Cowboys RB DeMarco Murray Triggered Contract Escalator

Todd Archer of ESPN writes that Cowboys RB DeMarco Murray trigger an escalator in his rookie contract that will increase his base salary from $755,469 to $1.389 million in 2014.

Archer adds that Murray triggered the escalator by playing more than 35 percent of the teams snaps in two of his three seasons in the NFL.

Murray, 26, is entering his final year of his rookie contract and recent reports have indicated that a long-term extension is not on the horizon for Murray this offseason, which means next season will be a big year him to prove his worth ahead of free agency in 2015.

While this type of raise would normally not be an issue, the Cowboys are in bad shape with regards to their 2014 salary cap as they’re projected to be over the cap by $24 million or so.