Who’s the highest-paid player on the Dallas roster? What are the cap implications? Here’s what you need to know about Cowboys contracts in 2022.
In 2021, the first year of his active contract extension, Dak Prescott made $75 million. That’s the highest single-year salary number in NFL history and placed him behind just Conor McGregor, Lionel Messi, and Cristiano Ronaldo among global athlete earners that year even after off-the-field cash flows were included.
Okay, cool. $75 million. Word. But with the NFL salary cap set at just $182.5 million in 2021, how on earth did Jerry Jones and the Dallas Cowboys cobble together a full roster? Well, Despite Dak’s incredible take-home, he actually counted just $17.2 million against the cap thanks to some accounting voodoo baked into the league’s CBA regarding how base salary versus bonuses are tabulated; think of it as a chopped-and-screwed album, just (hopefully) without the codeine syrup.
So, with all that money madness in mind, what are the biggest Cowboys contracts of 2022? How do they shape the cap outlook in Big D this season and beyond? Is Dak still the team’s highest-paid player overall? You have Dallas Cowboys salary cap questions, Boardroom has answers.
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Dallas Cowboys Salary Cap 2022: Inside the Numbers
All dollar figures and cap estimates via Spotrac. Reflects a hard cap of $208.2 million.
So, are the Dallas Cowboys over the salary cap? Check out their full spending breakdown as of Dec. 28, 2022:
Active contracts: $162,654,619
Dead cap money: $31,253,396
Total salary cap usage: $215,016,690
Salary cap space: $5,283,310
Dallas Cowboys Contracts 2022: The Top 10
Includes the 10 largest active Dallas Cowboys contracts by total value. All dollar figures via Spotrac.
1. QB Dak Prescott
- Contract: 4 years, $160,000,000
- 2022 salary: $20,000,000
- Free agency: 2025
NOTE: Prescott’s deal includes a potential out after the 2023 season.
Click here to read Boardroom’s full breakdown of Dak’s contract extension.
2. OT Tyron Smith
- Contract: 8 years, $97,600,000
- 2022 salary: $13,500,000
- Free agency: 2024
3. RB Ezekiel Elliott
- Contract: 6 years, $90,000,000
- 2022 salary: $12,400,000
- Free agency: 2027
Click here to read Boardroom’s full breakdown of Zeke’s contract extension.
4. OG Zack Martin
- Contract: 6 years, $84,000,000
- 2022 salary: $9,841,000
- Free agency: 2025
5. WR Michael Gallup
- Contract: 5 years, $57,500,000
- 2022 salary: $12,529,412
- Free agency: 2027
6. DE DeMarcus Lawrence
- Contract: 3 years, $40,000,000
- 2022 salary: $15,000,000
- Free agency: 2025
7. OLB Micah Parsons
- Contract: 4 years, $17,079,793
- 2022 salary: $1,436,354
- Free agency: 2025 or 2026
NOTE: Parsons’ rookie deal contains a fifth-year team option for 2025.
Click here to read Boardroom’s full breakdown of Parsons’ contract.
8. CB Anthony Brown
- Contract: 3 years, $15,500,000
- 2022 salary: $5,000,000
- Free agency: 2023
9. WR CeeDee Lamb
- Contract: 4 years, $14,010,012
- 2022 salary: $1,883,637
- Free agency: 2024 or 2025
NOTE: Lamb’s rookie contract contains a fifth-year team option for 2024.
10. CB Jourdan Lewis
- Contract: 3 years, $13,500,000
- 2022 salary: $3,470,588
- Free agency: 2024
NOTE: Jourdan’s deal includes a potential out after the 2022 season.
2023 Cowboys Free Agents
Dallas Cowboys Salary Cap 2023: Looking Ahead
All dollar figures and cap estimates via Spotrac following Week 16 of the 2022 NFL season. Reflects an estimated 2023 hard cap of $225 million.
Active contracts: $214,690,462
Dead cap money: $8,961,924
Total salary cap usage: $223,652,386
Salary cap space: $6,630,924
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