USAT: Cowboys Wire audio clip

USAT: Cowboys Wire

Mar 6, 2022

The Cowboys front office entered this offseason needing to do a very delicate dance as far as the salary cap is concerned. One certain high-priced veteran is already rumored to be on the chopping block as a cost-cutting measure. There’s talk of a possible franchise tag and contract restucturing in the coming days for others to help keep the team’s most important playmakers in the building. - Now it appears another fan favorite may be ready to play hardball with the Joneses. - Defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence has reportedly turned down a pay cut proposed by Cowboys management, according to Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning News. - Lawrence, with a scheduled 2022 base salary of $19 million, is currently the team’s third-highest-paid player, behind quarterback Dak Prescott and wide receiver Amari Cooper, both of whom are listed at $20 million for the upcoming season. - Cooper is thought to be headed for release by the Cowboys within the next  two weeks if a trade partner cannot be found. Now Lawrence, the 2014 second-round draft pick out of Boise State, may also be on his way out of Dallas. (Cowboys Wire explored this very possibility recently.) - As Watkins somberly notes regarding the Lawrence development: “Normally when a player rejects a pay cut he’s soon to be released.” - The two-time Pro Bowler has 48.5 sacks in his eight seasons with the Cowboys. He missed significant time in 2021 due to a foot fracture but was a difference-maker when he was on the field; he recorded 21 tackles, five tackles for loss, seven quarterback hits, and five passes defensed. He also forced two fumbles and logged an interception that he returned for a touchdown, the first of his career. - Fellow edge rushers Randy Gregory and Dorance Armstrong are both set to enter free agency, meaning the Cowboys brass has multiple serious decisions to make- and quickly- regarding the key position. While Armstrong was more of a rotation man last year and Tarell Basham, Carlos Watkins, and rookie Chauncey Golston all contributed as well, Lawrence and Gregory made for a rather formidable set of starting bookends on the defensive line. - Now all of a sudden, there’s a very real chance that both could be wearing a different uniform in 2022. - - List - - Winners, Losers: Georgia dominates DL, LB day at combine - - - - - - - - List - - Trying to make sense of Amari Cooper, DeMarcus Lawrence release chatter - - - - - - - - List - - Can Cameron Thomas' versatility along the DL be what the Cowboys are looking for? - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Email - - - - - Sign up - - - - - - - - Like this article? - Sign up for the Cowboys Wire email newsletter to get our top stories in your inbox every morning - - - - An error has occured - - - Please re-enter your email address. - - - - - - Thanks for signing up! - - - You'll now receive the top Cowboys Wire stories each day directly in your inbox.

F i l t e r   &   S o r t 
Mar 17, 2022