The days of blank checks and comfortable contracts in Dallas appear to be over, and Jerry Jones is making sure his biggest stars are the first to know, with a salary cap crunch adding uncertainty. To create the salary cap space, the franchise might restructure contracts of its highest-paid stars, per ESPN’s Todd Archer.

“Expect Cowboys to rework Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, Tyler Smith,” noted Archer. “And potentially add voids to Kenny Clark, Quinnen Williams.”

The Cowboys currently sit at 32nd in cap space. For the first time in the league’s history, the NFL salary cap has exceeded $300 million. In the 2025 season, the salary cap was $279.2 million for each team, and this year, $301.2 million, an increase of $22 million. Still, the franchise is currently over the salary cap by about $58.4 million.

The quarterback Dak Prescott, the wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, and the guard Tyler Smith account for approximately 36% of the cap hit of the 2026 season from the squad. The QB has a massive $74.1 million cap hit, which is almost one-fourth of the total cap. Prescott’s contract is valid till the end of the 2027 season.

CeeDee’s Cowboys contract has a cap hit of $38.4 million for the 2026 season, which is 12.66% of the total cap. Similarly, Tyler Smith holds the third position on the list with a $27.5 million cap hit, taking 9.06%. The 24-year-old remains signed to the franchise through 2030.

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As per the latest report from Archer, the Cowboys are restructuring the contracts of their highest-paid stars, which will create about $66 million in cap space. On the other hand, their expensive defensive players are also set to free up cap space.

The cap issues aren’t limited to the offense. On the defensive side, players like Kenny Clark and Quinnen Williams carry cap hits north of $21 million each, making restructuring their deals a necessary step to free up cash for new talent. Following a recent restructuring move, the trio is projected to free up $63 million.

These upcoming possible restructures will certainly have the players on notice, as they could have to step in to help out their franchise’s situation.

Such contract negotiations this season will allow Jerry Jones to add more impactful players to the roster, especially to a defense that struggled last season. With financial restructuring becoming unavoidable, the 83-year-old has already hinted at their offseason approach.

Jerry Jones outlines an aggressive free agency strategy to rebuild the Cowboys’ roster

The Dallas Cowboys are five-time Super Bowl champions, but their dominance has faded in the past three decades. They are yet to win the Lombardi trophy in the 21st century.

Jones certainly wants to make them a championship-worthy squad yet again, but they require notable roster updates. With the free agency looming in March, the billionaire owner recently laid out his plan.

” I could see me being aggressive,” said Jones in a recent interview. ” I could see us being aggressive.”

Various Cowboys players are set to hit free agency in March, but the organization has shown keen interest in putting the franchise tag on the wide receiver George Pickens, who had a breakout season.

The likes of Alontae Taylor, Riq Woolen, and Jamel Dean could be the potential cornerback options from free agency. The franchise might consider acquiring them to fix its defensive struggles from the past season.

The Philadelphia Eagles‘ Nakobe Dean and the Cleveland Browns’ Devin Bush are linebacker prospects that Jones could aggressively pursue from free agency.