Zack Martin deserves pay day; Dallas Cowboys need to act fast

You are lying as a Cowboys fan if you were chirping about Zack Martin on draft night back in 2014. Sure he was a solid pick, but the world was obsessed with Johnny “Football” Manziel and everyone thought Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones would take a gamble on the young gunslinger. Yet, sane minds prevailed and went with the safest pick in the draft, Martin. Four years and multiple accolades later, the safe pick paid off. Now Martin is hoping to get paid himself.

As of the morning of June 5^th 2018, offensive guard Zack Martin still hasn’t attended any offseason workouts for the Cowboys. It is believed he is holding out of camp until he has a new contract.  Currently, he is playing on the fifth and final year of his rookie contract. Now it isn’t like the Cowboys are afraid of putting money into the man, Martin already showed from day one he’s one of the best if not the best guard in football. He’s been too four Pro Bowls and has been named an All-Pro twice in his career. One of those was his rookie year where he helped solidify the Cowboys’ offensive line and helped the team win 12 games that season.

So why the delay from the Cowboys?  They want him to take a super-team friendly deal that his fellow Pro Bowl linemen have already taken.  First, All-Pro tackle Tyron Smith took what was called a “Cowboy for Life” deal which looked good on paper, but essentially built to help the team more than Smith. Center Travis Frederick also took a similar deal with the team before the 2016 season.

Martin isn’t playing ball with the Cowboys on this one and it has delayed negotiations again for a second straight off-season.  Though reports from Pro Football Talk say the two sides are close, there hasn’t been any news from both sides to confirm it.

If the Cowboys want to be smart, they need to pay the man now. Forget trying to get a team-friendly contract that is structured a certain way and try to make a reasonable fair offer for Martin. This team is built on their offensive line and when any one of their starters misses games, the entire offense sputters out of control.

That was the biggest lesson from last season and the front office should know better to play fire with this important position.  These next two seasons so important that they dictate which direction the franchise will be going for the decade.

This isn’t the time to get cute with contracts; this is the time to take care of the superstars that form the foundation of your roster.  So Jerry and Stephen, get the checkbook out. It’s payday for Mr. Martin.