Worth.

*Turns out an old dog can learn a "new" trick. I’ve never been a good swimmer, but in 2022 I aim to complete my first triathlon. Problem. Solution? 

With the help of Master Swimmer Barb, an old dog is re-leaning a new trick. Before I finish a triathlon, gotta refine my strokes. ⁦@LifeTime_Life⁩ pic.twitter.com/Czgl3PELgR

— Richie Whitt (@richiewhitt) February 25, 2022

Hire “Masters Level Swimmer” Barbara to re-learn and refine my strokes. (And, I know, weird how one eye looks way bigger than the other. Your guess is as good as mine.)

*This made me stop, think and shrink: The Grand Canyon is at least six million years old. Over that unfathomable time, the Colorado River has patiently etched the years into its cliffs. Using that scale, about 100,000 years is equivalent to one foot on the gorge. And the entire recorded history of man takes up only inch. One inch. Try not to feel insignificant.

*Back when they were good and relevant, fans of the Dallas Stars hung on every word uttered by play-by-play voice Ralph Strangis. Then he up and quit and went into theater and who knows what else. He resurfaced this week, signing on as a “broadcast consultant” for the Chicago Blackhawks.

*If you’re up around 5 a.m. these days, you’ve probably noticed that unbelievably bright star in the southeastern sky. Her name is Venus, and she’s that bright despite being 51 million miles from Earth. How’s that? Because Venus has dense clouds of sulfuric acid that form an atmosphere that both traps heat and reflects light. Oh yeah, it’s also a sultry 868 degrees there.

*No Whitt’s End next week, as I’m heading to Scottsdale on our annual guys trip for golf and Spring Training baseball … er, just golf.

*This Weekend? A little DFW Golf Show Friday. A little tennis Saturday. A little swimming Sunday. As always, don’t be a stranger.