The Dallas Cowboys had a situation on their hands when star guard Zack Martin held out in the hopes of getting a new contract. Fortunately for both sides, they struck an agreement with plenty of time before the season.

Martin met with Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones before the Cowboys' preseason opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The eight-time Pro Bowler spoke highly of Jones and how they were able to talk in person about the situation, according to Todd Archer of ESPN.

“He was great,” Martin said of Jones, via ESPN. “We were able to have that one-on-one time, and I think that helped, just being able to talk face-to-face. I think ultimately that's what made me feel more comfortable and how he felt more comfortable and then we started talking about this and numbers and where we eventually headed.”

Zack Martin will now make $36 million over the next seasons instead of $27.5 million. Only Chris Lindstrom and Quenton Nelson are paid more, putting the Cowboys star in a more appropriate spot on the NFL leaderboard for salaries among guards.

The reason behind Martin's actions, aside from the desire to be paid more accordingly to his immense talents, was his comfort with the Cowboys. Dallas has been his only NFL home and he didn’t want to look for another one. It took roughly a month to work out but in the end, he got what he wanted and can now focus on the season ahead.

“I never wanted to play anywhere else,” Martin said, via ESPN. “And that's when I'd get some anxiety or have a rough day during this thinking about that. That's what it came down to: I don't want to play anywhere else. I don't want to play for another organization. I don't want to move my family and was just hoping that something would get done, and luckily we were able to get together and figure it out.”

The Cowboys expect to compete for the NFC title with Martin serving as a keystone on the offensive line. Dallas still seeks its first NFC Championship Game appearance since 1996.