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

Sensabaugh obviously is confident regarding his two-year tenure with the Cowboys. Indeed, he was a valuable asset in the secondary, but “chasing in” might be a bit boastful. He recorded six interceptions, two sacks and 106 tackles from 2009-2010. Those are solid numbers, but not impressive enough for Sensabaugh to expect to receive healthy offers from all 32 NFL teams.

However, the Cowboys would be wise to keep Sensabaugh if at all possible. He seems to gel well with the Dallas defenders and an off season like this is not one in which to replace an entire secondary. According to leaked details of the new NFL collective bargaining agreement, the Cowboys will have 72 hours to re-sign Sensabaugh and all other unrestricted free agents. So if Dallas team owner and general manager Jerry Jones can’t woo Sensabaugh to stay in Dallas during a 3-day period, he will most likely be gone for good.

A disturbing thought regarding Sensabaugh’s free agency status is his fondness for former Cowboys coach and Houston Texans defensive coordinator Wade Phillips. When asked about the possibility of reuniting with Phillips in Houston, Sensabaugh smiled.

 ”I could definitely see that if Dallas doesn’t work out,” Sensabaugh said. “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.”

If Sensabaugh’s primary motivation for going to Houston is him not having to learn a new system, perhaps the Cowboys don’t want to keep him anyway. New defensive coordinator Rob Ryan is bringing in a complex 3-4 scheme that will require Cowboys defenders to be on their toes at all times. Learning a system like that is no piece of cake. If Sensabaugh wants the easy way out, he may encounter another 1-7 start to a season under Phillips in Houston. Of course, that’s assuming he gets his big pay day from the Texans. However, Jones may have something up his sleeve for Sensabaugh. We’ll find out once that 72-hour re-signing period begins.

There are several possible scenarios that could play out over the shortened free agency period, whenever it begins. First things first; the Cowboys have to clear up some cap space if big-name guys are to be brought in.

Right tackle Marc Colombo and running back Marion Barber are both expected to be released, if not traded, ridding  the Cowboys of their hefty contracts. Dallas drafted both players’ successors with USC offensive tackle Tyron Smith and Oklahoma running back DeMarco Murray.

Still, the Cowboys need a safety. Three names jump out at Jones when looking over the free agent class, including the Oakland Raiders’ Michael Huff, the Chicago Bears’ Danieal Manning, and the New Orleans Saints’ Darren Sharper. All of those guys would make an immediate notable impact for the Cowboys, especially on special teams with a great return guy like Manning.

There are a few other guys whose names are quite as flashy, but would more than get the job done in Bid D. The New York Jets’ Brodney Pool was a beast in the Big Apple over the last half of the 2011 season and would definitely be a thriftier selection guys like Huff and Sharper.

Other cheaper options in addition to Pool include the Philadelphia Eagles’ Quintin Mikell and the Cincinnati Bengals’ Gibril Wilson. Jones will obviously go after the bigger names first, but will definitely sign a free agent safety sometime this off-season.

That means Alan Ball will most likely return to cornerback and become an emergency option at safety if he is retained. Akwasi Owusu-Ansah could easily find himself in a starting position if the Cowboys cannot resign Gerald Sensabaugh. With Ball and Sensabaugh both free agents as well, the safety positions could get a complete makeover with new faces in free agency.

Here’s the most likely scenario: Jones does not resign Sensabaugh, but does keep Ball. The Cowboys go out and sign Huff, whom Jones will most likely overpay and then hold steady at the other safety position with Owusu-Ansah, Barry Church and Danny McCray.

Then again, Jones is also very likely to get rid of both Ball and Sensabaugh and then signing two new safeties like Huff and Pool. Either way, knowing Jerry, there will be change. Everyone knows he can’t keep the status quo very long. That would be way to easy.

It’s no secret the Dallas Cowboys are looking to improve at safety. After the experiment of moving Alan Ball from cornerback failed miserably, Dallas will be looking to make some personnel changes in the secondary heading into 2011. There’s an Irving, Texas, native who is a free agent and apparently interested in joining his hometown team.

Safety Michael Huff grew up a Cowboys fan while attending Nimitz High School and later the University of Texas. Huff is a free agent and sources say the Oakland Raiders are not bending over backward to resign him. The 28-year-old will be entering his seventh NFL season in 2011 and is a much better option at free safety than Ball.

