The Dallas Cowboys learned the hard way that not paying star players can result in a departure of talent, such as with the Micah Parsons debacle. This time around, it is a kicker that is at odds with the Dallas front office, but did the Cowboys learn from their past experiences?
Can Dallas And Brandon Aubrey Find A Middle Ground?
In August of 2024, the Kansas City Chiefs made Harrison Butker the highest-paid kicker in the NFL with a contract extension worth $25.6 million ($17.75 guaranteed). With Aubrey set to be a free agent, the Cowboys are prepared to make him the new highest-paid kicker, but that might not be enough for the soon-to-be 31-year-old.
ESPN’s Todd Archer wrote on Wednesday that there is a disconnect between what Aubrey believes he is worth and what Dallas is willing to pay him, “The Dallas Cowboys and the agent for Pro Bowler Brandon Aubrey are in agreement that he should be the highest-paid kicker in the NFL. The disagreement is by how much.”
“The Cowboys have offered a deal for Aubrey that is more than the league-high $6.4 million average per season for Kansas City’s Harrison Butker, sources told ESPN,” Archer wrote, “However, Aubrey’s agent, Todd France, has asked for a deal closer to $10 million per season, according to sources.”
Having a kicker who can be brought out in practically any circumstance can be the difference between the upper echelon of the league. Aubrey has more than done his part to give the Cowboys very little other option than to give him the amount he feels is closer to his actual value, which, according to Archer, is closer to the $10 million range.
As of Wednesday, Aubrey was the third-lowest paid kicker in the NFL, averaging $898,333 per season with the Cowboys. In comparison, both Butker and Jake Elliot of the Philadelphia Eagles are both making over $6 million a year for their services.
Since entering the league in 2023, Aubrey has made the Pro Bowl in every season, earned first-team All-Pro in 2023, and second-team All-Pro in 2024 and 2025. In a game where lengthy kicks are becoming the norm, Dallas can’t afford to lose one of the strongest legs in the NFL.
With a career average of 88.2%, including a 65-yard record for his time in the league, there is little more he could have done to prove to Dallas that he deserves to get paid. The question for Dallas is whether they see him as head and shoulders above any other kicker in the league, or whether they would prefer to barely pay Aubrey more than Butker.
“‘It’s been a journey,'” Archer quoted Stephen Jones, Dallas executive vice president, “‘but we hadn’t been able to get to a point where we can all agree, so it hadn’t gotten done. But we’d love to get him done,”‘
With the Parsons trade still looming like a ghost in the halls of the Cowboys’ front office, they do not want to see what it is like when you cannot stabilize the kicking game. It would seem that Aubrey holds the cards, but if a team is willing to let Parsons go, you never know where their line is.
