At the start of the Dallas Cowboys training camp out in Oxnard, California, quarterback Dak Prescott sent some pressure toward Dallas owner and general manager Jerry Jones and his son Stephen Jones, the team's COO.
Prescott, who led the NFL with 36 touchdown passes in 2023, made the following remark about what happened to other great quarterbacks later in their careers since he enters the final year of a four-year, $160 million deal in 2024.
"You know, I'm going to say it: I want to be here, but you know when you look up all the great quarterbacks I've watched, they've played for other teams," Prescott said at the start of training camp. "So my point in saying that is that that's not something to fear. That may be a reality for me one day. ... "Be where your feet are, make the most of it. Be confident in yourself, make the team better. I love my teammates. I love that locker room. I love everything about being out here in Oxnard and being a Dallas Cowboy. So that's what allows me to be free and focus."
Prescott turned down the temperature on the metaphorical thermostat on Friday by expressing faith in the Jones family's front office as well as his agent Todd France to handle business with the Dallas front office.
"I'm not worried about the talk," Prescott said on Friday. "I've got a great team, and I'm confident in getting something done. Confident in the front office here, and I don't really think about it to be honest with you. As I said the first day, I'm under contract right now, so all I need to do is be the best that I can be for my job and this year. Whatever happens whether it's in a couple weeks -- who knows when it is if it does happen, it will happen. I'm not worried about that. I have people that are handling that with the front office, and I have a lot of confidence in them."
Ultimately, the deal will get done when the Jones family comes to the realization that they will be temporarily making Prescott the highest-paid quarterback in the NFL. The highest average per year salary in the NFL is $55 million, a number first reached by Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow last offseason (five years, $275 million) and then matched by Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (five years, $275 million) and Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (four years, $220 million) this offseason.
Given Prescott is entering his ninth NFL season and just produced his most efficient season yet (105.9 passer rating, the second best in the entire league last season) plus the salary cap going up every season, thanks to the NFL's media right deal, he isn't going to take a hometown discount, meaning his new average annual salary should be around $60 million a year. The reason why is because Prescott feels he has a responsibility to future players to keep pushing the collective market forward.
"I'm a guy who grew up with two older brothers, and you understand what a brotherhood means, not only for just this team, but the fraternity of the NFL and the players," Prescott said. "The money is out there. It can happen. It can be done. There is ways to make everything work for both ways [Green Bay gave Love a $75 million signing bonus, the biggest in NFL history, in order to finalize his new contract]. That's in that sense of pushing the envelope for the next man. That's why I said that. Then again, I've never truly cared about the number.
"Whether it was the first time with the franchise tag negotiations or right now," he continued. "That's why I've said I have an agent that I'm confident in and a front office that we can figure out something that works for both of us and makes sense. ... I've said it before: I have an obligation to the NFL, to other quarterbacks and to my teammates when it comes to what I get paid and what I accept. That's where sometimes I leave it to my agents."
Top contracts in average annual value
| Player | Average Annual Value | Total Years | Year Signed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jordan Love | $55 million | 4 | 2024 |
| Trevor Lawrence | $55 million | 5 | 2024 |
| Joe Burrow | $55 million | 5 | 2023 |
| Tua Tagovailoa | $53.1 million | 4 | 2024 |
| Jared Goff | $53 million | 4 | 2024 |
| Justin Herbert | $52.5 million | 5 | 2023 |
| Lamar Jackson | $52 million | 5 | 2023 |
| Jalen Hurts | $51 million | 5 | 2023 |
$50.2 million | 4 | 2022 | |
| Russell Wilson | $48.5 million | 5 | 2022 |
| Kyler Murray | $46.1 million | 5 | 2022 |
| Deshaun Watson | $46 million | 5 | 2022 |
$45 million | 10 | 2020 | |
| Kirk Cousins | $45 million | 4 | 2024 |
$43,005,667 | 6 | 2021 | |
| Daniel Jones | $40 million | 4 | 2023 |
Dak Prescott | $40 million | 4 | 2021 |
$40 million | 5 | 2022 | |
$37.5 million | 4 | 2023 |
The ball appears to firmly be in the Jones family's respective court since the quarterback market has been set, so it's now up to them to decide how much they really want Prescott to continue being their face-of-the-franchise quarterback.
