Cowboys' Dalton Schultz Receives Franchise Tag Ahead of NFL Free Agency
Dalton Schultz will be back with the Dallas Cowboys in 2022, as the team announced it will use its franchise tag on the tight end ahead of Tuesday's 4 p.m. ET deadline.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport first reported the news.
The Cowboys can still negotiate a long-term extension with Schultz, but this move ensures he won't be able to test the market.
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The franchise tag value for tight ends in 2022 is $10.9 million.
Dallas is in a potential cap crunch this offseason, though it could free up money. The team is $21.2 million over the cap, per Spotrac.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reported last week that Amari Cooper is "likely" to be released, but the Cowboys will try to find a trade partner before his $20 million salary becomes fully guaranteed on March 20.
Moving on from Cooper would clear $16 million in cap space. Patrik Walker of CBS Sports reported Monday that Dallas is expected to restructure Dak Prescott's contract to free up $15.17 million.
Schultz, who has spent his entire four-year career in Dallas, broke out in 2021 with 78 catches for 808 yards and eight touchdowns.
The former Stanford star, who Dallas selected in the fourth round of the 2018 draft, got his opportunity to be the Cowboys' TE1 after Blake Jarwin suffered a torn ACL in Week 1 of the 2020 season.
Schultz then posted 63 catches for 615 yards and four scores and remained atop the tight end depth chart heading into the 2021 campaign.
The 25-year-old didn't see much action in his first two seasons, catching just 13 passes for 122 yards as he worked behind Jason Witten, Geoff Swaim and Jarwin.
But he's taken advantage of his opportunities and had a career performance during his contract season. He notably added seven catches for 89 yards in the Cowboys' 23-17 NFC wild-card playoff loss to the San Francisco 49ers.
Dallas will be certainly happy to have him back, with the hope that he continues his upward trend and remains one of the more productive pass-catching tight ends in football.
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