Dallas Cowboys: Dak Prescott to sign franchise tender – what’s next?
By Ben Davila
The Dallas Cowboys and Dak Prescott have until July 15th to work out a long-term deal.
Word came down yesterday afternoon via ESPN’s Adam Schefter that Dallas Cowboys’ quarterback Dak Prescott intends to sign his $31.4 million exclusive franchise tender no later than today. This doesn’t really come as a huge surprise. I never thought Prescott would attempt to tie the team’s hands with a holdout.
Also, $31.4 million is a lot of money. Sure, the franchise tag doesn’t come with the security of a multiyear contract, but when you’re guaranteed top-five quarterback money for a season, it’d be pretty foolish to turn that away. So while I’m sure they would have preferred a blockbuster deal, the franchise tender is a pretty solid consolation prize.
Plus, one has to weigh in the factors at play here. There’s a new and very quarterback-friendly coach in place. There are two dynamic wide receivers in Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup, both coming off of 1000-yard seasons. Finally, there is rookie wideout CeeDee Lamb to add to the fray. It’s probably safe to assume that Prescott is supremely eager to play with an expanding set of weapons.
Further, Prescott is letting his wager on himself ride another season. Despite missing the playoffs last year, he put up career highs in passing yardage, touchdowns, and average yards per game. As much of a mess as last season turned out to be, the case could me made that he showed continued development as a more polished passer.
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That’s not to say Prescott isn’t a polarizing figure, especially among the fans. In fact, he seems to be a lightning rod with Cowboy fans more so than with the rest of the league in general. But that’s also just the price of being the Quarterback Of The Dallas Cowboys. Simply occupying that position makes a lot us forget where a player came from. It happened to Tony Romo. Folks tend to remember poorly-timed interceptions and/or trips to Cabo with celebrity girlfriends more than a player’s humble beginnings. And while Prescott maintains a lower profile and wasn’t an undrafted free agent like Romo, we also tend to forget that franchise quarterbacks don’t get selected in the fourth round, either.
The other under-reported aspect of Prescott’s tenure here is how much he outplayed his rookie deal. Yes, postseason returns have been spotty at best, but I don’t recall a playoff game where we all walked away from it thinking, “You know, Dak lost that one for us.” At the end of the day, the fourth round draft pick from Mississippi State has amassed an impressive 40-24 regular season record as a starter while not missing a game.
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There are a lot of ifs going into this season. But if everything clicks, then the price for Prescott’s services is only going to go one direction. I’ve said it here before, but I believe that this year’s Cowboys can be two or three games better than last year’s team. If that comes to pass, then a lot of us are going to have to change our tune about Dak Prescott. I, for one, don’t need any more convincing. Pay that man his money. In two years it’ll be a bargain.
- Published on 06/22/2020 at 11:01 AM
- Last updated at 06/22/2020 at 08:24 AM