Cowboys News: Dallas opens contract talks with Trevon Diggs, Depth WR arrested and released
By Jerry Trotta
The Dallas Cowboys will soon have to pay up to keep their two gems from the 2020 draft: CeeDee Lamb and Trevon Diggs.
It stands to reason that Diggs will sign his new contract first given he was a second-round pick and is therefore entering the final year of his rookie deal. As a former first-round pick, Lamb has the luxury of a fifth-year option, which the Cowboys already picked up this offseason in a no-brainer move.
It would benefit everyone if Dallas got Diggs signed before next season. Anything else would run the risk of Diggs reaching free agency and while the player has made it clear he wants to be with the Cowboys for the foreseeable future, the last thing the team wants is to join a bidding war and risk losing him.
It would appear Dallas understands the urgency to get Diggs extended. Appearing on SportsCenter Saturday, ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler reported the Cowboys and Diggs have had preliminary talks about a contract extension.
Please get this done. https://t.co/193r1PcFxR
— Blogging The Boys (@BloggingTheBoys) June 3, 2023
Cowboys, Trevon Diggs have opened contract negotiations
Here's what Fowler said on SportsCenter, per Bleacher Report.
""This is a top cornerback in the league, one of the best, 17 interceptions the last three year. I'm told that the Cowboys and Diggs have had like some check-in moments about a potential contract extension over recent weeks this offseason. And so, certainly both sides could be open to that. The market now for cornerbacks at the top, about $21 million per year, so we'll see how close Diggs could get to that in the next few months.""
The Packers' Jaire Alexander is currently the NFL's highest-paid cornerback at $21 million annually, followed by the Browns' Denzel Ward ($20.1 million per year), the Saints' Marshon Lattimore ($19.52 million) and the Ravens' Marlon Humphrey ($19.5 million).
Diggs might not reset the market in totality, but his body of work over three years in the league suggests he's worth more than $20 million per year. Perhaps something slightly more than Ward and less than Alexander is a potential middle ground Diggs and the Cowboys can meet at.
It'll be interesting to see how negotiations play out over the next few months. The good news is the process is already started and there's still roughly a month and a half before training camp gets underway, which is typically when stars put contract talks on hold.
This would put the Cowboys at more than $20m in room but much of it is pegged for use already for things like:
— Todd Archer (@toddarcher) May 31, 2023
Money needed for incentives
Practice squad elevations
Injury settlements
Extensions for CeeDee Lamb, Trevon Diggs, Terence Steele all of which would raise cap figures. https://t.co/Zc7lNe8MbA
In other Cowboys news, WR Antonio Callaway was arrested Saturday in Miami for driving with a suspended license, per Andy Slater of Fox Sports 640.
A former fourth-round pick of the Browns in 2018, Callaway has had a history of off-field troubles since he was drafted. He was cited for driving with a suspended license in 2018 and was suspended 10 games in 2019 for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy.
Callaway hasn't appeared in a regular season game since 2020. The Cowboys signed him to the practice squad in November and re-signed him to a reserve/futures contract in January after the season ended.
Callaway was swiftly released Monday and Dallas signed WR Tyron Johnson, who was part of several free agent workouts for the team. A Oklahoma State product, Johnson ran the 40-yard dash in 4.34 seconds and brings another speed dynamic to what's shaping up to be a competitive Cowboys receiver room before roster cuts.
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