3 Best Contracts on the Dallas Cowboys
By Reid Hanson
Highlighting the Dallas Cowboys three best contract situations in 2020
The Dallas Cowboys have been endlessly in the news for contract situations over the past two years. From Ezekiel Elliott‘s holdout, to Amari Cooper‘s brief foray in free agency, to Dak Prescott‘s cumbersome negotiations, the Dallas Cowboys have been writing contracts left and right.
As is often the case with contracts, some prove to be good deals while others end up… not-so-good. Today we take a look at the Dallas Cowboys three best contracts and highlight some of good moves this heavily scrutinized front office has made.
For the sake of fairness, rookie contracts are excluded from this exercise. Rookie contracts are inherently good deals and since the money and structure are largely slotted according to draft position, there’s no grounds for praise.
In no particular order, here are the three best contracts on the Dallas Cowboys…
LT Tyron Smith
Contract: 8 yrs/ 97.6 million
Age: 29
Maybe it’s the ever present back issues, or it’s the extremely high standard he set early in his career, but there are some in Cowboys Nation who are ready to stick a fork in Tyron Smith. Those people are crazy.
The reality is, even with the back issues, Tyron Smith is still an elite left tackle in the NFL. Not only is he elite when feeling 100%, but at 75-80% he’s still amongst the best in the league. At age 29 Tyron Smith is far from washed up and as long as his workload is managed, there’s no reason to believe he’ll breakdown any time soon.
One of the best OL minds I know says Tyron Smith is still an elite LT. #Cowboys https://t.co/0nP5J9BHFI
— John Owning (@JohnOwning) July 22, 2020
Tyron Smith isn’t just a great player, but he’s playing on a ridiculously team friendly deal. As the price of good tackles sky-rockets season after season, Tyron is locked up through 2023. His average cost of $12.2 million per season makes him the 15th highest paid tackle in the NFL. That’s nothing short of a steal.
TE Blake Jarwin
Contract: 4yrs/$22 million
Age: 26
The Dallas Cowboys gambled a bit when they signed Blake Jarwin to that four-year contract this offseason. The homegrown playmaker has been an ascending talent on this team and with Jason Witten now playing for the silver and black, the opportunity is there for Blake to break out in a big way.
Contracts are about predicting the future and the future looks extremely bright for Jarwin. He takes over the TE1 spot in 2020 and will likely see considerably more targets than the 83 targets the plodding Witten managed to get.
Jarwin ranked ninth in the NFL in yards per route run and as per Pro Football Focus, his 10.1 aDOT was sixth and his 11.8 yards per reception was 11th. Jarwin can flex out in the slot or line up on the line. His target share of 21.4% was third on the team last year, indicating he’s a favorite target of Dak’s and stands to get plenty of looks on this loaded Cowboys offense.
Blake Jarwin has legit Pro Bowl potential and his $5.5 million per year average salary only ranks 20th amongst NFL tight ends. Even if he doesn’t progress as a player he’s a bona fide steal, but everyone expects him to explode in 2020.
RT La’el Collins
Contract: 5 yrs/ $50 million
Age: 27
La’el Collins was arguably Dallas’ best offensive linemen last year. With Zack Martin and Tyron Smith playing hurt most of the year, and Travis Frederick struggling to regain form, Collins was the strength of the line.
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Snubbed by Pro Bowl voters, Collins ranked as Pro Football Focus’ 5th overall offensive tackle last season (left tackles and right tackles). The blue-chip prospect out of LSU signed a below-market deal last summer to stay with the only pro team he’s ever known. La’el Collins has chosen to be with the Dallas Cowboys twice in his short career. Once as an undrafted free agent and again last summer (earning loyalty points in Cowboys Nation). His $10 million per year salary ranks just 20th in the NFL making Dallas’ offensive tackle situation the absolute best in the NFL.
Despite completely dropping the ball with the Dak Prescott negotiations, the Dallas Cowboys have a few of the very best contracts in the NFL. Even the highly paid Amari Cooper contract is savvy because it offers a free “out” after two seasons.
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Next we’ll look at the Dallas Cowboys three worst contracts, but for now let’s appreciate the good and salute what the Cowboys front office has gotten right.
- Published on 07/26/2020 at 11:01 AM
- Last updated at 07/26/2020 at 09:49 AM