Huff is extremely effective against the pass, both in coverage and blitzing. Not only is Huff a very appealing player for the safety-starved Cowboys, but he has ties with new Dallas defensive coordinator Rob Ryan. When Huff was drafted seventh overall by Oakland in 2006, Ryan was the defensive coordinator for the Raiders.

After the Cowboys did not make an attempt at free agent safeties Bob Sanders or OJ Atogwe, analysts knew Dallas team owner and general manager Jerry Jones was up to something. Huff may be Jones’ backup plan if second-year Cowboy Akwasi Osusu-Ansah doesn’t pan out at safety.

Although a new collective bargaining agreement has not been reached between the NFL owners and the NFL Players Association, the Dallas Cowboys are approaching free agency as usual. With 13 players’ contracts expiring, team owner and general manager Jerry Jones has several personnel decisions to make while negotiating a new CBA. The Cowboys will offer tenders to five of the 13 free agents.

Left tackle Doug Free is first on the Cowboys’ priority list. Dallas is expected to use the highest tender on Free, which would cost a potential suitor a first and third-round pick. That is the same tender the Cowboys used on wide receiver Miles Austin last year. The Cowboys will not use the franchise tag on Free, so the Jones must be confident the tender will be enough to keep the Northern Illinois product in Dallas.

Last year, the Cowboys used second-round tenders on receiver Sam Hurd and defensive end Stephen Bowen each worth almost $2 million. Dallas is expected to do the exact same this off season for Hurd, Bowen, and defensive end Jason Hatcher. Free safety Alan Ball will most likely get the right-of-first-refusal tender, and he will be a restricted free agent regardless if a new CBA is reached by the March 3 deadline or not.

The day following the Super Bowl marks the official beginning of the off season in the NFL. That means that as of midnight Monday morning, teams can now release players to begin preparation for the NFL draft, trades, and free agency. However, if a new collective bargaining agreement is not reached by the March 3 deadline, teams must do all their releasing prior to that date. That means that if Dallas wants to rid itself of any unproductive players, it must do so by the deadline. Unless, of course, team owner Jerry Jones knows something we don’t.

There are several Cowboys with high salaries that have not been producing lately. That means guys like running back Marion Barber, wide receiver Roy Williams, cornerback Terence Newman, and right tackle Marc Colombo could be getting the boot soon. A lot of it depends on who the Cowboys take with the No. 9 overall pick in April’s draft. Of course, that comes after the March 3 deadline, so Jones better have something up his sleeve.

If a new collective bargaining agreement is made before the deadline and all continues as normal, the Cowboys have 13 players that are free agents. Of those 13, one may get the franchise tag if a new deal gets done by March 3. Of the 13, I would bet that left tackle Doug Free would get the label since he was the anchor to the Cowboys’ woeful offensive line in his first season as a starter.

The other 12 include: practice squad quarterback Chris Greisen, defensive end Jason Hatcher, left guard Kyle Kosier, free safety Alan Ball, strong safety Gerald Sensabaugh, linebacker Leon Williams, defensive end Marcus Spears, defensive end Stephen Bowen, right tackle Alex Barron, wide receiver Same Hurd, practice squad receiver Jesse Holley, and cornerback Bryan McCann.

You can’t let both safeties go and I would keep Sensabaugh if I could only keep one. You also have to keep Hurd in case one of the top three receivers goes down like last season. Spears is a first-round pick and a starter, so he has to stay, and McCann provided a spark that revived a dead defense at midseason. Other than that, the rest will be up in the air. Of course, all this rides on the collective bargaining agreement negotiations. I guess we’ll see what happens.

My good friend Micah Harp is a genius. Not only did he give me two fantastic deals on my new wife’s engagement ring and wedding band, but he’s also an avid Dallas Cowboys fan who knows his football. By the way, check out Micah’s Jewelers for all your jewelry needs. He’ll take good care of you. When I went by to see him over the weekend, Micah told me about his plan to fix the Cowboys’ secondary. Trust me; you haven’t thought of it already and it will blow your mind.

