Dallas Cowboys: Now DeMarcus Lawrence has all of the leverage
By Dink Kearney
Before the suspension of defensive end Randy Gregory, the Dallas Cowboys top priority was to sign Pro Bowler Demarcus Lawrence. Now with Gregory gone, D-Law holds all of the cards at the negotiation table.
The Dallas Cowboys stay in the news so much this storied franchise needs its own news network with owner and general manager Jerry Jones as its lead anchor.Good or bad, something is always happening with the Cowboys. It’s always something!
Well that something turns out to be the indefinite suspension of uber-talented defensive end Randy Gregory. The former Nebraska Cornhuskers star played outstanding last season for the Cowboys as he helped anchor the Cowboys top-5 defense.
With Gregory and fellow, freakish, edge rusher DeMarcus Lawrence attacking opposing quarterbacks on a regular basis, it appeared the Cowboys had finally found not one but two hellacious War Daddies!
In hindsight that was wishful thinking at its best. With Gregory facing a life long ban from ever playing in the NFL, D-Law now has all of the leverage in his upcoming contract negotiations.
I’m sure some of you are thinking that the Cowboys could franchise tag ole Tank once again, but that would be asinine and too expensive to say the least. Let’s hope that’s not the case because D-Law does not intend to sign another franchise tag if the Dallas Cowboys settle on tendering him again.
According to a report made NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport, D-Law starting point is around $20 million and he’ll sit out the season if need be. Wow!
Can you imagine what Dallas’ pass rush will look like without D-Law and Gregory?
Outside of Tyrone Crawford (he’s modest at best), Dallas has nobody that is capable of sacking the quarterback. Ditto Taco Charlton because he played uninspired football last season (he’s on his way to bust status).
Over the last two seasons, D -Law has 25 sacks, 49 quarterback hits, 77 solo tackles, 29 tackles for loss, six forced fumbles, and three fumbles recovered. And two Pro Bowls for good measure.
D-Law and his agent knows all of this and will ask for as much money as possible because Dallas needs this War Daddy as much as it needs Dak Prescott to quarterback this team to victory.
Speaking of Dak, Jerry and Stephen Jones wants to sign their franchise quarterback to an extension this off season, along with their two-time NFL leading rusher Ezekiel Elliott.
If D-Law demands too much money, that leaves Jerry and Stephen in a bad scenario moving forward. Not only will Dallas be in a bad predicament not to sign their best pass rusher since DeMarcus Ware, but the opportunity to sign Dak to a reasonable contract extension might be next to impossible.
Forget trying to sign Zeke because he’s going to want Todd Gurley type of money (and he’s worth every dime).
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Think about this scenario.
If Dak and Jerry aren’t able to reach an extension and Dak throws for 4,000 yards, 30 touchdowns, and wins another division title in 2019, Jerry will have to pay Dak big time bucks. It’s just that simple.
D-Law and his agent knows they’re sitting in the driver’s seat of the negotiation table. If this was a game of spades, D-Law holds all of the trump cards: the big joker, little joker, deuce of spades, ace of spades. And D-Law’ s partner, his agent, has all of the aces and kings.
Next. How Randy Gregory's suspension impacts Dallas' plans. dark
If you’ve ever played game of spades, whoever has the former hand will win the game. With that being said, what’s your next move Jerry?
Because D-Law has all of the leverage and then some.
- Published on 02/28/2019 at 14:01 PM
- Last updated at 02/28/2019 at 12:01 PM