Dallas Cowboys: Is franchise tag best for Demarcus Lawrence?

The Dallas Cowboys need to retain unrestricted free agent Demarcus Lawrence, but is the franchise tag for 2018 their best option to do so?

Distinctly, the narrative surrounding Dallas Cowboys defensive end Demarcus Lawrence entering the 2017 season was one of his potential. That word is the back-handed compliment of the NFL to a degree. While it acknowledges the player’s talent, it also infers a lack of production and/or results on the field. And to say that was the case with Lawrence would be accurate.

Now entering the 2018 offseason, however, the narrative around Lawrence has drastically changed. The 2014 second-round pick out of Boise State exploded for by far his best season with the Cowboys, notching 14.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, 58 total tackles and 14 tackles for loss. After middling away with injuries and inconsistency, he finally became the force off the edge that many had long hoped he’d be.

With a stroke of cruel fate for Dallas, however, Lawrence did this in a contract year. Now the defensive end is set to hit the open market as an unrestricted free agent when the new league year begins. And with the presence of edge rushers being at peak importance in the modern NFL — and the rarity of elite players at the position — there’s no question that the Cowboys will want to retain Lawrence, but also that he will have a lucrative market.

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The interesting quandary for the Cowboys, however, is that they could be put in an odd position with Lawrence. Given the season he’s coming off of, he’s likely going to see a payday that earns him at least (most likely solidly above) eight digits per year. What’s more, Dallas (before cap casualties and so on) will have just under $20 million in room under the salary cap to sign Lawrence and make their other moves, per Over The Cap.

If that weren’t complicated enough, though, there is also the inconsistency of Lawrence to this point in his career that must be considered. As impressive as his 2017 campaign was, his career-high for a single season in sacks was eight prior to his 14.5-takedown outburst. Perhaps more importantly, 2017 was just the second time in four seasons that he played in all 16 games or even just in 10 or more games for the Boys.

Thus, that leaves the Cowboys in a predicament. It’s going to cost them to lock up Lawrence in a competitive market. At the same time, however, it’s also hard to make a long-term commitment to a player whose consistency can rightfully be questioned. Luckily for Dallas, there appears to be a solution for them in this situation.

Using the franchise tag on Lawrence seems like the easiest course of action. Yes, according to Over the Cap, that would put the Boise State product on the books for around $17 million in 2018, which occupies most of Dallas’ current cap room. However, that’s not that far north of what it would likely take to sign him to a long-term deal, which is why the tag makes that much sense.

By tagging the defensive end, the Cowboys would not have to worry about the aforementioned consistency issues. They would hopefully be getting another year of a healthy Lawrence to see what he’s capable of and if his 2017 season is the new norm as opposed to being an anomaly.

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All told, the Cowboys are starting out in a tough position when it comes to Lawrence. They need to keep him and it’s going to be costly no matter which way they’re able to do so. By tagging him, however, they alleviate some of the risk entailed in a long-term deal. Moreover, should Lawrence produce at this level again, they set themselves up to give him that big deal in 2019 when they have more than three times the cap-room they will in 2018.

It’s going to cost them a pretty penny to do so, but Dallas using the franchise tag on Lawrence is what makes the most sense for the organization heading into the 2018 campaign.