Dallas Cowboys lock up young star with 5-year contract extension
Over the last five years, Dallas Cowboys right guard La’el Collins has gone from untouchable to unkeepable.
Shockingly wanted for questioning in the murder of a former girlfriend in the days leading up to the 2015 NFL Draft, Collins went home and fell from a sure-fire, first-round pick after a stellar career at LSU, to undrafted.
After being ruled out as a suspect, he signed with the Cowboys as an un-drafted free agent. But millions were lost as he got a three-year, $1.5 million rookie deal.
He became an immediate starter and the Cowboys rewarded him with small bump in 2017, signing him to a two-year, $15.4 million extension that expires after 2019.
He was supposedly going to be too expensive for the Cowboys to re-sign long-term after the season, especially considering the commitments they already have on the richest offensive line in the NFL and the coming deals for quarterback Dak Prescott, receiver Amari Cooper and holdout running back Ezekiel Elliott.
Given all that, Collins and the Cowboys did the seemingly unthinkable Monday night, coming to terms on a five-year, $50 million contract extension that could potentially keep him in Dallas for the rest of his career, according to sources.
Complete terms of the deal have not yet been disclosed but it includes more than $35 million in guaranteed money in a team-friendly deal that is a win-win for both sides. It runs through 2024.
Trent Brown got a four-year, $66 million contract from the Oakland Raiders, giving him the richest contract for a right tackle. But he was a left tackle with the Super Bowl champion New England Patriots last year and got paid left tackle money. Brown received a $10 million roster bonus and a total contract guarantee of $36.25 million.
Collins’ deal comes close to Brown in guarantees and is the richest for a true right tackle, according to sources.
He understood he probably could have made more on the free agent market but he didn’t want to give up what he had in Dallas.
Collins, 26, talked about his love for Dallas and how beneficial it was for him to come here on Monday.
“Obviously, I think this is been one of the best things that happened to me going in,” Collins said. “For me, it prolonged my career in a way (because) of the coaching I’ve been able to get since I’ve been here, coming in working with Coach Frank (Pollack) the way he helped me develop as a player, the way Coach (Marc) Colombo helped me develop as a player. Just learning some things from those guys, learning things from veteran guys when I got here has really helped me. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. So I’m excited to be where I am in my career right now going into Year 5, Year 3 at right tackle. I’m just ready to go out there and show what kind of player I am this year and what kind of unit we are as a group.”
Collins values everything about Dallas. He wants to win a Super Bowl with the Cowboys. He wants to be around great players. He wants to be a member of one of the best offensive lines ever.
Left tackle Tyron Smith, center Travis Frederick and right guard Zack Martin are already among the top paid at their positions. So keeping Collins is a coup for the Cowboys.
Smith ($97.6 million) and Martin ($84 million) rank first and second, respectively, in total value among offensive linemen in the NFL. Martin is fourth in guarantees ($40 million) and sixth in average salary at $14 million.
Frederick ($56.4 million) ranks first in total value among centers and third in guarantees ($28.1 million).
It took some mental gymnastics and negotiating over the last nine days to get the deal done with Collins.
Certainly, it’s a team-friendly deal but it’s keeping with what owner Jerry Jones promises of managing the contract extensions to keep as many good players as possible.
The deal is the second one for the Cowboys to get done in the last two weeks, joining linebacker Jaylon Smith, who signed a five-year, $64.5 million deal on Aug. 20.
While Elliott is still holding out and fighting the Cowboys over contract structure in hopes of becoming the highest-paid running back in the NFL, the team has snuck in and signed one of his teammates to a long-term extension, making the proverbial salary-cap pie even smaller.
Will Elliott be next?And if not him, then how about Prescott or Cooper?
What’s certain is that there is less money to go around after Collins went from untouchable and unkeepable to doing the unthinkable by cashing in and securing his own future in Dallas.
This story was originally published September 3, 2019 at 7:12 AM.
