Rashan Gary, Cowboys
Getty
Pass-rusher Rashan Gary, formerly of the Green Bay Packers.
The Green Bay Packers were on the verge of cutting Rashan Gary before the Dallas Cowboys swooped in to give them a 2027 fourth-round draft pick that no other teams were offering, but it is the Cowboys who got good news on the pass-rusher at the start of the NFL’s second week of free agency.
While the Packers decided to part ways with Gary due to an outsized salary cap hit in comparison to middling production two years into a four-season, $96 million deal, the Cowboys were able to convince the edge-rusher to restructure his contract and take less in 2026 and 2027, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network.
Tom Pelissero
New Cowboys edge Rashan Gary agreed to a pay cut as part of the trade from Green Bay, dropping his compensation to $16 million each of the next two seasons.
Dallas also added an option and void years, lowering Gary’s cap number to $5.44M this season and $8.24M in 2027.
“New Cowboys edge Rashan Gary agreed to a pay cut as part of the trade from Green Bay, dropping his compensation to $16 million each of the next two seasons,” Pelissero reported via X on Monday, March 16. “Dallas also added an option and void years, lowering Gary’s cap number to $5.44M this season and $8.24M in 2027.”
Rashan Gary Failed to Live Up to Contract Extension With Packers
Rashan Gary edge rusher Green Bay Packers
GettyPass-rusher Rashan Gary, formerly of the Green Bay Packers.
The Packers were going to release Gary by Wednesday, March 11 in order to save $11 million against this year’s salary cap following a second consecutive year of mediocre play on his contract extension.
Gary tallied 7.5 sacks in each of the past two campaigns, playing in 33 of 34 possible regular-season contests and starting 32 of those outings.
His production, both in terms of traditional statistics and advanced metrics, did not improve as the team might have expected after it traded two first-round picks and defensive tackle Kenny Clark to Dallas last August for first-team All-Pro pass-rusher Micah Parsons.
Pro Football Focus ranked Gary 53rd out of 115 edge defenders who saw enough snaps in 2025 to qualify. He tallied 54 total pressures, 35 QB hurries and 12 hits on 653 snaps last season, including 415 pass-rush snaps specifically.
Maxx Crosby Drama Helped Packers Maximize Value in Rashan Gary Trade
Maxx Crosby.
GettyDefensive end Maxx Crosby of the Las Vegas Raiders.
The Cowboys’ acquisition of Gary came after Dallas missed out on a deal with the Las Vegas Raiders for Maxx Crosby.
The Cowboys offered one first-round pick and one second-rounder, but the Raiders agreed instead to send the five-time Pro Bowl edge-rusher to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for two first-round selections.
However, Baltimore pulled out of that deal at the last minute citing a failed physical involving Crosby’s recently surgically-repaired knee, which threw a wrench into the market at the premier position across the entire league.
Had Dallas landed Crosby, the Packers presumably would have never gotten a fourth-round pick for Gary, and he would have hit the open market as a free agent last week. That could have led to Gary joining either the Chicago Bears or the Detroit Lions, both of which are in the market for a pass-rusher heading into Week 2 of free agency.
Gary exiting the NFC North Division will help minimize any blowback the Packers might face for parting ways with him should Gary excel in the next year or two. Landing the fourth-round pick in return also helps in that regard.
Meanwhile, the Cowboys caught a break Monday in Gary’s willingness to play for less over the coming two seasons, which renders Green Bay and Dallas both winners of different sorts with regards to the Gary deal.