What Should The Cowboys Do About Dak Prescott?
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The Dallas Cowboys find themselves in quite a peculiar situation with franchise quarterback Dak Prescott. Prescott is due to become an unrestricted free agent after the 2024 season.
Dating back to 2019, Prescott has been amongst the top ten in every major passing stat category when he’s been able to play a full season, according to Pro Football Focus (PFF). For a player with so many passing attempts, there is an expectation for a high interception rate, but Dak has consistently been in the bottom half of quarterbacks for the stat. All of this has happened while leading the Cowboys to four division titles over the eight seasons Dak has been at the helm.
Credit: Pro Football Focus
Being a top ten quarterback in major categories while ending up with a large amount of regular season success is something that many teams envy. Think about teams like the Cleveland Browns and Chicago Bears, who have been searching for their “QB of the future” for a decade plus. To this point, Dak has been exactly that for the Cowboys and has far exceeded expectations from when he was drafted in the fourth round back in the 2016 NFL Draft.
The issue arises for Dak and the Cowboys when you take a deeper look at the playoff success since Dak took over as the starting QB. Since Dak took over in 2016, he has led the Cowboys to the playoffs in five of the eight seasons he has been in the league. Despite oftentimes ending the regular season with 10+ wins, Dak has only accumulated a lackluster 2-5 record in the playoffs. While the argument can be had that wins are not a quarterback stat, it is still a stain on an otherwise great resumé.
Reviewing playoff starts seems to be the best argument giving the Cowboys leverage and a reason to not extend Dak. Teams can get desperate for top-end QB talent and because of this, top QB’s usually never make it to the open market. However, this seems to be a more and more likely scenario for Dak Prescott and the Cowboys, as they have not come to terms on an extension at this time. Rumors have swirled for years about possible trades for Prescott, particularly at the trade deadline of every season.
This limbo has created a tumultuous relationship between the Cowboys and has also made the price tag for Dak only continue to climb. On June 20, Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars came to terms on a five-year extension worth $275 million, with $142 million of that being guaranteed. As much potential as Lawrence has, Prescott has proven to be better than him. Because of this, the Cowboys will now be expected to pay a higher number for Dak than what Lawrence received. As the days dwindle on, the Cowboys continue to lose leverage with a contract extension or a trade. The return for a top quarterback in the last year of their deal could still be fairly high, but teams are significantly less likely to pay that price, opting to just try for the player in free agency in the following season instead. As Lawrence and others continue to get paid, and the salary cap continues to increase, the Cowboys are only hurting themselves by not locking down Dak.
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It would be one thing if the Cowboys seemed to have a backup quarterback they could trust to step in and take over and achieve close to the numbers Dak has posted. Unfortunately for the team, their backup options are Cooper Rush, an undrafted free agent in 2017, or Trey Lance, the third overall pick in 2021 who is considered by most to be a bust. While it can be argued that Lance has not had much of an opportunity due to injury, he is currently listed behind Rush on the Cowboys’ depth chart, which should give you an idea on his career trajectory.
Dallas continues to be a team that gets a lot of attention due to their “America’s team” moniker, as well as playing in the prolific NFC East. Assuming there is no contract before the beginning of the season, they will have even more eyes on their team and #4 in particular.
