- Joined
- Apr 7, 2013
- Messages
- 19,764
You cant sign him during the season if you tag him. There is a deadline for deals prior to the season for the tagged players.
Cowboys sign Prescott to a 4 year contract
- Thread starter Cotton
- Start date
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2013
- Messages
- 53,363
ravidubey
DCC 4Life
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2013
- Messages
- 20,264
It could happen, but it only benefits Dak’s agents to wait so long.
Dallas has no leverage, unfortunately. If Dak wants to he can just wait for FA while his agents gouge the Cowboys (and jack the market).
A tag also makes it impossible to sign any significant free agents, really.
If Dak is tagged in April the Cowboys should draft a QB.
ravidubey
DCC 4Life
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2013
- Messages
- 20,264
I guess tagging is inevitable and (sigh) we weren't getting any f'ing free agents anyways.
So the offseason "plan":
1) Now-March 8-- Restructure a bunch of contracts to clear up around 40 million in room
2) March 9-- Tag Dak
3) FA period-- Do nothing
4) April -- Draft a CB in the first round no matter what because that's the best this draft has to offer defensively. Defense is fixed.
5) June, sign Dak to a long term deal Patrick Mahomes would envy
6) With the tiny little bit of cap relief from Dak's signing, sign a garbage FA and our rookies
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2013
- Messages
- 53,363
Just get this shit done
p1_
DCC 4Life
- Joined
- Apr 10, 2013
- Messages
- 26,766
Won loss record over said span: 10-11
Angrymesscan
DCC 4Life
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2013
- Messages
- 3,796
Genghis Khan
The worst version of myself
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2013
- Messages
- 38,137
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2013
- Messages
- 120,613
Dak Prescott and the Cowboys: Where things stand and breaking down the scenarios
By Jon Machota 2h ago
Going forward without Dak Prescott would be like going forward without Stephen Jones. That’s what Jerry Jones said a year ago this week when asked about where contract negotiations stood between the Cowboys and their starting quarterback.
“There’s no going forward without Stephen or one of your family members,” Dallas’ owner and general manager said last February, “so you got to get it figured out.”
At the time, Jones was sitting aboard his luxury bus on a downtown Indianapolis street, the site of the NFL’s annual scouting combine since 1987. It was the last time Jones spoke in person with reporters. COVID-19 has prevented in-person interviews since. This year’s combine has been modified because of the pandemic, meaning reporters are not in Indianapolis to meet with team personnel, agents and draft prospects.
One thing that hasn’t changed this year is the Cowboys’ contract situation with Prescott. After being unable to come to an agreement on a long-term extension last offseason, Prescott played under the franchise tag in 2020. If the two sides again fail to reach an agreement, Prescott is expected to play under a second franchise tag. One difference this time around is that the price goes up from a guaranteed one-year deal of $31.4 million to $37.7 million. The bigger difference is that a second franchise tag significantly increases the chances that Prescott will not be playing for the Cowboys in 2022.
Tuesday marked the first day teams could begin placing the franchise tag on players. There reportedly hasn’t been much communication between Prescott’s camp and the Cowboys since the end of the season, similar to last year when the two sides had little communication for most of the offseason. The Cowboys placed the exclusive rights tag on Prescott last year on March 16. They then had until July 15 to negotiate a new contract. When that deadline passed, Prescott was locked into the one-year tag.
The two sides could follow a similar path again this year, but there’s a bigger issue at play this time around. Dallas desperately needs to find salary cap space in a year when the cap will be reduced from the previous year. The floor for the 2021 cap has been set at $180 million. It’s unlikely the final number will be much more than that. The 2020 cap was $198.2 million. According to OverTheCap.com, the Cowboys are looking at having around $19 million in cap space, but that’s before signing any free agents, draft picks or Prescott.