If you paid any attention to the Cowboys this season, you noticed the poor secondary play by two former Pro Bowlers and one free safety experiment that went horribly wrong. Everyone has had their ideas and opinions on how to fix this problem for the 2011 season, but Micah has by far the most interesting and surprisingly plausible. The move involves bringing in at least one (and possibly two) big-time free agents and moving some familiar faces to new positions.

Micah gave me a very interesting and vital piece of information while pitching his plan. First, he definitely thinks Dallas should sign Oakland Raiders free agent cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha during the offseason. I totally agree with him and posted an article about the Cowboys pursuing Asomugha last week. That was only the first step in Micah’s plan, though. Then he said we should start Asomugha and Mike Jenkins at the corners and move longtime Cowboys cornerback Terence Newman to free safety.

Whoa! That blew my mind and sounded fantastic! But then Micah quickly added another aspect (the interesting piece of information mentioned above) that made the deal even better. Micah told me about Denver Broncos free agent cornerback Champ Bailey expressing his desire to move to safety to prolong his career. Think about it! What if we had Asomugha, Newman, and Jenkins for cornerbacks and then Gerald Sensabaugh and Bailey at the safeties?! Or even put Newman and Bailey at safeties and then just Asomugha and Jenkins at the corners.

Of course, we would have to get rid of guys like Alan Ball and Orlando Scandrick to clear up cap space, but we’d still have depth with all the young guys like Akwasi Owusu-Ansah, Barry Church, Danny McCray, and Bryan McCann. It’s genius, right?! Kudos to Micah for his fantastic jewelry store and his football knowledge. Comment what you think of this plan and be sure to check out Micah’s Jewelers on Facebook as well.

As far as finances go, he really won’t, to tell you the truth. Just one player makes the Cowboys heavy at cornerback with Terence Newman collecting $9 million annually. Add that to whomever the team takes with the No.9 overall pick in April’s draft and that’s a hefty sum of dough going to just two players every year. Of course, that number only gets heavier if the Cowboys use their top pick on LSU cornerback Patrick Peterson.

Imagine Dallas paying Newman, Peterson a combined $16 million every year. If that happened, then the Cowboys would not be able to resign Mike Jenkins and Orlando Scandrick when their contracts expire in 2012 and 2013, respectively. Jenkins is currently earning just under $800,000 per year and Scandrick just under $500,000. Those numbers will have to be higher if Dallas expects to keep either player when the time comes for new contracts. Oh, and we haven’t even started on the real problem yet: free safety.

The good news is rookie safety Akwasi Owusu-Ansah will be a Cowboy at least through 2014, when his rookie contract expires. The best part of that is his talent and potential cost the Cowboys less than $500,000 per year. He’s making less than current starting free safety Alan Ball and will most likely take over Ball’s spot in 2011. The other safety spot is a problem as well, with strong safety Gerald Sensabaugh currently an unrestricted free agent. Sensabaugh’s played his second season in Dallas under a 1-year tender worth $1,815,000. After another solid season as the starter, Sensabaugh will be looking for a new contract as well.

As for Asomugha’s fit with the Cowboys as a player, he would make the Dallas secondary one of the best in the league. Not only would he make big plays and shut down opposing receivers, but he would also prompt Jenkins and Newman to play better so as not to be outshined. His presence would also make younger guys like Jenkins and rookies Barry Church, Bryan McCann, and Danny McCray step up their games to keep their roster spots.

Seeing Asomugha’s in a Cowboys jersey would definitely bring excitement to Dallas, which is Jones’ primary concern. As we saw at the end of this season, Jones is more focused on winning every game possible than to build for the future. So why wouldn’t he dish out the cash to bring in a guy like Asomugha? He would and won’t surprise me a bit if he does. His thinking is that he can have all his star players for at least the next two seasons, which is when he’ll cash in all his chips for a shot at the Super Bowl. Jones doesn’t care if he loses Jenkins and Scandrick as long as they bring him a Super Bowl on their way out. It’s really early in this speculation, but keep an eye on the guy from Oakland with a funny name, Cowboys fans.

First of all, Peterson may very well not be there when the Cowboys’ first pick rolls around. I’d be a fool to tell you that none of the first 8 teams to pick are looking very closely at the top defensive back in the draft. Oh, and that’s another thing; Peterson just finished his junior season as LSU, so even though he’s eligible to enter the draft, he could very well stick around for his senior year in Baton Rouge.

