Dallas Cowboys place $10.9 million franchise tag on tight end Dalton Schultz
The Dallas Cowboys are placing the franchise tag on tight end Dalton Schultz to keep him off the free agent market and on the roster in 2022.
The one-year tag is worth $10.9 million in 2022.
The team will continue to work towards a long-term extension to lower his cap number but Schultz will not hit unrestricted free agency on March 16 when he would have been subject to a strong market that would have priced him out of Dallas.
The Cowboys have until July 15 to work out a deal or he will play the 2022 season on the tag.
The Cowboys, who were $21 million on over the cap before the Schultz tag, restructured the contracts of quarterback Dak Prescott and guard Zack Martin, clearly more than $22 million cap room.
And they agreed to terms with receiver Noah Brown on a one-year deal.
The Cowboys still must create more cap room as teams must be under the $208.2 million salary cap limit by the start of the new league year next Wednesday, March 16.
Look for the team to move on from receiver Amari Cooper and his $20 million salary for 2022 and continue their attempt to get DeMarcus Lawrence take pay cut from his $19 million salary.
But the big move on Tuesday was keeping Schultz in the fold.
Schultz recorded a career-high 78 catches for 808 yards and eight touchdowns in 2021.
His return was necessary because the Cowboys have no experienced depth at the position with Blake Jarwin’s status unclear after undergoing hip surgery last month.
The surgery will require 6-8 months of rehab, sources said. The Cowboys are hoping he can return but could restructure his contract or cut him and bring him back. Jarwin’s salary is $4 million in 2022. The Cowboys could save $2 million on the salary cap by cutting him.
With backup tight end Jeremy Sprinkle headed to free agency, the only holdovers are Sean McKeon and Ian Bunting, who spent last season on the practice squad.
The Cowboys have 19 other free agents to address, led by defensive end Randy Gregory and safeties Jayron Kearse, Malik Hooker and Damontae Kazee.
The Cowboys feel good about re-signing Gregory and at least two of the three safeties.
This story was originally published March 8, 2022 at 9:28 AM.
