Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones strongly desires quarterback Dak Prescott, whose league-leading 36 touchdown passes in 2023 resulted in him finishing second in NFL voting, to be his quarterback for years to come.
Before the 2024 NFL Draft, he said, "We want Dak Prescott. That's that," at his pre-draft press conference at the end of April. Jones affirmed that he feels he can get a contract extension done with the 2023 Second Team All-Pro passer at his introductory training camp press conference on Thursday, saying "I do not think that this will be his last year with the Cowboys, at all."
However, the longer and longer Jones waits to get a deal done with Prescott, his market continues to climb. Both Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (four years, $212.4 million) and Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (four years, $220 million) signed long-term extensions last week, escalating Prescott's market value, which might be problematic for Jones considering Prescott has publicly asked for market value.
Love's deal that averages $55 million a year makes him tied for the highest average per year salary of any player in the NFL along with Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow and Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence. The Packers felt comfortable bestowing this money on their 25-year-old quarterback despite just one season of him as their starting quarterback after his 32 regular-season touchdown passes were the second-most in the NFL to only Prescott, and after Love set Green Bay's postseason single passer rating record (157.2) and passing yards-per-attempt record (13) in the Packers' 48-32 demolition of Prescott's second-seeded Cowboys in the NFC wild-card round. Love threw for 272 yards and three touchdowns while connecting on 16 of his 21 throws for the seventh-seeded Packers.
Prescott threw for 403 passing yards (a Cowboys single-game playoff record), three passing touchdowns and two interceptions (including a pick six) while completing 41 of his 60 pass attempts (a Cowboys single-game playoff record). His 64-yard interception return touchdown that he threw to Green Bay safety Darnell Savage put Dallas in a 27-0 hole with 1:50 left in the first half of that game.
Jones was asked about Prescott's contract situation amid the news of Love's deal less than 24 hours after it occurred, and while he didn't directly answer the question, it appears Jones may have given the edge to Love based on what happened in the postseason. He spoke of how he looks forward to a rematch with Love's Packers so that Prescott could prove he can outdo Love.
"I get in trouble every time I make comparisons. I do get in trouble," Jones said on Saturday, via The Athletic. "Ok. I do get in trouble. Of course, we saw a head-to-head match with Green Bay last year. We've all got that burr in our saddle. I'm anxious for Dak to get a chance to show he's the best with a Cowboys star [on his helmet]."
"I don't want to get into comparisons," Jones continued to say, per The Dallas Morning News. "I don't want to do that to Dak because that will start a big debate. But boy, we're proud of what Dak has accomplished. We're proud of what he is. I don't know if anybody is more so than I am."
As for specifics on negotiations with Prescott, the quarterback he has been proud of for the last eight seasons, that's complicated in the words of Jones.
"We've got a lot we're weighing, and those things change," Jones said of contract negotiations with Prescott and his agent, Todd France. "They change every day. ... It can happen. Let's give Dak credit."
When asked about his confidence that he and France can get to the right number that would get a deal done for Prescott given the effects of what Love's contract has done to the position's market, Jones was able to provide a firm answer.
"Yes."
