Are Cowboys Right About Tyron Smith? The Secret Inside Jets Contract

Are Dallas Cowboys Right About Not Signing Tyron Smith? The Secret Inside His New York Jets Contract

FRISCO - The pitchforks and the torches were grabbed so forcefully and so quickly that nobody who pays attention - including us - bothered to grab a calculator.

But now we know a "secret truth'' about how the New York Jets pried away "Dallas Cowboys for Life'' offensive tackle Tyron Smith away from Big D and to the Big Apple.

And when you know it, too? Maybe you'll reconsider that angry march on The Star in Frisco. ...

When we first learned that Tyron, 33, was getting but a one-year deal in New York? We yelped that Dallas should've matched that. ... which the Cowboys actually did, in some form.

When we further learned that Tyron's "salary'' was "just $6.5 million,'' we yelped some more ... all the while cocksure that those initial reports of a "$20 million salary'' could not be true.

We were right. 

The "$20 million'' includes "not likely to be earned'' incentives like a $5.75 million bump if he plays 68 percent of the snaps PLUS a $6.25 million bump plus a if he plays 98 percent of the snaps. That, given Tyron's injury issues, is not likely. (It's actually unlikely for most any player.). But because there are two "tiers'' to his incentives, Tyron can make an additional $12 million if he pretty much never leaves the field.

Again, that won't happen. ... but add up his base and that crazy non-possibility and Tyron is pocketing $18.5 million.

What about the remaining $1.5 million? That is paid in the form of playoff wins and the Pro Bowl. Smith gets $250,000 for each playoff win ($1 million max) and an additional $500,000 for the Pro Bowl.

So ... if Tyron virtually never sits out a play, makes the Pro Bowl and wins the Super Bowl? That is the way - the only way - he gets paid the bloated-for-headlines $20 million number.

Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated was the first to share these playtime incentives ... and they are illustrative in one other way. ... because some of this money IS "likely to be earned.'' How much? Exactly, it seems, $5.75 million (based on the assumption he'll play 68 percent of the snaps).

Add it up: The $6.5 million base plus the $5.75 "likely'' and it makes his 2024 cap NOT "$6.5 million'' - the number so low that many Cowboys fans are irate - but rather "$12.25 million.''

That's right. Tyron's cap hit for his one season with the Jets will be $12.25 million.

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Now we can still have an argument about whether Dallas should've done that to retain an aging star who is Hall of Fame-bound. But the argument is no longer about a $6.5 mil cap hit; it's about twice that.

Those incentive breakdowns, by the way, are below ...

The first tier:

38% of offensive snaps: $750,000
44%: $1.75 million
50%: $2.75 million
56%: $3.75 million
62%: $4.75 million
68%: $5.75 million

The second tier:

74%: $1.25 million
80%: $2.5 million
86%: $3.75 million
92%: $5 million
98%: $6.25 million

And as explained above, the two accomplishments pile atop one another to create a terrific potential $20 million payday for Tyron ... that won't ever really happen.

So now, march forward, Cowboys Nation, fueled by overall anger and angst about what Dallas is/isn't doing in terms of roster-building. But don't argue whether "Tyron is worth $20 million for one year'' vs. whether "Tyron is worth $6.5 million.''

It's $12 million against the cap. That's the deal the Jets created. That's the deal Dallas declined to beat. That's the number to argue about.