A long-term deal with Prescott would allow the team to significantly reduce its cap hit for 2021. There are also ways with contract restructures to create extra space, a strategy the Cowboys have used often in the past and will likely do again this year. The issue, though, is that there aren’t as many obvious restructure candidates on the roster. A restructure essentially pushes a large part of the player’s cap hit into the future, which is fine if that player is still contributing at a high level for several years down the road.
Last year, Dallas restructured the contracts of Zack Martin, DeMarcus Lawrence and Tyron Smith. They could do the same this year with Martin and Lawrence, but it doesn’t make as much sense with Smith, who has three years remaining on his contract but has dealt with several injuries over the last five years. He missed 14 games last season because of a neck injury that required surgery. Other possible candidates would be Amari Cooper, Ezekiel Elliott, La’el Collins and Jaylon Smith.
But Elliott is coming off his worst statistical season, Collins missed all of 2020 with a hip injury that needed to be surgically repaired, and Smith seems to have a better chance of being released or asked to take a pay cut than to receive a contract restructure.
With all of that in mind, let’s look at how all of this impacts Prescott’s future. Here’s how the two different scenarios break down.
1. The Cowboys and Prescott agree to a long-term deal.
For this to happen, Dallas will likely have to give in. The leverage is clearly in Prescott’s favor. The Cowboys believe he is one of the league’s top franchise quarterbacks or they wouldn’t have offered him a five-year deal last year that reportedly included around $110 million in guarantees and averaged in the neighborhood of $34.5 million annually. Despite Prescott suffering a gruesome season-ending ankle injury in Week 5 that has led to two surgeries, the Cowboys have publicly said that from the information they’ve been given, he is expected to make a full recovery and be ready for the upcoming season.
The biggest issue in contract talks a year ago was that Prescott’s side wanted a shorter, four-year deal, allowing him to get back to free agency quicker and benefit from the league’s increased revenues. The Cowboys were seeking at least five years, which would allow them more cap maneuverability in regards to making room for future additions. At this point, for a deal to get done, it seems Dallas will have to be willing to give in on fewer years.
Prescott has been clear all along that he wants to remain in Dallas. He has been a Cowboys fan his entire life and has benefited greatly on and off the field from his time as their starting quarterback.
“I grew up wanting to be a Dallas Cowboy,” Prescott said in August, “and I have dreams of being a Dallas Cowboy until I’m done throwing a football.”
Although Prescott has never said it publicly, it’s understandable to think he would be frustrated that a deal still hasn’t been completed. Since being drafted 135th overall in 2016, he has improved throughout his five years with the team and was playing some of his best football before the ankle injury. But any frustration could quickly be calmed the minute a new long-term deal is signed.
The NFL’s highest-paid quarterbacks are Patrick Mahomes, Deshaun Watson and Russell Wilson. Mahomes’ 10-year deal averages $45 million per year. Watson’s four-year deal averages $39 million per year. Wilson’s four-year deal averages $35 million per year. Prescott’s next long-term contract is expected to be in that neighborhood. And while that will be an extremely significant cap hit for the Cowboys, it’s difficult to find a different scenario that will put the franchise in a better position than doing what it takes to keep Prescott.
“You see where these (contract) numbers are for quarterbacks,” Stephen Jones said last month. “The good ones that win year and year out, they do it consistently. And certainly we think we have one in Dak that could do the same thing, and that’s why we’re working and will continue to work hard to get him signed long-term, and get him back at the wheel in terms of it being his team and moving forward.”
2. Prescott plays under the franchise tag for a second consecutive season.
If this ends up being the result, Prescott’s time in Dallas is likely coming to an end. Using the franchise tag on him for a third year would be over $50 million. The Cowboys aren’t going to go down that path. So Prescott would be able to hit free agency. And if he reaches the open market, there will be a number of teams willing to pay him the money he’s seeking.
