Dalton Schultz and Cowboys front office still not close on long-term deal

Dallas Cowboys tight end Dalton Schultz has had quite a year. At this time last offseason, he likely assumed he’d remain second in line for the starting tight end position behind Blake Jarwin. Then, an injury to the starter paved the way for Schultz to have a breakout year ahead of free agency. With more bad news about Jarwin’s future in relation to his injury concerns, the Cowboys were practically forced to put the Stanford product on a $10.9 million franchise tag.

Back in March, Schultz was relieved to be back with Dallas. That was until he realized what successful tight ends, like himself, are worth in this league. No position group boomed quite like the wide receiver group this offseason. However, with George Kittle earning $15 million as a tight end and David Njoku earning himself a contract extension that gives him $13.69 million annually, Schultz and his agent likely realized he may be worth a lot more than that franchise tag price.

The 25-year-old isn’t the best tight end in the league, but with the rest of the TE depth on the Cowboys roster being a rookie and other “veterans” with little to no experience, Dallas was smart to lock him into the one-year deal. But Schultz made it clear that he wanted a long-term contract extension. So much so, that he sat out the final week of voluntary OTAs to prove his dissatisfaction with the front office.

After that, there were reports that talks between the tight end and the Cowboys’ ownership about a long-term deal began again. Schultz then showed up for mandatory minicamp avoiding what could’ve been up to $96,877 in fines.

But now, two weeks later, and only 18 days before the July 15th deadline, those talks don’t seem to be very active anymore. In fact, Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News reports that the two sides are not close on an extension.

With July 15 quickly approaching, Dalton Schultz and the Cowboys are reportedly still not close to a long-term deal

Gehlken said that “talks would need to take on new life to culminate in a contract, and market conditions could compel the Cowboys to wait.”

That’s certainly not what Schultz and his agent want to hear.

With 30 days until training camp begins in Oxnard, the tight end is just waiting for the phone to ring. He could technically sit out training camp if he wants to prove a point, but the fines for that are even more lofty than those for minicamp. Here is how training camp penalties work according to CBS Sports:

"Teams are required to fine players who aren’t on rookie contracts $50,000 per day with training camp absences. Players on rookie contracts, like Adams, are subject to a $40,000 daily fine. There’s an additional penalty of one week’s base salary (1/18th of salary) for each preseason game missed with players signing contracts as unrestricted free agents or first-round picks."

If he’s trying to gain money on a longer contract, he likely isn’t interested in paying those fines. However, despite his assumed anger with the organization, Schultz will still need to perform his best in order to put himself in a position to earn an even bigger annual salary after 2023.

Do you think the Cowboys will cave and sign Schultz to ensure tight end security for the future? Or will the Joneses continue to play in the bargain bin? They have 18 days to decide.