In a world of bad contracts, the Dallas Cowboys have one they certainly wish they could restructure.
As NFL free agency inches closer and closer, several high-priced names will be up for new deals. Some will warrant the money owed. Others…not so much.
This happens every offseason — a player who likely doesn’t deserve the massive deal gets one. Within a year, it’s clear that the team overpaid and are now stuck with a bad contract. The worst part of all is that they can’t trade the player, and cutting him would actually hurt the team. Such is the case with bad investments, no?
As for the Dallas Cowboys? They made a ton of bad deals over the past few seasons.
Dallas still is looking to sign Dak Prescott for a long-term extension. If they can’t agree to terms by March 9, there’s a great shot he will be franchise-tagged a second time. Part of the reason why Prescott isn’t on a deal is that Jerry Jones elected to pay other positions of interest first.
In a do-over, there’s no denying he wouldn’t pay Jaylon Smith before Prescott.
Jaylon Smith’s deal is hurting Dallas
Smith signed a six-year extension in August 2019 worth roughly $68.5 million. Just a few years after being told he might never play football again, he became a bargain deal at the off-ball linebacker role.
That bargain lasted for a second.
Although Smith led the team in tackles last season with 154, there were plenty of missed plays in coverage and open-field whiffs than one could count. Smith became a liability in coverage and struggled to do anything other than meet the player head-on after a big gain.
Smith will only make $7.2 million in 2021, but that deal goes up each season. He’ll earn $9.2 million in 2022 and at least $11 million until his deal expires in 2025.
The problem isn’t in the release now, but rather down the line. Each year, Dallas will take a larger cap hit should they release him. However, if Smith thrives in Dan Quinn’s system, it looks like a great deal once more.
There’s no real winner for Dallas if they cut Smith. They’ll lose money, but how much money are they willing to lose in a salary cap hit?
One can hope that Ezekiel Elliott will bounce back with a healthy offensive line. Smith had no excuse for his struggles last season other than regression of play. Worst of all is he’ll walk away with a substantial payday even if he doesn’t play another down in Dallas.
There’s no easy way to put it, Jones swung hard and struck out on Smith unless he’s an All-Pro talent with Quinn. That money could have been saved for Prescott.