Take this offseason for example. Let’s say Prescott just finished playing under his second tag. The Cowboys could be entering free agency, looking to bid against teams like the Chicago Bears, Denver Broncos, Carolina Panthers, New England Patriots, New York Jets and Washington. And it could be more. Those are just some of the teams that currently have a major need at quarterback. There are several others that could jump into the bidding as well. Last year at this time, the Panthers, Patriots, Bears, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Indianapolis Colts, Cincinnati Bengals, Miami Dolphins and Los Angeles Chargers were all looking for starting quarterbacks.
It seems foolish to think there won’t be a major market for Prescott’s services next offseason. And while the Cowboys allowed Cooper to test the free agency waters last year, they can’t realistically expect Prescott to see what other offers are out there and then come back to Dallas with a chance to match or exceed the best deal.
Some suggest that if the Cowboys get to this year’s draft without Prescott signed to an extension that they have to consider taking a quarterback with the 10th overall pick. While they certainly should do their due diligence studying all of the top quarterback prospects, that doesn’t seem like the most likely scenario. Dallas hasn’t picked a quarterback in the first round since Troy Aikman in 1989.
A franchise that didn’t even interview any college coaches for their head coaching opening a year ago because they wanted a proven NFL coach to lead them beyond the second round of the playoffs seems like a better bet to go the veteran quarterback route. This offseason has already seen Matthew Stafford, Jared Goff and Carson Wentz traded. Watson could be next. The issue there is that in similar future scenarios, the Cowboys would likely have to give up several premium draft picks to acquire such a player. If they keep Prescott, they can continue building the roster with those picks.
Another scenario would be that they hope a proven affordable veteran becomes available in free agency like Tom Brady did for the Buccaneers last offseason. It’s extremely wishful thinking to expect that to happen.
One of the most interesting aspects of this entire Prescott negotiation is that the Cowboys’ final decision-maker is also their general manager. Would these negotiations be different if there was a separate person working as GM?
The team owner would still have to sign off on the deal. But that general manager would be putting their job on the line if they vouched for a franchise quarterback, paid him, and it didn’t work out. That’s not the case for Jerry Jones. Whether they sign Prescott or not, whether they have success or not, Jones isn’t going anywhere.
To his credit as a businessman, Jones has been able to re-sign all of the players he has absolutely wanted to keep. His 32-year track record as Cowboys owner says that if he absolutely wants Prescott to stay in Dallas, he’ll do whatever it takes to get a deal done.
“I mean it, this is a deal that ultimately I have to do,” Jones said in Indianapolis last February. “And when I say do, I have to sign the check. It just has to fit and it has to fit a lot of things. For me this is not about Dak, it’s about the team and about how to win, and that’s not being in any way negative. I think the world of Dak. But it’s about the team and if it doesn’t feel right, it won’t happen.”
By Jon Machota 2h ago
Going forward without Dak Prescott would be like going forward without Stephen Jones. That’s what Jerry Jones said a year ago this week when asked about where contract negotiations stood between the Cowboys and their starting quarterback.
“There’s no going forward without Stephen or one of your family members,” Dallas’ owner and general manager said last February, “so you got to get it figured out.”
At the time, Jones was sitting aboard his luxury bus on a downtown Indianapolis street, the site of the NFL’s annual scouting combine since 1987. It was the last time Jones spoke in person with reporters. COVID-19 has prevented in-person interviews since. This year’s combine has been modified because of the pandemic, meaning reporters are not in Indianapolis to meet with team personnel, agents and draft prospects.
One thing that hasn’t changed this year is the Cowboys’ contract situation with Prescott. After being unable to come to an agreement on a long-term extension last offseason, Prescott played under the franchise tag in 2020. If the two sides again fail to reach an agreement, Prescott is expected to play under a second franchise tag. One difference this time around is that the price goes up from a guaranteed one-year deal of $31.4 million to $37.7 million. The bigger difference is that a second franchise tag significantly increases the chances that Prescott will not be playing for the Cowboys in 2022.
