Leaves fall as Cowboys continue to delay contract extensions

In April, Jerry Jones cited wanting to see more “leaves fall” before dealing out any Cowboys contract extensions.

Two months later, those leaves keep falling around the NFL with superstar extensions.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones when asked why they haven’t gotten deals done earlier with Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb: “We’d like to see more leaves fall. We’d like to see more action. It’s called option quarterback. I’ve spent my life (playing) option quarterback. I want to see some… pic.twitter.com/kS3fpsoE8l

— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) April 23, 2024

Despite that fact, the Cowboys have yet to move an inch on extending their three stars that are up for new deals.

And as they stall on extending their big pieces, teams around the league are making moves.

Yesterday, news broke of the Jaguars’ massive extension for Trevor Lawrence.

That was the second lofty extension for a quarterback in the last month, with the Lions paying Jared Goff $212M in May.

Last week, a new deal for Vikings star Justin Jefferson reset the wide receiver market.

The NFL WR market has been set after Justin Jefferson gets $35 million per year

Highest paid WRs avg. salary per year:

1. Justin Jefferson: $35M
2. AJ Brown: $32M
3. Amon-Ra St. Brown: $30.02M
4. Tyreek Hill: $30M
5. Jaylen Waddle: $28.25M
6. Davante Adams: $28M

With WR’s like… pic.twitter.com/vNV3lZ8ly0

— Booner (@boonersports) June 3, 2024

All of these moves, as the Cowboys sit back and wait, are driving up the eventual price tag on their own contract extensions.

It’s a risky game for the front office to play, and it could backfire quickly if deals don’t come together.

The question is, what in the world are they waiting for?

The Waiting Game Strategy

Perhaps Jones is not yet satisfied with the amount of leaves on the ground.

But, if he doesn’t get there soon, the faces of his franchise might walk out the door.

Two of the big three, Quarterback Dak Prescott and Wide Receiver CeeDee Lamb can become free agents after this season.

Pass-rusher Micah Parsons is extension-eligible but has another two seasons on his deal.

It is not “being a negative fan” to say most organizations have these deals done by now.

Especially in the case of Prescott, the reigning runner-up for the MVP award, it is shocking that he has not been extended yet.

Cowboys QB Dak Prescott finished second in MVP voting to the winner, Ravens QB Lamar Jackson.

— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) February 9, 2024

Not only because of his value positionally but also because an extension would have saved Dallas money at the beginning of the offseason.

Superstars like Prescott and Lamb rarely get this close to hitting free agency.

And allowing them to be in this spot is a huge risk for the Cowboys front office to make.

You can debate about Prescott all you want, but in the case of Lamb, there is simply no debate to be had.

He is a 25-year-old All-Pro who just notched the best receiving season in franchise history.

Career-high in catches (135), receiving yards (1,749), and TDs (12) for WR1 in Dallas.

Is CeeDee Lamb your pick for OPOY? (by @Surface) pic.twitter.com/smY9IvLcrM

— NFL (@NFL) February 6, 2024

You give that guy a blank check the second you can.

The Cowboys’ contract extension history says the deals will get done, but the clock is ticking and prices are rising.

How New Deals Will Impact Dallas

Naturally, we have to address how deals like Lawrence’s and Jefferson’s impact the Cowboys.

As previously mentioned, these extensions drive up the price for players that haven’t been paid yet.

The NFL does not hand out contracts on a talent scale.

Because of the ever-growing monetary value of contracts, the next person in line will always get the new highest amount, or close to it.

For example, are Goff and Lawrence better quarterbacks than Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson?

Of course not, but the latter two guys got paid in 2020 and 2023.

https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/1801386664079532347

Quarterback contracts are simply worth more now.

This means Prescott, the next guy in line, will likely surpass the league-high $55M annually set by Lawrence and Burrow.

The same goes for Lamb, who will now ask for at least the same that Jefferson got.

What is unfortunate here is Dallas did not have to wait this long or pay this much.

If they had jumped on extensions for Lamb, Parsons, and Prescott as soon as they could, they likely would have saved upwards of $20M per year.

That train has left the station by now, and the new price will be costly.

Now, the question is will the Cowboys buck up and meet those new highs, or tap out because of the self-inflicted rise in cost?