Cowboys give $52M, 4-year deal to player who 'set a new record for worst' TE season ever

USA Today

4 hours ago

The Dallas Cowboys' extension machine works on both ends of the spectrum equally. While most of the attention is paid to the front office's wait-and-get-played strategy that routinely has had them setting or blowing up the market with extensions for players like Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb and soon-to-be Micah Parsons, the team also dabbles in making deals with players who don't have much leverage. Sometimes that takes the form of a deal after three years for Ezekiel Elliott, and other times it looks like the extension given to Jaylon Smith.
On Sunday, as the second week of 2025 training camp gets underway, the team has announced a deal with a player many thought would wait until he's re-established himself as a league star, risking him to the open market. Tight end Jake Ferguson, who a year after making the Pro Bowl had a disastrous campaign, has agreed to a four-year extension worth $52 million. The deal contains $30 million in guarantees.
The $13 million average salary for the four new years slots Ferguson as the No. 7 highest-paid TE in the league, sandwiched in between David Njoku in Cleveland and Cole Kmet in Chicago. The 49ers George Kittle and Cardinals' Trey McBride set the pace for the position making $19.1 million and $19 million, respectively.
Ferguson's $30 million in guarantees also ranks seventh for the position. He was getting ready to play in the final year of his rookie contract for $3.4 million after being a fourth-round pick (No. 129 overall) in 2022. Assuming the deal lowers his base salary to league minimum of $1.1 million, his cap hit is going to basically remain the same, under $4 million.
Ferguson suffered an early season injury last year and had what some consider the statistically worse season ever for a tight end, according to Football Outsiders' Aaron Schatz.
Ferguson's record-low DYAR (defense-adjusted yards above replacement) number was fueled by a ton of drops and fumbles, and having no touchdowns to show for a ton of targets.
There's been plenty of scuttlebutt this offseason about second-year tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford surpassing 2023 second-round pick Luke Schoonmaker on the depth chart and potentially emerging as the team's No. 1 TE in the very near future. However Ferguson has appeared to be back to his old self as he's reunited with QB Dak Prescott and reclaimed the throne despite Spann-Ford's progress from a up-and-coming blocking tight end into a well-rounded weapon.
Ferguson did not fair well as the only other viable passing option after CeeDee Lamb in 2024, as defenses gave him bracket coverage. The addition of George Pickens to the offense should allow Ferguson to thrive again, and set him up for a highly productive 2025 campaign.
The Cowboys' front office appears to believe what they are seeing and rather than waiting on a return to Pro Bowl status that would hike Ferguson's asking price, finalized the deal without impacting their 2025 cap space they can roll over to next season.