Tuesday marked the first day teams could begin placing the franchise tag on players. There reportedly hasn’t been much communication between Prescott’s camp and the Cowboys since the end of the season, similar to last year when the two sides had little communication for most of the offseason. The Cowboys placed the exclusive rights tag on Prescott last year on March 16. They then had until July 15 to negotiate a new contract. When that deadline passed, Prescott was locked into the one-year tag.
The two sides could follow a similar path again this year, but there’s a bigger issue at play this time around. Dallas desperately needs to find salary cap space in a year when the cap will be reduced from the previous year. The floor for the 2021 cap has been set at $180 million. It’s unlikely the final number will be much more than that. The 2020 cap was $198.2 million. According to OverTheCap.com, the Cowboys are looking at having around $19 million in cap space, but that’s before signing any free agents, draft picks or Prescott.
A long-term deal with Prescott would allow the team to significantly reduce its cap hit for 2021. There are also ways with contract restructures to create extra space, a strategy the Cowboys have used often in the past and will likely do again this year. The issue, though, is that there aren’t as many obvious restructure candidates on the roster. A restructure essentially pushes a large part of the player’s cap hit into the future, which is fine if that player is still contributing at a high level for several years down the road.
Last year, Dallas restructured the contracts of Zack Martin, DeMarcus Lawrence and Tyron Smith. They could do the same this year with Martin and Lawrence, but it doesn’t make as much sense with Smith, who has three years remaining on his contract but has dealt with several injuries over the last five years. He missed 14 games last season because of a neck injury that required surgery. Other possible candidates would be Amari Cooper, Ezekiel Elliott, La’el Collins and Jaylon Smith.
But Elliott is coming off his worst statistical season, Collins missed all of 2020 with a hip injury that needed to be surgically repaired, and Smith seems to have a better chance of being released or asked to take a pay cut than to receive a contract restructure.
With all of that in mind, let’s look at how all of this impacts Prescott’s future. Here’s how the two different scenarios break down.
1. The Cowboys and Prescott agree to a long-term deal.
For this to happen, Dallas will likely have to give in. The leverage is clearly in Prescott’s favor. The Cowboys believe he is one of the league’s top franchise quarterbacks or they wouldn’t have offered him a five-year deal last year that reportedly included around $110 million in guarantees and averaged in the neighborhood of $34.5 million annually. Despite Prescott suffering a gruesome season-ending ankle injury in Week 5 that has led to two surgeries, the Cowboys have publicly said that from the information they’ve been given, he is expected to make a full recovery and be ready for the upcoming season.
The biggest issue in contract talks a year ago was that Prescott’s side wanted a shorter, four-year deal, allowing him to get back to free agency quicker and benefit from the league’s increased revenues. The Cowboys were seeking at least five years, which would allow them more cap maneuverability in regards to making room for future additions. At this point, for a deal to get done, it seems Dallas will have to be willing to give in on fewer years.
Prescott has been clear all along that he wants to remain in Dallas. He has been a Cowboys fan his entire life and has benefited greatly on and off the field from his time as their starting quarterback.
“I grew up wanting to be a Dallas Cowboy,” Prescott said in August, “and I have dreams of being a Dallas Cowboy until I’m done throwing a football.”
Although Prescott has never said it publicly, it’s understandable to think he would be frustrated that a deal still hasn’t been completed. Since being drafted 135th overall in 2016, he has improved throughout his five years with the team and was playing some of his best football before the ankle injury. But any frustration could quickly be calmed the minute a new long-term deal is signed.
The NFL’s highest-paid quarterbacks are Patrick Mahomes, Deshaun Watson and Russell Wilson. Mahomes’ 10-year deal averages $45 million per year. Watson’s four-year deal averages $39 million per year. Wilson’s four-year deal averages $35 million per year. Prescott’s next long-term contract is expected to be in that neighborhood. And while that will be an extremely significant cap hit for the Cowboys, it’s difficult to find a different scenario that will put the franchise in a better position than doing what it takes to keep Prescott.
