One of the most surprising upsets of the week was the signing of former Dallas Cowboys defensive lineman Randy Gregory, to a huge five-year, $70million deal by the Denver Broncos on Tuesday. Although the overall figure is similar to that offered by Cowboys, it has more favorable terms.
The Broncos agreement includes $10 million upon signing and $28,000,000 fully guaranteed. The Broncos have also agreed to multi-million-dollar bonuses if he is still on the roster in 2025 or 2026. The contract also includes a “potential to out” clause that will be in effect for the 2025 season.
Gregory will be earning a base salary in 2022 of $4,000,000 plus a $10,000,000 signing bonus. Gregory’s 2022 cap is $6 million. The dead cap value for Gregory is $28 millions. After 2022, his annual cap will rise to $16million.
This is a major upgrade for the Cowboys’ former star and his biggest contract to date. He signed a $3.814 million rookie contract in Dallas. He signed an additional year contract for $1.045million after the expiration of his first deal.
After a rough start to his career Gregory was able to put together some solid seasons for Jerry Jones’ team. Gregory really excelled as an edge rusher this season, with six sacks and four tackles for losses. He also had 17 QB hits. Gregory underwent surgery to his left knee to start the offseason. He didn’t have to miss any games because it bothered him all year.
ESPN’s Ed Werder stated that Randy Gregory was using language “standard”, which is not common elsewhere.
Werder tweeted Tuesday, as more information was released.
According to David Moore, of the Dallas Morning News the Cowboys have the right to “void or withhold any money if a player is fined” by the NFL. Gregory has been subject to league punishments on numerous occasions in his career so he decided against signing the contract.
Moore also revealed in his report that only one Cowboys player does not have that clause in their current contract: Dak Prescott. Sources also confirmed that the clause has not been invoked by the team.