Jean-Jacques Taylor

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Jerry Jones has never been afraid to spend a chunk of the family fortune.

It sounds like chump change now, but the seven-year, $35 million deal and $12.9 million signing bonus he gave Deion Sanders in 1995 was considered outrageous.

Not anymore.

These days, Jerry seemingly signs one or two players every year to a mega deal in his never-ending quest to get the Cowboys another Super Bowl title – or at least win a playoff game.

The problem, of course, is that just because you give a player a huge contract doesn't mean he's going to play to the level of his deal.

Some players start feeling pressure to prove their worth, and it fouls them up. Others don't work as hard because they're set for life. And sometimes, you just can't quite figure out why a player isn't performing as well as he has in the past.

That's the risk.

None of that will be a problem for DeMarcus Ware, just as it hasn't been for Jason Witten or Leonard Davis or Jay Ratliff.

Jerry can sleep easy.

He'll get his money's worth from Ware, who signed the largest contract – six years, $78 million with $40 million guaranteed – in franchise history.

Ware received a $20 million signing bonus and will earn $34 million in the contract's first 12 months, and $40 million, equaling Baltimore linebacker Terrell Suggs' record, in the first two years.

Even a man like Jerry, who has more money than he can count, is feeling the economic crunch after financing much of his $1.2 billion stadium. After all, Jerry has yet to land a naming rights deal for the stadium.

But Jerry has never shied away from spending on players he considered to be cornerstones of the franchise, especially if the Cowboys drafted them.

Ware fits that criteria.

"I know what the fans' expectations are. The only expectations higher are mine," Jones said. "All you have to do is look at what we've done.

"In the last 20 years, nothing has stood in our way of signing players. This is another example to our fans. We mean business. We're trying to get it done."

Ware actually agreed to terms just before Sunday's game against Atlanta. Then he went out and collected two sacks and forced a fumble as the Cowboys put together their most complete performance of the season.

So much for feeling any pressure because of the new contract.

Actually, any pressure Ware feels should be to end the Cowboys' wretched 13-year streak without a playoff win.

For a team that has been to more Super Bowls than any other franchise and continues to bill itself as America's team, there's a group of eighth graders in North Texas who have never seen the Cowboys celebrate a postseason win.

How sad.

"It's time for me to get to work," Ware said. "You know what it's time to bring home? I'm not going to say it, but you know what it is."

Everybody does. It's the Lombardi Trophy.

These Cowboys, unlike the 2007 team that finished 13-3, don't appear equipped to win a Super Bowl this year.

Not enough of their young talent has matured, and they make too many mistakes, but this team is certainly good enough to end its playoff drought.

It's a lot easier to win in the postseason with a premier pass rusher on the roster. In the '90s, defensive end Charles Haley played a key role in the Cowboys' transformation from playoff team to champion.

That's among the reasons why Ware is now one of the NFL's highest-paid players.