Dallas Cowboys Sign Tony Romo to 6-Year Extension

The Dallas Cowboys have officially signed Tony Romo to a contract extension. The deal, worth $108 million, will keep Romo in Dallas through the 2019 NFL season, proving that team owner and general manager Jerry Jones is serious about No. 9 being the face of the franchise for the foreseeable future. The deal shouldn’t come as a surprise; the team announced it was going to give Romo a new deal in February of 2012, despite the negative reaction from a lot of fair weather Cowboys fans.

The deal also frees up roughly $5 million in salary cap space for the Cowboys to use this offseason in free agency and rookie contracts for the players selected in the 2013 NFL Draft. Had the extension been finalized a week or two earlier, the Cowboys might have been able to land a free agent or two, but the still would have had to save room for its draft picks regardless.

Romo will be 39 when the contract expires, which means the Cowboys have six years to find a successor and get him ready to take over the reins. That also means the current core group of players will be the one to try and get Dallas over the hump for the first time since 1995. The Cowboys have apparently looked to the New England Patriots as an example regarding their quarterback situation as the AFC squad recently signed Tom Brady to yet another extension, proving again that NFL teams are now trying to milk their aging signal callers for all their worth.

Jeric Griffin is the Director of Content for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @JericGriffin, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google