Jerry, Stephen Jones Address Cowboys Reducing Trevon Diggs's Contract by $500,000

Trevon Diggs's salary was reduced after he did not meet a workout clause in his contract.

Dallas Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs (7) during the game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Washington Commanders. / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Dallas Cowboys reduced cornerback Trevon Diggs's contract by $500,000 for the upcoming season after Diggs failed to meet a clause in his contract that required him to complete 84% of the offseason program at the team's facilities.

Diggs, who missed the end of the 2024 season to undergo knee surgery, has done much of his rehab work away from the facility and the team's medical staff. He was in attendance for mandatory minicamp, but did not meet the requirement of his contract, which will cause his base salary to drop from $9 million to $8.5 million this year.

During their opening press conference at this year's training camp, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and CEO Stephen Jones held firm on Diggs's contract getting reduced by $500,000

"The de-escalation is contractual, spelled out." Stephen told reporters Monday. "So he understood when he decided he was going to train in South Florida, he understood what the consequences would be."

“He didn’t earn it; he didn’t come,” Jerry said. “That’s in his contract that he doesn’t get that unless he’s going to be here. . . . Those are contractual things as Stephen said. It would be very detrimental to the team not to abide by the agreement.”

Leadership is a key reason Jerry and Stephen want Diggs more present for the team's offseason activities, especially after signing him to a massive multi-year extension. Jerry emphasized the importance of leadership, and notably said he appreciated that Micah Parsons has been present during the offseason and training camp, even as he awaits his own extension.

“We expect a player paid like Trevon to be here all the time. We expect him to be leading. That’s not new … It's important to have the right body language in every respect when you are one of the rare, rare financially paid and gifted players. You’ve got to have some leadership about you.”

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