Here are two winners and two losers from the Jake Ferguson contract extension with the Cowboys.
The Dallas Cowboys struck an extension with tight end Jake Ferguson on Sunday and the first domino of that sort has now officially fallen. Obviously we hope, and on some level anticipate, that others will soon (Micah Parsons, duh).
What separates the Ferguson extension from others like Parsons that could come in the near future is that Ferguson has only just become eligible for an extension (as soon as this offseason began technically). Being proactive with players is something Dallas has shown a willingness to do... for the right price. Given that Ferguson is coming off of a down year the opportunity was likely there so the Cowboys pounced and it worked out for everyone.
However we got here doesn’t matter relative to the conversation that we are about to have as Jake Ferguson’s extension is part of our new reality. Today we are going to discuss two winners and two losers from the deal.
Let’s begin.
Things change in the NFL and that is normal, but it is always nice when you can maintain some level of consistency at the most important points. With Ferguson now taken care of the foreseeable future the Cowboys have their quarterback, top wide receiver and a very important pass-catcher all locked in place for the next few seasons (adding George Pickens in this capacity would be nice).
Consider the tight end position in and of itself. Prior to Ferguson the position was dominated by Dalton Schultz, a player who Dallas played the franchise tag dance with. There was nothing individually wrong with how the Cowboys went about things with Schultz, but he was a viable weapon himself and circumstances led to him leaving.
Consider that on some level Ferguson is now the tight end who the team has made the most serious commitment to since Jason Witten. Ensuring that there is a familiar face there is critical for reasons well beyond the obvious, and the Cowboys took care of that.
To be very clear here, the bar is low. Nevertheless, the front office just skipped over it.
There are a number of things that we could/would change about the way that the Cowboys front office goes about conducting business and those things remain true in a world where Jake Ferguson has his extension. Multiple things can be true.
Deals for Micah Parsons, DaRon Bland, Tyler Smith, Brandon Aubrey and George Pickens all (or whichever specific ones you prefer, you get the point) should have been taken care of by this point, but getting Ferguson done is not necessarily an indictment against those points.
The Cowboys are making a bet on Ferguson returning to form and are establishing a bit of an idea that if you play well for the team you will get paid. Obviously that isn’t entirely true.
Honestly I mean this in a...