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OXNARD, Calif. – While discussions with Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliott and Amari Cooper have mostly failed over the summer, the Dallas Cowboys have signed a major contract for their future, linebacker Jaylon Smith having agreed to an agreement, said sources to ESPN.
Smith was about to become a restricted free agent after this season, but he chose to take the security of a longer term deal now rather than going through a potentially lengthy negotiation.
Owner and General Manager Jerry Jones alluded to the possibility of a finalized extension that did not include Prescott, Cooper or Elliott on August 13th.
Talks were first discussed in the spring between Smith's agents and the Cowboys. Negotiations with the offensive stars were blocked and discussions resumed during the training camp.
Perhaps Smith's story played a role in his request for early extension.
In 2016, he was projected among the top five picks, but was suffering from a serious knee injury, two torn ligaments and nerve damage that frightened many teams to choose him. The Cowboys took him to the second round, number 34 in total, in part because one of their doctors, Dr. Daniel Cooper, operated on Smith.
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The Cowboys knew that Smith would not play his rookie season, but now consider him a centerpiece after his return.
Because Smith spent the 2016 season on the list of non-football related injuries, he did not win an accumulated year as a free agent, which is why he would have been a restricted free agent after the 2019 season.
Smith did not miss a match in his two seasons and was credited with 249 tackles by coaches. He started all games in 2018 and finished second in 150 (150). He had four sacks, five defeat tackles, 13 quarterbacks, four defeats, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.
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