“You see where these (contract) numbers are for quarterbacks,” Stephen Jones said last month. “The good ones that win year and year out, they do it consistently. And certainly we think we have one in Dak that could do the same thing, and that’s why we’re working and will continue to work hard to get him signed long-term, and get him back at the wheel in terms of it being his team and moving forward.”
2. Prescott plays under the franchise tag for a second consecutive season.
If this ends up being the result, Prescott’s time in Dallas is likely coming to an end. Using the franchise tag on him for a third year would be over $50 million. The Cowboys aren’t going to go down that path. So Prescott would be able to hit free agency. And if he reaches the open market, there will be a number of teams willing to pay him the money he’s seeking.
Take this offseason for example. Let’s say Prescott just finished playing under his second tag. The Cowboys could be entering free agency, looking to bid against teams like the Chicago Bears, Denver Broncos, Carolina Panthers, New England Patriots, New York Jets and Washington. And it could be more. Those are just some of the teams that currently have a major need at quarterback. There are several others that could jump into the bidding as well. Last year at this time, the Panthers, Patriots, Bears, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Indianapolis Colts, Cincinnati Bengals, Miami Dolphins and Los Angeles Chargers were all looking for starting quarterbacks.
It seems foolish to think there won’t be a major market for Prescott’s services next offseason. And while the Cowboys allowed Cooper to test the free agency waters last year, they can’t realistically expect Prescott to see what other offers are out there and then come back to Dallas with a chance to match or exceed the best deal.
Some suggest that if the Cowboys get to this year’s draft without Prescott signed to an extension that they have to consider taking a quarterback with the 10th overall pick. While they certainly should do their due diligence studying all of the top quarterback prospects, that doesn’t seem like the most likely scenario. Dallas hasn’t picked a quarterback in the first round since Troy Aikman in 1989.
A franchise that didn’t even interview any college coaches for their head coaching opening a year ago because they wanted a proven NFL coach to lead them beyond the second round of the playoffs seems like a better bet to go the veteran quarterback route. This offseason has already seen Matthew Stafford, Jared Goff and Carson Wentz traded. Watson could be next. The issue there is that in similar future scenarios, the Cowboys would likely have to give up several premium draft picks to acquire such a player. If they keep Prescott, they can continue building the roster with those picks.
Another scenario would be that they hope a proven affordable veteran becomes available in free agency like Tom Brady did for the Buccaneers last offseason. It’s extremely wishful thinking to expect that to happen.
One of the most interesting aspects of this entire Prescott negotiation is that the Cowboys’ final decision-maker is also their general manager. Would these negotiations be different if there was a separate person working as GM?
The team owner would still have to sign off on the deal. But that general manager would be putting their job on the line if they vouched for a franchise quarterback, paid him, and it didn’t work out. That’s not the case for Jerry Jones. Whether they sign Prescott or not, whether they have success or not, Jones isn’t going anywhere.
To his credit as a businessman, Jones has been able to re-sign all of the players he has absolutely wanted to keep. His 32-year track record as Cowboys owner says that if he absolutely wants Prescott to stay in Dallas, he’ll do whatever it takes to get a deal done.
“I mean it, this is a deal that ultimately I have to do,” Jones said in Indianapolis last February. “And when I say do, I have to sign the check. It just has to fit and it has to fit a lot of things. For me this is not about Dak, it’s about the team and about how to win, and that’s not being in any way negative. I think the world of Dak. But it’s about the team and if it doesn’t feel right, it won’t happen.”
Plan9Misfit
Appreciate The Hate
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2013
- Messages
- 5,969
While being 2-3 with him last season. Basically, no difference.
p1_
DCC 4Life
- Joined
- Apr 10, 2013
- Messages
- 26,766
All those empty calorie passing yards making him look really good
Genghis Khan
The worst version of myself
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2013
- Messages
- 38,137
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2013
- Messages
- 120,613
Yeah, this team is world's different without Prescott on the field. But, you have to consider this source. This guy also calls Dak, Quincy 2.0, so...
