Dallas Cowboys: La’el Collins Gets Extended as Elliot Waits
It appears the Dallas Cowboys have made their choice on which of their stars they’re keeping. Going into this season, the team knows they’ll have to pay star running back Ezekiel Elliot, star quarterback Dak Prescott, and star wide receiver Amari Cooper. However, if they pay all three to their potential there’s limited room for position players. On Monday, the Cowboys might have showed their hand that there’s an odd man out.
According to Adam Schefter:
“Cowboy and OT La’el Collins reached agreement on a five-year contract extension that ties him to Dallas for the next six seasons, per source. It will make Collins one of the NFL’s five-highest paid RTs.”
The deal itself appears to be worth $50 million with $35million in guarantees. That’s not a heavyweight contract by any standards but being a top five at his position and guaranteed money inches them closer to the cap. This contract is on top of the already highest paid at their position lineman such as Tyron Smith, Travis Frederick, and Zack Martin. Owner/GM Jerry Jones knows in order for star running back Ezekiel Elliot to be successful it makes sense to pay his lineman. The Cowboys pride themselves on having one of the best offensive lines in the league and will continue to do so in the near future.
Then of course, there’s Dak Prescott. There’s no way the Cowboys give up on what they feel is already their franchise quarterback of the present and future so that leaves Cooper as the odd man out. With the current state of the NFL, new and productive receivers are popping up every year. The Cowboys traded for Cooper last year, sending their first round pick in this year’s NFL Draft to the Oakland Raiders. Sure, they could try and work around and pay the receiver but that’s a lot of money to spend on offense.
Star power is keeping the Dallas Cowboys afloat but it eventually it will catch up to them. It could be as soon as a year or two. If they want to keep their core unit together, their window is closing. La’el Collins’ contract frees up some space, but down the way its the guaranteed money that will catch up. Can the Cowboys win the Super Bowl before then.
Rick ODonnell aka Caveman Rick has many years covering the Miami Dolphins, Sports, and all sorts of movies and television.
