The Dallas Cowboys did the right thing by paying Zack Martin. But the value of the contract demonstrates how much the game is changing.
The Dallas Cowboys locked up one of their best offensive linemen for a long time. Zack Martin has officially signed a six-year contract extension worth a total of $84 million. $40 million of that is guaranteed. The average annual value of $14 million per year makes him the second-highest paid offensive lineman in the NFL.
The signing is well deserved as Martin has been selected to four straight Pro Bowls. He has been named an All-Pro twice. His play has been phenomenal since entering the league. The Cowboys were smart for extending him before he hits the open market.
What makes the signing interesting is that Martin is getting money reserved for tackles. Traditionally, the left tackle has been the highest paid offensive line position. They were the highest paid given their responsibility to protect the quarterback’s blind side.
Traditionally, right guard and left tackle have rolled through right tackle. For example, a team drafts a tackle and is unsure what they have in him. So, they play him at right tackle to see how he does. If he plays well and shows promise in run blocking and pass blocking, the next step in the logical progression would be to move him to left tackle. If he falters at right tackle, the team will move him to right guard and begin the process again with a new right tackle. But Martin has broken this mold.
More from NFL Spin Zone
- Dallas Cowboys made the trade everyone else should have made
- Pittsburgh Steelers rookie sleeper everyone should be talking about
- Anthony Richardson putting jaw-dropping talent on display immediately
- Denver Broncos’ stud wide receiver might be out for a while
- Washington Commanders: Three takeaways from win over Ravens
Martin is redefining the right guard position. The Cowboys were smart to pay him when they did. But was he worth $40 million guaranteed?
Zack Martin redefines right guard
Part of the reason Martin is getting paid at right guard is the changing landscape of NFL defenses. Defensive coordinators are intelligent people. The days of finding a Lawrence Taylor type linebacker or defensive end and rushing them from the quarterback’s blind side are over. It still happens in the league, but now it is one piece of a defensive pass rush scheme instead of the primary strategy.
Now defenses are looking to rush the passer from every angle. Why rush the passer with your best defender against the offense’s best lineman, when the defense can move him to the other side and rush him against the weakest pass blocker. Why line a pass rusher up outside when the quickest path to the quarterback is a straight line from the center to the quarterback? Defenses are changing their pass rush schemes.
With defenses moving their best pass rushers inside to attack linemen that traditionally have been shorter and less athletic, offenses have been forced to respond by finding interior offensive linemen who can block both power and speed rushers. Martin is that interior lineman.
Martin is redefining the right guard position. The days of the less athletic, short and brutish right guard are going by the way of the Dodo bird. In their place are athletic linemen who can run block at the first and second levels. They can pass block the short, stocky and extremely quick 3-techniques along with the defensive ends playing inside as specialty rushers.
Next: 3 free agents to help Cowboys win it all
Zack Martin is absolutely worth the money he is being paid. His contract serves as a litmus test as to just how much good offensive linemen are in demand and how much the game is changing.