FRISCO, Texas – As expected, the Cowboys have picked up the fifth-year option on Zack Martin's rookie contract, keeping him in Dallas through at least 2018.
Bigger news will come down the line if the club reaches a multi-year extension with their All-Pro right guard, a move Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones called a "No. 1 priority" at the NFL Scouting Combine in February.
Talks with Martin's camp could ramp up in the coming months. The Cowboys took a similar path with All-Pro center Travis Frederick last year, picking up his fifth-year option in the spring and reaching a six-year extension in training camp worth over $56 million. In 2014, All-Pro left tackle Tyron Smith got an eight-year, $110 million extension three months after the Cowboys picked up his fifth-year option.
The Cowboys' 16th overall pick in 2014, Martin has rapidly developed into one of the league's most consistent players. He was the Cowboys' first rookie in 45 years to make the All-Pro team and was an All-Pro selection in 2015 and 2016 alongside Frederick and Smith.
For years now, the Cowboys have developed a philosophy of re-signing their own cornerstone players and avoiding big-money contracts to outside free agents.
Signing Martin long-term at some point would continue that trend – and ensure that the club's three dominant offensive linemen remain together for many years in the future.
