ESPN: Dak Prescott contract negotiations with Cowboys are ‘complicated’

Dak Prescott and his contract negotiations with the Dallas Cowboys are “complicated,” according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.

What else is new? Prescott and his deal with Dallas is one of the more complicated things in the NFL due to the amount of money he makes, how Jerry Jones gets it done, or maybe not this time and the future of the franchise is at stake.

Prescott could be a Cowboy for the rest of his career, but there’s preparation on his end that this could all end after 2024.

“Well, the Cowboys want to re-sign Dak Prescott,” Fowler said on SportsCenter. “I continue to hear that talks and negotiations have been a little passive but they have told Dak directly that they want him there long term. It’s just complicated because he’s got a $61 million cap hit on the final year of his deal, a new contract is gonna have to be a huge number. So they want to tread carefully a little bit, as my understanding. If you jump out, you make an offer, if it’s not where it needs to be initially then things get complicated. 

“They’ve already negotiated with him three or four years ago and that took a year and a half. So it’s a long process. And they know it’s gonna take a while so it’s something they’re probably slow playing. It’s a little bit of a stare off. But I think sometime this summer, this will heat up because it has to and you know he wants to stay a Cowboy but he is prepared for the notion that he could be a free agent next year. Like he’s open to that reality because things haven’t really launched off yet.”

Prescott made headlines earlier this week when he mentioned he doesn’t exactly care about money. He just wants to play.

“I don’t play for money. Never have never cared for it, to be honest with you, yeah,” Prescott said at Cowboys OTAs. “Would give it up just to play this game. So, I allow that to the business people to say what it’s worth, what they’re supposed to give a quarterback of my play, a person of my play, a leader of my play. For me, it’s about, as I said, control what I can control and handle that part and the rest will take care of itself.”

Prescott signed a four-year, $160 million deal in 2021. Dallas has him locked in for now, but an extension would be financially healthy for the Cowboys. Prescott’s cap hit for the 2024 season is $55.445 million, but by extending him, they could alleviate some of that pressure.