How much is Owen Daniels worth?

Daniels joined Andre Johnson and Mario Williams at the 2008 Pro Bowl

When I first saw the contract numbers on Kellen Winslow's new deal last night, the first thing that came to mind was that 'cha ching' sound coming from Owen Daniels' camp.

Daniels is the Texans lone remaining restricted free agent  (RFA) with an unresolved contract. 

The Texans gave Daniels a qualifying offer of $2.792 million , the top RFA tender, in February to restrict his movement and buy time while the two sides continue to work on a long term deal.

I would expect a long term deal (at least 4 years) will get done but when you see contracts like Winslow's, all that does is sweeten the pot for the player. 

When asked to comment on Winslow's deal, Daniels said "I don’t think it hurt my situation."

Winslow's contract was crazy, and carries higher than normal risk considering the player's past health issues.  But I guess Tampa had to do something with all that salary cap room. 

Daniels won't be getting $20 million guaranteed but this begs the question, where does he rank in terms of value of NFL tight ends?

Would you say he's as valuable to the Texans as Jason Witten is to the Cowboys?  Possibly.  But where is he relative to other tight ends in the league?

The table below shows the top ten salaries of tight ends in the NFL.  The list is taken from nfl.com and was used to calculate franchise and transition tags this year.  It has nothing to do with restricted free agents other than to show  - for this example - the tight ends with the top ten salaries in the league last year.

Just looking at those names, from a performance standpoint, Owen easily fits in the Witten region of that table. 

Most fans will wonder why names like Chris Cooley and Dallas Clark are not on the list while names like Davis, McMichael, Smith, and Kleinsasser are.  Well, as we know, sometimes performance doesn't equate to pay. 

But the point here is not to nitpick the names on the list and ask how they got there.  The point is to ask the question, should Owen Daniels be paid as a top ten tight end in the NFL?  How about a top six?

The top six tight ends in receptions last season were Tony Gonzalez, Cooley, Witten, Clark, Daniels and Antonio Gates.

Or is Daniels a 'product of Coach Kubiak's system' and if the Texans were to somehow land James Casey in the draft, could they just plug him or Joel Dreessen into the lineup an not skip a beat - and save a few million for DeMeco in the process?

I'm pretty sure the Texans think more of Daniels than that, and the more I think about it the more I think Kubiak thinks of Owen as his Witten - minus a couple inches, 20 lbs, and some blocking ability.  While you can't compare the two physiically, you can compare their value to their respective teams.

In 2006, Witten was entering his fourth season like Daniels is now.  The Cowboys locked him up that summer with a six-year, $29 million extension, which included a $12 million signing bonus.

I'm not sure whether Owen will get six years, but I'm guessing his guaranteed money demands are in the $12-$15 million territory.

Combine that with the contract demands of Dunta Robinson and DeMeco Ryans, the upcoming decision on Matt Schaub's $10 million option bonus, and the uncertainty of a possible uncapped year, and it's easy to understand why the Texans business office isn't just churning out these contracts left and right.

What we're seeing now contract-wise is a function of a team that's maturing.  There's finally enough star quality players on the roster to create a few of  these 'good problems.'

How many players from the early years, besides Chester Pitts, Andre Johnson, and Dunta were even around long enough to play out a rookie contract, or was a priority (and legit) re-signing as an impending free agent?

But you can't lock up everyone long term. 

There's only so much money to go around for Dunta, DeMeco, and Owen, and this could end up being a game of musical chairs - with only two chairs remaining (most likely for DeMeco and Owen) when the music stops after this season ends.