The contractual song and dance between the Cowboys and its top stars is underway.The Dallas Cowboys have been known to be magicians in the past. After Owner Jerry Jones purchased the team in 1989, he pulled three Super Bowls out of a hat during the team’s run in the ‘90s.
Unfortunately, the team’s tricks have become stale and cliche for a few decades now.
Keeping fans across the country in their seats under the big top of AT&T Stadium has been more challenging, especially after the circus came tumbling down against the Green Bay Packers in January.
Luckily, the circus is back in town for another season, and the front office is trying to perform their most challenging trick to date—signing Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, and Micah Parsons to record-setting deals.
Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones appeared as a guest on The Athletic’s new podcast, Scoop City, hosted by Dianna Russini and Chase Daniel. The conversation centered on the pending deals for Dallas’ big three and where things currently stand. Jones said the team is in the middle of pulling off their own Houdini trick.
“Those things just take time when you’re talking about the amount of money involved, and of course, we’re trying to a little bit play Houdini and how to keep all these guys around Dak and keep these players we were fortunate enough to draft. When you start stacking ‘em up like that, it’s a challenge it’s not that it’s not doable, but you certainly gotta have some give and take if you want to do that. I know the Vikings there with Jefferson when they made that inordinate deal at the receiver spot, they don’t have one player on their team other than Jefferson making over $20 million. Of course, we got a big one in Dak [Prescott], and we got [Trevon] Diggs right there, and then you got Zack Martin and D-Law. So we got a lot of guys making quite a bit of money. It’s no excuses we think we can get this done, know we can get it done, but it just takes time.”
Jones sounded confident in his answer, but mentioning the recent extension of Justin Jefferson with the Minnesota Vikings was notable. Minnesota tried to get a deal done with Jefferson last offseason, but the talks fell through and got sidelined to 2024.
“And then of course you have Dak. Obviously, his resume speaks for itself. You know, he was second in MVP voting last year. You know, he’s just had an extraordinary career here in Dallas.”
“We are optimistic that we can get these guys done,” Jones said. “I know Dak, our goal is to get him done. And he knows that. We’re having conversations and with his agent, with Dak personally, both Jerry (Jones) and myself. He knows our goal is to keep him here. He also understands the challenges.”
“You know what happens to teams when you do have these high-priced quarterbacks. At some point, it’s a challenge to keep everybody. Obviously, the Chiefs are an example of that. But they were able to survive not keeping Tyreek Hill and some other top players. They let go one of the top corners (L’Jarius Sneed) in the league go after this season. You have to make some tough choices along the way. But we’re optimistic that we can do that.”
Patrik Walker: Well, first, they should probably actually have a conversation. I’ll assume that’s happened by now — less than one week from the first training camp practice — and predict Parsons becomes a versatile weapon primarily operating off of the edge for Zimmer and less so as an off-ball linebacker. Zimmer didn’t bring in Kendricks and Liufau with the goal of Parsons primarily being an actual linebacker, after all. For Parsons, it’s about controlling what he can control. There’s nothing he can do about the horrendous number of non-calls occurring when he’s being mugged in the trenches. When he breaks free, though? It’s about turning more of his league-leading QB pressures into sacks that would seen him go from the realm of mid-teens in that category to the air breathed by T.J. Watt (20+). He’s already on the cusp of taking that next step, and only needs to do it, though it’s easier said than done when you’re being placed in a chokehold after the snap.
Nick Eatman: Sometimes even the great ones need a different voice. That’s what the Cowboys are counting on with Zimmer and Parsons. I think it’s going to be interesting how Micah fits into the new scheme and how much Zimmer has tailored it around his strengths. Surely, these conversations were had before Zimmer was even hired. If the Cowboys didn’t find out what his plan would be for Micah, then that’s on them. That’s why I’m not worried about any conversations of lack thereof between the two. Zimmer knows he needs Parsons to ball out and Parsons knows he must do the same, especially with a contract on the line. Can he buy into a run-stopping mode? Can he have more sacks in December and January? Those are the two big questions for Parsons if he wants to take the next step.
Marist Liufau vs. DeMarvion Overshown
Another place where the Cowboys entered the offseason short was at linebacker. However, with the signing of veteran linebacker Eric Kendricks and the selection of Marist Liufau in the third round, the middle line of the defense got stronger. Add the return to health from last year’s third-round pick DeMarvion Overshown and Dallas now has some depth and a camp battle at linebacker.
The team felt Liufau was too good to pass up this past April, touting his coverage skills and football IQ as one of the reasons to draft the linebacker out of Notre Dame. Liufau didn’t give up a receiving touchdown in his last two years in college and is just as effective near the line of scrimmage.
The main competition for the rookie might come from Overshown, who had an ACL tear in the preseason and never got a chance to develop. Like Liufau, Overshown is a converted safety who has good coverage skills, but also has a knack for making plays behind the line of scrimmage with 30.5 career tackles for a loss.
Right now, both players could be competing for the SAM linebacker spot in Zimmer’s defense, but that could change depending on how camp pans out. Either way, both Day 2 selections are battling for snaps as a starter on the Dallas defense.
It’s a quarterback battle for No. 8.
Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson is challenging Pro Football Hall of Famer Troy Aikman’s attempt to trademark “EIGHT” for use on apparel and bags, according to U.S. Patent and Trademark Office online records.
According to ESPN, Jackson’s attorney argued in a July 9 filing that Aikman’s usage of their shared number would be “likely to cause confusion” to the public about which quarterback’s company is selling the products. Jackson filed the appeals against two trademark applications by FL101, the company behind Aikman’s products that lists him as a director in its SEC filings.
Jackson’s brand, Era 8 Apparel, sells T-shirts, hats and accessories, many flashing the number eight. Jackson owns or has applied for several trademarks using the number in various phrases, most featuring the “Era 8” name.
Aikman launched EIGHT, a light beer brand, in January 2022. FL101 holds a trademark for “EIGHT” that applies to beer, and has pending trademarks for restaurant and bar services, mugs and cups, calendars and posters, among other items. Jackson’s two appeals only relate to the apparel and bags.
TE Brevyn Spann-Ford
This is the most obvious one to me. Last year, Cowboys fans fell in love with undrafted free agent John Stephens Jr. before he suffered a season-ending injury in the preseason. Since then, we’ve learned the 6-5 offensive weapon would’ve made the 53-man roster.
Now, the Cowboys might move on to another underdog to root for at the position: Brevyn Spann-Ford.
With a 6-7, 270 pounds build, Spann-Ford looks the part. He also excelled as a run blocker at Minnesota and his one problem appears to be catching the ball, as he had an extremely high drop rate in his last season in college. If he fixes that, he looks like somebody primed for a surprise spot on the roster and you know Cowboys fans will be rooting for him.
Jones says that adding another game to the regular season looks like a foregone conclusion at this point. Contrary to the many claims that the players would oppose a longer season, Jones believes that when the players see how much additional money would come from an additional game, and how much of that money would go to the players, they’ll be on board.
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