It's far from official at this point, but one of the NFL's most tapped-in reporters shared yesterday that the Dallas Cowboys and Quarterback Dak Prescott are currently in a “stalemate” over his contract negotiations. Unless something changes soon, the likely outcome is Prescott being given the franchise tag.
The report came from ESPN's Adam Schefter yesterday while most of us were preparing for our Super Bowl parties. But while the final game of 2019 was still waiting to be played, the Cowboys and Prescott are already battling for 2020.
Sources: Cowboys likely to use franchise tag on Dak Prescott as contract talks remain at impasse.https://t.co/0DJz4Srw91
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 2, 2020
It's really not surprising that Dak's camp and the Cowboys are struggling to reach an agreement. Whatever progress was made prior to the 2019 season was dashed by Prescott's career season, raising the bar for his perceived value.
But even with the higher passing production, Dak still quarterbacked a team that went 8-8 and failed to make the playoffs. That is a factor in the Cowboys' evaluation.
Dallas' front office and new Head Coach Mike McCarthy have all expressed that they want Prescott back in 2020. But they are clearly struggling with the idea of making Dak the richest QB in the NFL, which is what his camp will likely push for.
There is an eternal battle between a player's value and the annual bumps in player salaries. Nobody would suggest that Dak Prescott is the best QB in football, but he's the best of the 2020 free agent class.
Aside from wanting their starting QB locked up for seasons to come, Dallas probably also wants to avoid using the franchise tag on Dak so that it's available for free agent WR Amari Cooper or CB Byron Jones.
Again, this is just a “likely” outcome at this point. All it takes is one side to bend for talks to heat back up.
Be prepared for plenty more updates like this in the coming weeks. Dak Prescott's free agency isn't just the biggest issue for the Dallas Cowboys but will be on of the hottest topics in the NFL for the 2020 offseason.
