FRISCO, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys have restructured the contract of nine-time Pro Bowl right guard Zack Martin, freeing up cap space in 2024 and in 2025.
The move frees up close to $13 million of cap space in 2024 which puts Dallas under the $255.4 million salary cap ahead of the start of free agency next Wednesday. It also frees up cap space in 2025 in a year that is expected to be challenging for the Cowboys given the dead money that will be owed to expiring contracts such as Martin, Brandin Cooks, DeMarcus Lawrence and more.
After signing Martin to a six-year, $84 million contract in 2018, the seven-time All-Pro guard continued his Hall of Fame pace before asking for a raise ahead of the 2023 season. The negotiations concluded after a holdout that saw Martin miss most of training camp before getting an $8.5 million salary bump over the final two seasons of his deal, which is set to expire at the end of next season.
The Cowboys can now enter free agency with a little bit more breathing room under the salary cap, but moves will have to be made on other lucrative contracts — such as Dak Prescott, Terence Steele and Trevon Diggs — to make any sort of big splash in free agency from a financial standpoint.
Last season, Martin started 15 games and was named to his seventh AP All-Pro First-Team of his career. Across 908 snaps, Martin allowed just four sacks and accounted for three penalties during the season.
