Cowboys VP Stephen Jones on team's offseason: 'We spend max, max money year in and year out'

Sep 25, 2017; Glendale, AZ, USA; Detailed view of a Dallas Cowboys helmet against the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium.

It was not long ago that Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said the team would be “all in” this offseason when it came to contracts and signing players, adding, “we will push the hell out of it.” A few months removed and that declaration does not seem to be an accurate depiction of their offseason, with no big splashes in free agency and players waiting on major contracts not yet getting deals done.

Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones explained the team’s approach to its moves and noted that signing players takes time.

“We spend max, max money year in and year out. All 32 can only spend the same amount of money over a five-year stretch,” he said (via 105.3 The Fan in Dallas). “When we’re all said and done, we max out our salary cap every year. We will have done that and what comes with having a good roster, which we do, we also are looking towards signing our own guys. It doesn’t mean it happens overnight. But when you’re wanting to sign players like Dak [Prescott] and Micah [Parsons] and CeeDee [Lamb], then certainly you have to hold money back if you want to have a realistic chance of signing those guys.”

The Cowboys currently have $7.4 million in salary space remaining, according to the NFL Players Association’s website. Prescott accounts for $55.4 million against the cap, while Lamb’s fifth-year option equates to a $17.99 million hit against the cap. If the team can get extensions done, those salary cap numbers would decrease for the upcoming season.

According to ESPN, the team has not made much progress on getting extensions done with Prescott, Lamb or Parsons. Prescott is set to become an unrestricted free agent after the 2024 season and the team can use a franchise tag on Lamb, if the sides do not work out a deal in time. Parson’s fifth-year option in 2025 will be over $21 million.

Dallas has said it wants to keep its three stars, but whether that happens is something yet to be seen.