On Tuesday, a star player on the Dallas Cowboys admitted to reporters that retirement was possible for him in the 2025 offseason. The highly-paid player’s retirement would come at a time when the Cowboys will need extra cap space to keep Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, and Micah Parsons.
The Dallas Cowboys have people to pay
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Prescott could be asking for a salary in the $50 million per year range. Parsons wants to be the highest-paid non-quarterback in the league. That title currently belongs to Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson, who is making $35 million per year. Lamb will be somewhere between $32 and $35 million annually.
Per Over The Cap, the Cowboys have about $65 million in cap space for the 2025 season. That number will dive when they extend Prescott, Parsons, and Lamb. However, they could save money if they didn’t have to pay Zack Martin for his services.
Zack Martin says retirement in 2025 is possible
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According to Michael Gehlken with the Dallas Morning News, Martin said his retirement is possibly coming in the next offseason:
“I’m not saying 100%, but I think it’s definitely in the realm of possibilities,” Martin told The Dallas Morning News. “And that’s one thing I don’t want to do. For myself, I don’t want to be thinking, ‘Oh, this is it. This is it.’ I want to stay in the moment, and I want to play the best that I can play at this point and be the best right guard this team needs on a weekly basis. And then after the season, we’ll figure out what’s going on.”
The Cowboys structured Martin’s contract for a 2025 retirement
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Martin, who will turn 34 this season, signed a revised contract with the Cowboys last year that added $8.5 million over two seasons. The front offseason seems to have foreseen a possible retirement because the new structure allows the Cowboys to designate Martin as a June 1 cut in 2025, saving $15.8 million. They’d also eat $26.4 million in dead cap.
Martin’s retirement would have the Cowboys more easily afford Lamb, Parsons, and Prescott. They’d also lose a nine-time All-Pro. But how much is really left in the tank for an offensive guard who will turn 35 next season?
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2 Comments
Not being a Dallas fan, I never cared for them being called America’s Team, but they sure embraced it in this scenario. Overspend your budget today and you’ll surely regret it tomorrow – America’s way. Their owner/GM/Head Coach has surely set them up for failure!
Jordan!
Nice to hear the Packers perspective on the early shortcomings of JJ McCarthy. Can you follow this up with the musings of say, Jordan Love, on his early days? I keep forgetting this isn’t true reporting but thinly veiled bias meant to make the cornflakes go down easier.