Anyway, let me remind you that the Cowboys added four rookie defensive backs to the active roster throughout this season. The most recent of which you might remember is cornerback Bryan McCann, an undrafted SMU alumnus who returned an interception and punt back for touchdowns in only 9 games this year. Safeties Danny McCray and Barry Church played the entire season, mostly in relief of the most important of this quartet of rookie cover guys.

You might remember Akwasi Owusu-Ansah, the Cowboys’ 4th-round pick in the 2010 draft. Owusu-Ansah was placed on injured reserve after 7 games this season due to a high ankle sprain he suffered in the Cowboys’ loss to the Jaguars on Halloween. Here’s my prediction for the Indiana, Penn. product; he will be the starting free safety next season over Alan Ball. That’s an entire article in itself, but the point is Owusu-Ansah will start along with Gerald Sensabaugh at the safety spots, granted that Sensabaugh resigns in the off-season. So with McCann, Church, and McCray making plays and proving they’re more than capable of playing in multiple cornerback sets beside Terence Newman and Mike Jenkins, there’s no reason to use a draft pick on another defensive back. There’s no reason to use a top 10 pick on one, anyway. If you’re just itching with anticipation to know who the Cowboys should really take No. 9 overall, don’t worry; with the draft coming up soon, I’ll have tons of information about it. Stay tuned.

In Dallas’ playoff loss to Minnesota last January, Favre hit Rice six times for 141 yards and three scores. Cowboy cornerbacks Mike Jenkins and Terence Newman were torched all game long in an embarrassing 34-3 blowout. It was hard to watch for Cowboys fans and linebacker Keith Brooking has since vowed this year’s matchup will have a different outcome. That seemed blatantly obvious until the trade was finalized that sent Moss back to Minnesota for a third-round pick. By the way, the Vikings got an absolute steal in this deal. I know Bill Belichick was never too fond of Moss, but he could have gotten way more in the deal. That’s mainly because the Vikings are desperate to get on track this season. An overtime away from another Super Bowl is driving Favre like a mad man and the Vikings’ organization has caught the fever.

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The Moss deal makes the October 17 matchup much moresimilar to January’s playoff game. With Rice out, Moss takes his place as an even more dynamic deep threat for Favre. Vikings receiver Percy Harvin hasn’t exactly wowed this season, due largely to his migraine headaches, and Bernard Berrian has failed to show up at all in 2010. It won’t be any kind of secret that Favre will be throwing to Moss early and often in every game, so the Cowboys can plan accordingly with just two weeks to spare. Jenkins is a bit more physical than Newman, so I think he should get the nod to guard Moss. Obviously, Jenkins should not be on an island with Moss, as the newest Viking has proven he can get by the best corners in the game. Alan Ball will have to shade to whichever side of the field that Moss lines up. If Percy Harvin is able to play in the game, Newman is more than capable of holding him down one-on-one. The question will be whether Ball can keep Moss from catching bombs from Favre the way Rice did in January. Rice made it look easy and Moss has a few more credentials in his career.Of course, the Cowboys will have to try to contain Adrian Peterson, which they did a good job of in the two teams’ previous meeting.

Favre and Rice may have lit up the scoreboard in January, but Peterson was extremely quiet. The league’s fifth-best rusher in 2009 was held to just 63 yards on 26 attempts, a mere 2.7 yards per carry. I’m not saying the Cowboys have the best defense in the league, but anyone who holds Peterson to those kinds of numbers deserves some respect. Favre-to-Moss will be the prime attention-grabber, but let’s not count our chickens before they hatch. The old gunslinger hasn’t been nearly the passing machine he was a year ago. Rice’s absence may have had a bit to do with that, but Favre has six interceptions through three games and only two touchdown passes. He’s definitely not on track to repeat his 33-touchdown, 7-intercpetion performance from a year ago. Favre’s passer rating is 28th in the league and he hasn’t even seen Moss in person yet. There’s no way we can assume that the two will post incredible numbers. I don’t care who said what about statistics; Favre’s chemistry with all of his teammates has been less than spectacular this season. Not having much practice and playing time with Moss prior to the meeting with Dallas will be a huge factor. We’ll see how it turns out.