The Cowboys finally signed one of their star players to a lucrative contract extension Tuesday. In a classic misdirection play, Jerry Jones signed middle linebacker Jaylon Smith to a five-year extension worth $64 million. And the most important number is the $35.5 million guaranteed.
It was an emotional news conference Tuesday in which Jones teared up while talking about Smith’s painful path to NFL stardom. In a defiant moment, Jerry alluded to the other contract stories that have dominated training camp.
“This is a contract story,” Jones said of Smith’s signing. “Y’all been badgering my ass to get a contract story. This is a contract story.”
Smith injured his knee so badly during the Fiesta Bowl three years ago that some wondered if he’d play again. Cowboys team doctor Dan Cooper performed the surgery and expressed his belief that Smith’s nerves had a good chance of regenerating. Smith had been a certain top five pick, but the Cowboys were able to select him in the second round of the 2016 draft.
It seemed at the time like a huge risk, but Smith blossomed into a Pro Bowl player in his third season. He has been an inspirational presence from Day 1 and his faith and positive attitude never wavered. When he told Ed Werder and me on our podcast that he viewed the injury as a blessing, it almost sounded delusional. But that unflinching faith carried him through the intense rehab work with Cowboys athletic trainer Britt Brown, whom Smith referred to as a second father Tuesday.
I wondered aloud (on Twitter) whether this contract was a message to Zeke Elliott and Dak Prescott. Then Jones confirmed it during Tuesday’s news conference. He talked about how Smith had “team-building” in mind when he worked with the Cowboys on a long-term extension. Jones made it clear Smith had the Cowboys’ future in mind when he signed this contract. If Zeke Elliott was actually offended by Jerry’s recent “Zeke who” joke, I hope he wasn’t tuned in to Smith’s news conference. Jerry and son Stephen went out of their way to paint Smith as the ultimate team guy. And Smith reaffirmed his desire to play his entire career in Dallas.
Smith is the ultimate feel-good story with the way he handled adversity. It was touching to hear him talk about “retiring” his mother earlier than he’d anticipated. But you got the sense something else was taking place Tuesday. Jerry was holding up Smith as an example of selflessness. He even compared the linebacker’s impact on the team to Hall of Famer Ray Lewis’ in Baltimore. All the while, it felt like the team’s star quarterback and running back were being subtweeted, to some extent.
Jerry was so triumphant, he once again talked about how some former Cowboys players make “hellacious” money in their post-careers based on their association with the team. This likely fell on deaf ears in the Zeke and Dak camps, but Jones isn’t going to stop saying it. And Jerry didn’t want to hear how his joke may have offended Elliott.
“I’ve earned the right to joke with Zeke,” he said. “Let me be real clear about that. I’ve earned the right to joke with Zeke.”
There are only so many feel-good moments to go around. And if you thought Tuesday’s news might grease the skids for these other contracts, think again.
