Dallas Cowboys: Franchising DeMarcus Lawrence is a mistake

Despite blossoming into a premier NFL pass rusher, the Dallas Cowboys remain strangely non-committal regarding Demarcus Lawrence.

The Dallas Cowboys once had a reputation of paying exorbitant sums to players only to have them get fat and happy and not play to their paper. Their past is littered with names like Jay Ratliff, Marion Barber, and Dez Bryant. So maybe their unwillingness to sign DeMarcus Lawrence to a long term deal is simply a market correction on their part.

Then again, top-tier pass rushers don’t grow on trees. So it’s more than a little curious that the Cowboys once again chose to franchise the sixth-year defensive end from Boise State. It’d be one thing if Lawrence was coming off a flash-in-the-pan season, but that’s not the case. In fact, compared to 2017, he fell off in sacks last year. Despite that–and by my count–the man is tied for fourth in total sacks over the past two seasons.

Sure, that might be a small-ish sample size, but it doesn’t take away from the fact that he’s worked his way into the conversation with the Ryan Kerrigans, Cameron Jordans, and Calais Campbells of the world. And if Lawrence isn’t exactly in the same class as Aaron Donald or Chandler Jones, then he’s a tick below their level, and surely worthy of a hefty contract and the accompanying signing bonus.

Or course, one could counter-argue and point to the diminishing returns during the course of last season. To be certain, Lawrence’s production fell off as the year wore on. But after the master class against New Orleans in front of a national audience, the entire Dallas defense faded a bit down the stretch. I’m not attributing the defense’s shortcomings solely to Lawrence. It just seemed like opposing offensive coordinators discovered that they could game plan and take advantage of the Cowboys’ weaknesses, namely the lack of a consistent second threat on the pass rushing front.

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It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand that when your next best pass rusher is the oft-beleaguered Randy Gregory, then you don’t really have a whole lot of depth. But above and beyond all that, the Cowboys have that diamond in the rough that all thirty-two NFL teams covet: a man that can get to the quarterback with some measure of consistency. Furthermore, Lawrence has mostly been a good soldier through all of this. Remember, the Cowboys had a chance to get a deal done last year, but chose to use the franchise tag in order to kick the can down the road. Well, now they’re here, and they’re no closer to a contract than they were back then. I’m sure Lawrence would appreciate a show of loyalty at this point.

But, if I’m being fair, the Cowboys, for their part, are using the tools at their disposal. While it may appear a little dubious, there’s nothing underhanded about what they’re doing. Also, at the end of the day, the player affectionately known as “D-Law” will have made almost $38 million in guaranteed money over the course of the last two seasons. That’s crazy money. But I’m sure, in Lawrence’s eyes, it’s not as crazy or as splashy as the high-dollar, multi-year deal that he feels he’s worthy of.

Also, if Lawrence posts another double-digit sack total next season, then the proverbial price of poker only goes up. If that comes to pass, then it will be painfully clear that he has truly entered his prime, and is therefore absolutely worthy of a break-the-bank deal. In other words, the Dallas Cowboys could’ve saved themselves a considerable amount of money by nipping this in the bud. The longer they go without paying the man, the more they’re hamstringing themselves in the process.

• Published on 03/12/2019 at 13:00 PM
• Last updated at 03/12/2019 at 11:33 AM