3 ways the Dallas Cowboys afford Jamal Adams without breaking the cap
By Reid Hanson
How the Dallas Cowboys afford Jamal Adams Reason No. 2
Spread the wealth of HIS deal
Even though Jamal Adams wouldn’t demand the Dallas Cowboys re-sign him right away, doing so will allow Dallas to take advantage of the accounting tricks mentioned in Option No. 1. Signing Jamal to a mega-deal right away will let them make 2020 and 2021 more affordable.
In 2022 the Dallas Cowboys have a ton of players who could potentially come off the books. They could move on from one or more of them then (which they may do anyway) and have no problem paying Jamal the money they pushed back from 2021.
The longer the better too. If Jamal signs a five or six year extension they could push money for about three of seasons without any issues. Long deals assume risk because if Jamal gets hurt or regresses they’re stuck with a back-loaded deal and they can’t cut free.
But Jamal is only 25-years old and has been a durable player throughout his career so he’s probably one of the safer players to lock up long-term. And let’s be clear – this works even on a 4-year extension.
The point is the Dallas Cowboys only have to re-sign Adams right away, lock Dak up long-term right away, and/or move money on other long-term deals that run through the upcoming TV deal. None of this is disastrous for the long-term health of the club.
Accruals are a great way to move money to the latter years of a deal. It cost more down the road in straight dollars, but the cap percentage used remains the same (or drops) because the annual salary cap increases.
It’s not exactly getting the camel through the eye of a needle here.