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Frederick agrees to massive contract extension, but don't expect a Hollywood celebration
By Kate Hairopoulos
LOS ANGELES - It didn’t take long for Travis Frederick and the Cowboys to come to terms on a deal that will make Frederick the highest-paid center in the NFL.
The parties reached an agreement on a six-year extension worth $56.4 million, with $28 million in the first three years and $18.2 million fully guaranteed, according to a source. Frederick’s new deal will keep him in Dallas through 2023. The news emerged Saturday as the Cowboys and Los Angeles Rams kicked off their preseason game in L.A.’s Memorial Coliseum.
The timing was no accident.
Frederick said it was important to him to settle the negotiations before the season began - because of the risk of injury and so he could put it behind him. It came down to just before game time.
“Any chance you get be on a team, know you’re going to stay here and really dig in,” he said in a postgame interview, “it’s a good feeling to have. It takes any doubt about the future out of the way. I don’t have to worry about that for a very long time.”
The sides first exchanged proposals Aug. 6, according to a source, with Frederick’s agent Joe Panos attending training camp practices in Oxnard, Calif. to work on the deal.
The Falcons’ Alex Mack’s deal of $45 million is the next-highest for a center. Does that bring added pressure for the 31st pick of the 2013 draft?
“I think there’s always been a little bit,” he said. “Coming in everybody doubted me being drafted in the first round.”
Frederick, 25, is a two-time Pro Bowler and is entering the fourth season of his rookie deal. Dallas exercised the fifth-year option on him with hopes of reaching an extension.
Dallas has now locked up Frederick and left tackle Tyron Smith, who share the same agent, along one of the NFL’s top offensive lines for the next eight seasons. It’s no wonder quarterback Tony Romo gave Frederick a big hug late Saturday.
Up next will be trying to keep left guard La’el Collins and right guard Zack Martin. They’ll be eligible to start negotiating extensions after the upcoming season. The Cowboys can exercise Martin’s fifth-year option next spring. After going undrafted, Collins signed a three-year, $1.65 million deal in 2015 that runs through 2017.
How did Frederick plan to celebrate the deal, with L.A. nightlife nearby? By taking a bus back to Oxnard.
“Do I look like a Hollywood guy?” he said.
By Kate Hairopoulos
LOS ANGELES - It didn’t take long for Travis Frederick and the Cowboys to come to terms on a deal that will make Frederick the highest-paid center in the NFL.
The parties reached an agreement on a six-year extension worth $56.4 million, with $28 million in the first three years and $18.2 million fully guaranteed, according to a source. Frederick’s new deal will keep him in Dallas through 2023. The news emerged Saturday as the Cowboys and Los Angeles Rams kicked off their preseason game in L.A.’s Memorial Coliseum.
The timing was no accident.
Frederick said it was important to him to settle the negotiations before the season began - because of the risk of injury and so he could put it behind him. It came down to just before game time.
“Any chance you get be on a team, know you’re going to stay here and really dig in,” he said in a postgame interview, “it’s a good feeling to have. It takes any doubt about the future out of the way. I don’t have to worry about that for a very long time.”
The sides first exchanged proposals Aug. 6, according to a source, with Frederick’s agent Joe Panos attending training camp practices in Oxnard, Calif. to work on the deal.
The Falcons’ Alex Mack’s deal of $45 million is the next-highest for a center. Does that bring added pressure for the 31st pick of the 2013 draft?
“I think there’s always been a little bit,” he said. “Coming in everybody doubted me being drafted in the first round.”
Frederick, 25, is a two-time Pro Bowler and is entering the fourth season of his rookie deal. Dallas exercised the fifth-year option on him with hopes of reaching an extension.
Dallas has now locked up Frederick and left tackle Tyron Smith, who share the same agent, along one of the NFL’s top offensive lines for the next eight seasons. It’s no wonder quarterback Tony Romo gave Frederick a big hug late Saturday.
Up next will be trying to keep left guard La’el Collins and right guard Zack Martin. They’ll be eligible to start negotiating extensions after the upcoming season. The Cowboys can exercise Martin’s fifth-year option next spring. After going undrafted, Collins signed a three-year, $1.65 million deal in 2015 that runs through 2017.
How did Frederick plan to celebrate the deal, with L.A. nightlife nearby? By taking a bus back to Oxnard.
“Do I look like a Hollywood guy?” he said.