Restructured deal on Jason Witten creates odd financial standoff
The Cowboys thought they were doing the right thing but now they're in a bit of a pickle.
Patrik Walker - 5 hours ago 0
It's been a wild ride here lately for Jason Witten and the Dallas Cowboys, if only contractually.
Signed to a shiny new four-year extension in 2017 worth upwards of $26 million to keep the 11-time pro bowl tight end locked in through the 2021 season, there was no one breathing who could've predicted only one offseason later he'd be seriously contemplating retirement. It seems like just yesterday (which, ironically, it nearly was) when Witten stood fast and firmly committed to not only playing a 16th year this coming season and on through to the ripe age of 40, so when the news broke on Day Two of the 2018 NFL Draft he was considering calling it a career to take the throne at ESPN's Monday Night Football, the collective NFL and the Cowboys' accounting was turned on its head.
After all, the team had recently pulled the trigger to restructure his one-year old extension on March 24, only 33 days before the retirement nuke was fired. It hasn't yet landed but the writing is most certainly on the wall here, and it creates some interesting questions relating to how the Cowboys will handle the exit of their future first-ballot Hall of Famer. The restructure in March converted $4.7 million of Witten's 2018 pay into a signing bonus, lowering his salary cap hit for this coming season by nearly $3.5 million.
This was fantastic at a time when it was presumed he'd return as promised, but not so much now, considering that $4.7 million is now fully guaranteed and paid upfront (as signing bonuses always are).
If he retires as now expected, Witten will have to give that money back to the Cowboys. They do have the option of not going after the funds though, something they did in 2017 when they allowed former quarterback Tony Romo to keep $5 million of bonus money in his pocket after being released/retiring in April. If allowed to keep the $4.7 million, it'll be paid in four installments of $1.175 million annually through 2021. In an even stranger twist, the restructure leaves Witten's to-be-earned salary for 2018 at only $1.05 million with $705K in potential in-game roster bonuses, maxing his non-guaranteed money for this year at just under $1.8 million -- which makes the reported annual $4.5 million salary* (or upwards thereof) that much more difficult to turn down.
Witten has never made decisions based upon money, but he's also not naive to the broadcasting opportunity staring in him the face...and the wallet. And as for the Cowboys, they'll probably let him keep the $4.7 million, ironically making his decision to leave a bit easier while head coach Jason Garrett lobbies to keep it from happening.
David Moore of The Dallas Morning News