The North Queensland Cowboys are prepared to extend Jason Taumalolo's time at the club if his body holds up and he wants to play on beyond the end of 2027.
Taumalolo is coming to the end of a decade-long contract that has seen him become one of the Cowboys greatest ever.
Able to negotiate with rivals from November 1, it has long been believed Taumalolo wants to finish his career a one-club player, having debuted with the club in 2010 where he has now played 309 games.
In that time, he has played in 161 wins, was part of the 2015 historic premiership, has run over 47,000 metres, and made over 7000 tackles.
His 2026 season was his best in a number of years, playing 24 of the Cowboys' 25 games, running for over 150 metres per contest and defending strongly.
That has left the Cowboys open to the idea of extending his contract in to 2028 according to ESPN, although the decision will ultimately come down to whether Taumalolo wants to play on.
While injury issues impacted previous seasons, they were absent in 2026, but there is no guarantee his body - which has been subject to the rigours of big minutes for much of his career in the middle third - will hold up.
The Cowboys have an ageing forward pack, but will likely shake Coen Hess at the end of next year if he retires, and will look to bring through other young talent, having also re-signed Kaiden Lahrs recently, prioritising him over Matthew Lodge who ultimately left the club for the English Super League.
