Zack Martin rejoined the Dallas Cowboys for mandatory minicamp Tuesday with the two-time All-Pro closing in on a contract that's expected to make him the highest-paid guard in the NFL.

Martin skipped all nine voluntary offseason practices while negotiations that started about a year ago kept dragging. But he was on the field after the club and his representatives got close on a deal over the weekend.

The 27-year-old Martin was set to make $9.3 million in the final year of his rookie deal. Martin's new contract is expected to surpass the $13.3 million annual average in the $66.5 million Youth Jeremy Kerley Jersey , five-year contract that Jacksonville's Andrew Norwell signed in March.

Martin, the 16th overall pick in 2014, was an All-Pro as a rookie when DeMarco Murray led the NFL in rushing for the NFC East champions. He repeated the feat two years later when rookie Ezekiel Elliott was the league rushing leader for another division champion.

A Pro Bowl player in each of his first four seasons, Martin only did individual and conditioning work in his first practice of the offseason. While coach Jason Garrett said that was more because Martin has been out, the former Notre Dame standout noted the contract isn't finished.

Four years ago, Martin was a rookie who engaged Sean Lee in a noncontact drill when the star linebacker's left knee gave way, resulting in a torn ligament that kept Lee out all season. It was the first offseason practice.

"Right now, until the pen actually gets on paper, I'm going to be smart about it and just do individual work and some conditioning so I don't do something stupid," Martin said. "Two more days, so we'll see what they want to do, if we just want to play it smart."

Martin said he wasn't sure if he would have attended the first mandatory practice without the progress in negotiations. With the agreement close, he said it was an easy decision.

During the voluntary portion of the offseason, Martin said he worked out by himself while players were in meetings. Before practice started each day Justin Jones Jersey Elite , he went home, where he "kind of got a little stir crazy."

"If you'd have asked me, I never would have thought in a million years I'd be the guy holding out and not coming to things," Martin said. "I had to make a decision, as hard as it was, but what was best for me. Hopefully it gets done, but I think I made the right decision."

Assuming the Martin deal gets done, the Cowboys will have their top three offensive linemen 鈥?all first-round picks with multiple Pro Bowls 鈥?locked up well past 2020. Left tackle Tyron Smith and center Travis Frederick are the others.

Smith, who signed an extension in 2014, and Frederick (2016) were the highest-paid at their positions at the time, and are still in the top five. Martin figures he'll be on a similar track once he goes to the top of the list.

"It's something obviously my agents and I, we were shooting for, so it's a huge honor," Martin said. "That'll probably get beat by someone whenever the next one signs Jessie Bates III Jersey , but that's how it works. Whenever we lock this thing up, very excited to get it over with and put it in the past."

For Garrett, it's the strongest sign of stability in the rebuilding of a line that started before his first full season as head coach, when the Cowboys drafted Smith ninth overall in 2011.

"It took us a while to rebuild it the way we wanted to rebuild it," Garrett said. "We reinforced that idea that you have to rebuild the offensive and defensive lines in order to allow your skill players to have some success."

NOTES: DL David Irving attended the start of minicamp after missing voluntary offseason workouts to deal with personal issues. His girlfriend accused him of domestic abuse before recanting in a case that police in the Dallas suburb of Frisco closed without filing charges. ... Smith was limited in practice because of a neck issue that Garrett said was minor.
It was a bittersweet night for rookie center Mark Jankowski.

Jankowski scored four times, and the Calgary Flames finished off a disappointing season with a 7-1 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday.

”Not the way we wanted it to end, we want to keep on playing, but definitely a building year,” said the 23-year-old Jankowski, who had just three points in his previous 18 games. ”I just take everything I learned this year from all the vets and use that as fuel in the summer to come back into camp and even better player.”

Calgary entered the night in an offensive funk, having mustered only nine goals over the previous nine games, eight of them losses. The seven goals was the club’s biggest offensive outburst since a 7-4 victory over St. Louis on Nov. 13.

”It’s one of those things. Tonight, for some reason, everything bounced in and I think we could have had even more Marcus Davenport Jersey Elite ,” Flames captain Mark Giordano said. ”It’s nice to end it on that note, but it’s been a tough year and obviously a disappointing year.”

Before the game, players from both teams and the officials formed a circle at center ice for a moment of silence for the 15 people who lost their lives in the Humboldt Broncos bus accident.

”You have those guys, that community, the team, on your mind all day,” Giordano said. ”We’re one big community, the hockey community, there’s a lot of people feeling this one.”

Afterward, the Saddledome crowd broke into a chant of ”Broncos! Broncos!”

”We talked a lot to our guys about the emotion and the purity of the game,” Flames coach Glen Gulutzan said. ”Just think about the young men on that bus, who would love to be in the seats that we are. That was their goal and we wanted to play as well as we can to honor that.”

Spencer Foo, Garnet Hathaway and Johnny Gaudreau also scored for the Flames (37-35-10), who missed the playoffs for the seventh time in the past nine seasons. A big factor was Calgary’s 17-20-4 home record Cheap Russell Bodine Jersey , its worst mark since 2000-01.

Cody Eakin scored for Vegas (51-24-7), which finished first in the Pacific Division and will open the playoffs on home ice against Los Angeles. Vegas is the first modern-era expansion team in any of the four North America pro spots to win its division in its first season.

”Right from the start it’s been a fun season,” goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury said. ”It’s fun to be a part of this team and this organization through it all. I’m really proud of the way this team has done throughout the season. Playoffs are fun, intense, exciting. I’m looking forward to getting it going.”

Golden Knights veteran James Neal was impressed at how quickly the team gelled after being thrown together at the expansion draft.

”What impressed me most about our group is the consistency we played with, the way we rolled four lines, we counted on each player and needed each guy every night and every guy brought their game,” he said.

Down 3-0 after the first period, Vegas scored 51 seconds into the second. But the Flames responded with three more unanswered goals before the period ended.

Jankowski secured his first NHL hat trick with a short-handed goal at 18:06, bringing over 100 hats raining down onto the ice.

He completed the scoring at 1:32 of the third. It was Calgary’s first power-play goal in 14 games, snapping a 0-for-35 skid.

Jon Gillies had 26 stops for Calgary. Fleury gave up six goals on 18 shots before being replaced to start the third period. Malcolm Subban had 12 stops in relief.

NOTES: Both teams wore Humboldt Broncos decals on their helmet. The Flames also announced they were donating their $84,055 half of the 50/50 prize pot to those affected by Friday’s tragedy.

UP NEXT

Golden Knights: Face Los Angeles in the first round of the playoffs.

Flames: Offseason.
.