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The Dallas Cowboys have a plan in place to retain DeMarcus Lawrence. Whether or not it ultimately proves successful remains to be seen.
According to Clarence Hill, Jr. of the Star-Telegram, the Cowboys will delay placing the franchise tag on Lawrence until March 5th, in the interim engaging the star free agent pass-rusher in discussions on a long-term contract.
“Per sources, the Cowboys will not place the tag on Lawrence on Tuesday. They will try to negotiate a long-term extension possibly until the March 5 deadline for franchise tags.”
The Star-Telegram also reports that Dallas will do all it can to prevent Lawrence from reaching open free agency, which officially begins on March 11th.
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Lawrence has previously indicated, however, that he has no interest playing under the franchise tag for a second consecutive season. In response being tagged before last season, Lawrence looked at the bright side, insisting it gave him the “opportunity to really break the bank next year” as a free agent.
The 27-year-old is reportedly seeking a multi-year contract that would pay him upwards of $20 million annually. If the Cowboys again designate him with the franchise tag, the Star-Telegraph reports that he intends to sit out the entire offseason and potentially miss a portion of the regular season.
Lawrence followed up a breakout 2017 campaign with another strong performance last season. He finished with 10 and-a-half sacks, leading his team by a significant margin, and also contributed a career-high 64 tackles, 15 tackles for loss, 23 quarterback hits, and two forced fumbles.
Dallas played well defensively overall, too, ranking seventh in total yards allowed and sixth in points allowed per game.
