Josina Anderson reports the Cowboys still plan to work on a new contract for QB Dak Prescott and are not closed off to the idea of signing him to a new deal this year.
She adds while no talks are imminent and there’s no offer on the table, Dallas is not intending to chart a course to Prescott departing in free agency next year.
Last night, Nick Harris of the team website, citing team sources, said the two sides have had contract discussions but neither side has much urgency right now to get a deal done.
“[It’s] not a pressurized situation for either at this point,” a source told Harris.
This all followed a report from NFL Media that the two sides had a mutual understanding entering Prescott’s contract year and no offers were expected to come, citing part of a quote from owner Jerry Jones.
“He is willing to do everything he can to help us win,” Jones said, via Clarence Hill, “and so we are where we are. We have our contract, locked and loaded for this year. We can see as we move along how we are thinking, inclusive of everybody, including Dak. We’ll see what we do. I don’t have anything to report today.”
A team official said Dallas hasn’t ruled out signing Prescott to an extension this year but there’s some belief that it would be better for the team’s books to do it next year, per Michael Gehlken.
Frankly speaking, this seems a little like damage control from the Cowboys, particularly with a reporter who works for the team being part of the effort to reclaim the narrative.
There was a lot of optimism during the season about a new deal for Prescott, which would have lowered his cap hit in 2024 dramatically but come at the cost of likely making him the NFL’s highest-paid quarterback.
Prescott was in the running for MVP this past year, but the wildcard loss to the Packers soured another great regular season for the Cowboys.
Now it’s clear that Jones intends to make 2024 a do-or-die season for key figures in the organization, like Prescott and HC Mike McCarthy.
Prescott has a no-tag and no-trade clause in his contract, so if he wanted to test free agency after this season, there would be nothing in his way.
Prescott, 30, is a former fourth-round pick of the Cowboys back in 2016. He played out the final year of his four-year, $2.72 million contract and was in line to be an unrestricted free agent in 2020 when Dallas placed the franchise tag on him.
The following offseason, Prescott signed a four-year, $160 million contract that included $126 million guaranteed. The contract can top out at $164 million.
In 2023, Prescott appeared in all 17 games for the Cowboys and completed 69.5 percent of his passes for 4,516 yards, 36 touchdowns and nine interceptions. He added 55 carries for 246 yards and two touchdowns.
We will have more news on Prescott and the Cowboys as it becomes available.
More must-reads: