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Kenny Clark #95 of the Dallas Cowboys
It’s been obvious since the end of the NFL season, really, that the Dallas Cowboys would need to put in some work in order to get themselves right with the league’s salary-cap honchos. The Cowboys were farther over the league’s cap than any other team, almost $60 million over, and would need to pull some levers to get themselves compliant before the league year begins next week.
But more than just getting compliant, the Cowboys have vowed to be active spenders on the free-agent market, giving themselves even more work to do to create some space with which to add players, especially to a defense that was rated the worst in the league in 2025.
The work began on Wednesday, as the Cowboys officially restructured the contracts of star quarterback Dak Prescott and line man Tyler Smith, reportedly giving $47 million in relief. There was also a move on receiver CeeDee Lamb’s contract, helping the team get under the cap and begin stepping toward having actual space to spend.
Kenny Clark to Get a Contract Extension
But the Cowboys won’t stop there, not according to beat writer Nick Harris of the Forth Worth Star-Telegram. One of the keys to the offseason will be the team’s decision on Kenny Clark, the massive defensive lineman that the Cowboys brought in from Green Bay as part of the Micah Parsons trade. Adding Clark to Micah Parsons helped remake the defensive front, which was completely overhauled with the deadline trade for Quinnen Williams.
The expensive price tag on Dallas’s front three–more than $60 million in 2026–was seen as a reason for the Cowboys to trade or waive Clark, but instead, the Harris says the next move to come is a contract extension for Clark, which will reconfigure and reduce his 2026 cap hit.
Writes Harris: “The expected Dallas Cowboys restructures have begun, as the contracts for Dak Prescott and Tyler Smith have officially been adjusted, creating $47 million in 2026 cap room. CeeDee Lamb’s contract is also expected to be restructured. Quinnen Williams and Osa Odighizuwa are on the list as well. A Kenny Clark extension is also expected to free up more room.”
Dak Prescott
GettyDallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott.
Cowboys ‘Want Guys to Be Aggressive Up Front’
Far from cutting or trading Clark, then, the Cowboys will be extending his three-year, $64 million contract. Clark, it turns out, is an essential part to how new defensive coordinator Christian Parker (who was on the Packers staff when Clark arrived in Green Bay) wants to arrange his system.
“Up front, you want guys to be aggressive because you have to convert to pass-rush and everything like that,” Parker said last week on 105.3 The Fan radio in Dallas. “So when you think about, when I was in Green Bay with (Kenny Clark), he was the best nose in football, in my opinion, at doing this style because he plays with good length and he has a good anchor.
“Quinnen Williams, this is how he played at Alabama, this is what (Nick) Saban does in the mid-front and everything else with that. You’re getting guys off the ball, it’s just how you play the blocks in the run game, restricting that space.”