����TV

(Editor's Note: Time to check the mail! The DallasCowboys.com staff writers answer your questions here in 'Mailbag' presented by Miller Lite.)

What is the philosophy behind the front office's choice in waiting until the last minute to re-sign players? Is there an advantage to this that just hasn't been realized? – Peter Berger/Albuquerque, NM

Patrik: Beats me. OK, to be fair to them, I'm sure they have their reasons, but it's no secret I've perpetually been on the "get'erdone" bus when it comes to proactively extending worthy contracts. To their credit, they were able to get that done with players like Trevon Diggs and Donovan Wilson, and even Malik Hooker, as well as a few others, and there was often a common thread there: none were looking to reset their respective market. Those who are up against the market ceiling or set to break it usually get drawn out quite a bit longer, though that's not always simply on the Cowboys — seeing as negotiations are a two-way street and the player's agent has to want to do an early deal that, at times, might then sacrifice potential earnings if the agent prefer the player to wait it out versus inking a deal quickly.

Ah, the dance, and I can tell you that there are times when one or both sides of the table are responsible for it potentially dragging out; and the more complex the contract — e.g., length, guaranteed money, salary cap impact over the course of the deal, etc. — the less likely it will be to get done swiftly in Dallas. One thing remains more true than not when it comes to Jerry Jones, however, and that's the fact he will get the player he wants if he truly, truly wants that player ... even if it takes a bit more time to come to terms.

Nick: I feel like this question has been asked over and over in the last year or so – mainly regarding Dak, CeeDee and now Micah. I think the better question is why "both sides" feel the need to wait until the last minute.

Let's be honest here – both the Cowboys and the players are not rushing into these deals. And why would they? If there's no real pressing deadline to get a contract completed, then why take a deal when you think you might get a better one? It's really no different than me and you in our big-money decisions. If you didn't have to buy another car, would you buy one for a price you didn't like? What about a house? Now, on the flip side, there are purchases we make when we don't actually need it, but see the value in the deal.

And flipping it back to football, the Cowboys didn't want to pay $63 million per year for Dak back in the summer. They really didn't want to do $60 per year but they also didn't want to go into the season without a contract so they took the deal. And for CeeDee, the Cowboys had no interest in some of the earlier offers. That's part of the negotiation, and it's happening with Micah. I'm not saying the Cowboys couldn't have more urgency, but I think if the fans knew what the original contract offer is from the agent and player, they'd probably have a different opinion about how they negotiations are going.