CBS SPORTS (KFSM) – The “impasse” in contract negotiations between the Dallas Cowboys and their star pass rusher, Demarcus Lawrence has officially ended with a bang.
Hours after ProFootballTalk reported that the two-time Pro Bowl defensive end was “getting close to an agreement” on a long-term deal with Dallas, the Cowboys have announced that Lawrence has agreed to terms on a five-year extension worth more than $100 million. The MMQB’s Albert Breer previously reported the deal will come in at $105 million, $65 million of which is guaranteed.
Just over a week ago, Lawrence’s long-term future in Dallas remained uncertain, with Cowboys executive VP Stephen Jones telling reporters at the NFL owners meetingsthat negotiations had essentially stalled, with Lawrence and the team “apart” in their valuation of the 26-year-old edge rusher. The Athletic’s Calvin Watkins reported at the time that Lawrence was seeking an average annual salary of $22.5 million, similar to that of Khalil Mack, after initially asking for $20 million per year earlier in negotiations. Watkins said that Dallas was willing to extend a six-year, $120 million offer to Lawrence at that time.
Under the franchise tag, which he received for the second-straight offseason in March, Lawrence would have still been the NFL’s highest-paid 4-3 defensive end with a 2019 salary of $20.5 million. With the reported $105 million extension, he’s set to average $21 million per year, the second largest salary of all pass rushers.
A second-round draft pick of Dallas in 2014, Lawrence has emerged as one of the NFL’s most productive players at his position. After playing just seven games as a rookie, he logged eight sacks in 2015 and rebounded from an injury-prone follow-up with a breakout 14.5-sack Pro Bowl campaign. In 2018, playing under the tag for the first time, he notched his second straight double-digit sack season, finishing with 10.5 in 15 starts.
