Dak Prescott finally got his contract extension, and it’s a doozy. The Dallas Cowboys announced today that Prescott has signed a 4-year, $160 million contract, including $66 million at signing. A record $126M of the deal is guaranteed. On top of that, Dak will be paid $75 million in the first year of the deal, the most in league history.
Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the deal also includes a no-trade and no-tag clause, meaning Prescott essentially will get his money and get the power in this relationship.
Over the first three years of the contract, Prescott will average $42 million per year. That puts him second in the league behind Patrick Mahomes, who is making $45 million per year.
Playing under the Cowboys’ franchise tag last season, Prescott suffered a terrible lower leg injury. He had a compound fracture and dislocation to his right ankle, and is currently working to rehab from the surgery to repair it. By all accounts, his rehab is going well. His massive contract does carry some risk, however, as the deal is heavily front-loaded and it remains to be seen how he will bounce back. There’s definitely some irony, however. Without Prescott suffering that brutal ankle injury to end his 2020 season, and the Cowboys front office seeing just how dire of a situation the team was in without him, it’s hard to imagine the two sides would have come to an agreement on such a large contract.
Two years ago, there were talks of Prescott wanting a new contract. He and the Cowboys have long been at a standoff over the terms, with Prescott wanting a four-year deal, and Dallas wanting at least a five-year commitment. In the end, it appears that the money won out, and being the second-highest paid quarterback in the league, while also receiving the largest signing bonus and the largest first-year salary in NFL history, was enough for Prescott to agree.
Absolutely worth noting: the four highest-paid quarterbacks in the NFL are Black, with no other Black quarterbacks cracking the top 10. This goes to further the discussion that, in the NFL, there’s essentially no such thing as a mediocre Black quarterback. You have to be elite to stick around. You can assume that Kyler Murray is on his way to joining the names at the top of the list in the next year or two. Lamar Jackson as well.
The Cowboys will now be carrying massive contracts for Prescott, Ezekiel Elliot, and Amari Cooper. Coming off a season where their defense was historically bad, they have a lot of work to do and not a lot of money to do it with. But, hey, good for Dak.
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