With the 2024-25 NFL campaign set to begin next week, it’s looking increasingly likely that the Dallas Cowboys and quarterback Dak Prescott won’t come to an agreement on a contract extension before the season starts.
As a result, Prescott’s contract status will weigh on the Cowboys all season. If Prescott doesn’t play well or the team disappoints, the question will be whether Dallas should move on. If he plays well and the Cowboys live up to expectations, many will wonder whether team owner and general manager Jerry Jones should have signed Prescott before his price tag went up.
Now, the situation has reached a point where the player and the board are exchanging attacks through the media.
On Wednesday, Jones was asked where negotiations stand with Prescott after the Cowboys signed wide receiver CeeDee Lamb to a four-year, $136 million extension. The veteran owner took a firm stance in answering that question, basically saying Prescott has proven himself to be the quarterback he is and, therefore, his financial market.
“You could easily say that if you haven’t seen it by now, you haven’t seen it,” Jones told reporters. by Jon Machota of The Athletic“I needed to see, I just gave an explanation where when you look at a situation, you also have to weigh, ‘OK, what are the consequences on the other side of the coin?’ Dak’s situation right now to me has more to do with our situation than it does with Dak Prescott’s merits as quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys.
“I’ve long since stopped caring about whether someone was under contract or not,” he added. “There are all kinds of things other than a contract that could change the outcome of him being under contract: injuries, level of play. So you can’t just pick that out and say that should give you a better feeling about our team or me. The whole thing has a lot of moving parts.”
Naturally, Prescott was asked Thursday what he thought of Jones’ comments. Like many NFL fans and media, the eight-year veteran said he knows Jones loves to talk and dismissed the comments as noise.
“Honestly, I’ve long since stopped listening to what Jones says to the media,” Prescott said. “I don’t really care.”
Dak Prescott: “Honestly, I stopped listening to what Jerry Jones says to the media a long time ago. I don’t care that much.” https://t.co/wT742UnccH
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) August 29, 2024
Or, in other words, money talks?
Prescott probably has the edge in this regard. He led the NFL with 36 touchdown passes last season and completed 70 percent of his passes for 4,516 yards.
Meanwhile, the starting quarterback market has skyrocketed, with Jared Goff, Trevor Lawrence and Jordan Love all signing huge contract extensions and setting team or league records with their total values. Jones could have re-signed Prescott before the price went up (much).
Prescott will receive $29 million in the final year of his four-year, $160 million contract. The deal includes clauses that dictate that he cannot be placed with a franchise tag or traded. Therefore, if the Cowboys do not sign him, Prescott will become an unrestricted free agent after the season at age 31, an age at which he will still have effective seasons ahead of him.
This impasse may be resolved in the next week. For now, each side may be trying to play it cool. But the exchange between Prescott and Jones also shows that this situation could get ugly, if it isn’t already.