The Dallas Cowboys front office made another round of financial moves just before the regular season kicked off, restructuring three veteran contracts to create some much needed breathing room under the salary cap.
The team converted portions of the base salaries for defensive tackle Kenny Clark, cornerback DaRon Bland, and tight end Jake Ferguson into signing bonuses, generating a little more than $19 million in additional cap space for the upcoming season.
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This latest maneuver pushed the Cowboys’ available cap space above $30 million, giving the front office significantly more flexibility as the 2026 season begins. Dallas had roughly $14.2 million in cap space before the restructures.
What's New
The moves do not reduce any player’s total pay; rather, they simply shift money around on the books by spreading the cap hits over future seasons. While all three restructures matter, the Bland deal stands out as particularly fascinating given how his overall contract is structured.
Breaking down DaRon Bland’s contract
Bland originally signed a four-year, $90 million extension with Dallas back in August 2025. That total can actually max out at $92 million if he hits certain performance escalators tied to interceptions and playoff berths, but the base number sits at an even $90 million.
Per Spotrac, the Cowboys converted $10.75 million of Bland’s 2026 compensation into a signing bonus, which instantly created $8.6 million of cap space for the upcoming season. This is a classic accounting trick that spreads that $10.75 million evenly over the five remaining years on his contract, from 2026 through 2030. As a result, his cap hit increases by $2.15 million in each of those future seasons, but the immediate relief of $8.6 million is exactly what Dallas needed to get their books in order.
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The cornerback received a $22 million signing bonus as part of the package, and his total guarantees come in at $49.346 million, with $36.346 million fully guaranteed at the time of signing.
Looking at the base salaries across the remaining years, Bland is set to earn $1.25 million in 2026, $12 million in 2027, $2 million in 2028, and another $2 million in 2029.
(Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images)
Those numbers look modest in the later years because the deal also includes hefty roster bonuses, specifically $3.8 million in 2028 and $8 million in 2029, plus the annual prorated signing bonus charges. What makes this contract particularly interesting is the guarantee structure. His 2026 salary is fully locked in, but after that, the guarantees become year to year.
The 2027 base salary of $12 million is guaranteed for injury at signing but does not become fully guaranteed until March 2027. Meanwhile, his 2028 salary carries only $654,000 guaranteed for injury, and his 2029 salary has minimal guaranteed money attached.
This setup gives the Cowboys potential flexibility down the road if they ever need to move on from the deal, though it also means Bland will effectively be playing for his guarantees on a seasonal basis.
Bland’s recent contract restructure and what it means for the cap
At this point, Bland has four years and roughly $72 million remaining on his contract, spanning the 2026 through 2029 seasons.
The restructure does not change his total earnings or his annual cash flow for this year; he still gets the full amount he was owed. It simply allows the Cowboys to push some of that financial weight into future years when the salary cap is expected to rise again.
This move, combined with the other restructures, continues a broader strategy Dallas has been running since March. The front office has already reworked the contracts of Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, Tyler Smith, Terence Steele, and Malik Hooker earlier this offseason.
With more than $30 million now available to work with, the Cowboys have plenty of room to absorb a veteran contract or two via trade. Whether that money remains unused, carries into 2027, or becomes ammunition for a major midseason move is entirely up to the front office.
For now, the Bland restructure gives them breathing room while keeping one of their best defensive playmakers locked in for the long haul, even if the guarantees become a conversation piece every spring.
