Nothing matters more to the Dallas Cowboys this offseason than reaching an accord with quarterback Dak Prescott on a contract extension to lower his cap number to create spending flexibility. According to one prominent former agent, Prescott could be in line for a historic new deal.
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With the new league year and free agency opening rapidly approaching, Prescott currently counts $59.4 million against the cap, a significant reason the Cowboys are $16.12 million over the cap.
Former NFL agent, and current CBS Sports analyst Joel Corry believes Prescott has a chance to become the reset the quarterback market when he puts pen to paper on his new extension with the Cowboys.
"If Prescott empowers his representatives to do as they see fit," Corry writes on Prescott's possible new deal. "The end result will likely be Prescott becoming the league's highest-paid player while establishing new benchmarks for the most important contract metrics besides Watson's $230 million fully guaranteed, even though last season ended prematurely on an extremely sour note.
"It wouldn't be surprising for Prescott's camp to use Burrow's average over his first three new years to justify $60 million per year. Overall, the top of the quarterback market increased in 2023 by 9.41% from 2022. A $60 million-per-year extension would be a 9.09% increase over Burrow's deal."
Prescott, who has won just two playoff games, has the advantage of negotiating his next contract one year after young stars such as former MVP Lamar Jackson, and MVP candidates Jalen Hurts and Burrow, along with ascending talent Justin Herbert all came to terms on mega-extensions prior to the 2023 regular season.
The Cowboys have little leverage, given how difficult is to mine elite quarterback play. While Prescott has not yet guided Dallas even to the doorstep of a Super Bowl berth, the 30-year-old played his way into the MVP conversation in 2023, and with the value of top quarterbacks rising, Jerry Jones and the Cowboys are essentially forced to pay a premium to keep Prescott in place.
Just how much cap space the Cowboys are able to create by extending Prescott's contract will create a ripple effect in terms of how strong a roster Dallas can build around him, given that wide receiver CeeDee Lamb and pass-rusher Micah Parsons are both coming up on contract extensions, themselves.
