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IRVING – When the Dallas Cowboys began talking about a contract extension for Terence Newman, conventional wisdom held that age would be an issue.

After all, Newman turns 30 a few days before the regular season starts and one of the free agency axioms is don't give big money to players when they turn 30. Newman thought it would be an issue, too.

In the end, Newman's age didn't seem to factor into the talks much at all when you look at the six-year, $50.2 million deal he received on Tuesday. He will pull down a base salary of $9 million in 2010 when he will be 32.

Newman's age didn't become a big deal because the Cowboys know him so well. He is a workout fiend, rarely if ever taking a day off in the off-season. He has been known to work out with linebackers just to get a feel for what they have to do. Marion Barber is the same way, which is why the Cowboys felt comfortable giving him such a large deal (seven years, $45 million).

The gamble in free agency is signing older players from other teams. The Cowboys took a chance on Marco Rivera, who was 32 at the time, in 2005 and it didn't work out because he suffered a back injury.

But having "insider information" on your own player makes decisions like the Cowboys made on Newman easier.

So when the Cowboys get around to an extension for Terrell Owens, who turns 35 in December, maybe age won't be as much of a factor with him either.

"Look at T.O., he’s producing and he's 34," Newman said. "If you can play football, you can play football. If you take care of your body, you don't worry too much about it."

Maybe the Cowboys see in Newman what Washington saw in Darrell Green. He spent 20 years with the Redskins, retiring in 2002 when he was 42. Newman will be 36 when this deal closes out. Green missed just 11 games in his career after turning 30, and eight were in one season. He made his last two Pro Bowls in 1996 and '97 when he was 36 and 37. He was a starter until he was 39, moving to a reserve role for his final three seasons.

"I definitely look at Darrell Green," said Newman, who missed the first three games of his career last season. "He was 37 years old and still one of the fastest guys on his team and even the league. When you play cornerback, it's not like there's a lot of contact and get hit a lot like at some other positions."

Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones said he exchanges lists with six or seven teams in which they rank his top 20 players and he will rank their top 20 players. Newman is always at or near the top of the list.

"He plays an impact position," Jones said. "A corner is very important to every scheme, but it's particularly important to us. That position for us right now is one of the reasons now I can get excited about this team."