The path that the Cowboys took to paying Dak Prescott was interesting to say the least.
The Dallas Cowboys are always in the news for the drama surrounding signing their star players. There’s this whole song and dance that seems to accompany each new deal, and it drags on for what seems like forever.
Recently, Brian Murphy, the founder and CEO of Athletes First, sat down with Dak Prescott’s agents, Todd France and A.J. Stephens, and gave us a behind-the-scenes look at the negotiations that went on with Jerry and Stephen in Prescott’s contract extensions. Some of the things they said were things we already knew, but other things were quite interesting. Here are some of the nuggets from this insightful, in-depth look at Prescott’s contract ordeal.
Four vs. Five
The Cowboys engaged in conversations about getting a deal done after Prescott’s third season, which is the earliest a team can offer a veteran contract to a player on a rookie deal. It’s been stated repeatedly over the years that the big holdup with his first deal is the length. The Joneses wanted longer terms, which lowers his overall cost, while his agents wanted a four-year deal, allowing Dak to hit the market sooner and capitalize on a market that would then be much higher. There’s really not much to say about this issue as both sides had good reasons for wanting what they wanted. It’s not surprising that things ended with a standoff.
Baiting with guarantees
With neither side willing to budge on the length, the front office enticed Prescott with very high guarantees. The hope was that a player who had made less than $3 million over his first three seasons would jump at the opportunity to secure so much money. But France was not having it. He and Prescott had great conversations where they brainstormed every scenario and developed contingency plans. They felt good enough about their options that they were okay letting things play out without a deal. It was tough to turn down that much money, but in the overall grand scheme, more money could be made by holding strong.
Tag, you’re it
We all know what happened after the two sides failed to reach a deal. The Cowboys placed the franchise tag on him in March of 2020. Negotiations continued in the summer leading up to the July 15th deadline, but once again, the obstacle was the length. And once again, no deal got done. Prescott plays on the tag for $31.4 million that year, and sadly, tragedy strikes. Dak suffers a catastrophic foot injury in Week 5 and misses the remainder of the season. The critics came out in full force on how negligent it was for Prescott to not take the deal, but his side never looked back. All the focus was put on the healing process. Fortunately, surgery and recovery go well and Prescott heals up fine without any concerns about his future.
The best contract of all time
Negotiations picked up again in the spring of 2021, and once again, the Cowboys presented a five-year deal, which France quickly said they were not going to go through again. The Cowboys agreed to do four years, but the numbers still didn’t line up at first. However, three weeks later, a deal was done as they agreed on a four-year, $160 million deal, making Prescott the highest-paid player in NFL history. While the Joneses still ended up getting their five-year deal when you include the franchise tag, Prescott’s agents were able to get a front-loaded deal and added a little insurance policy into the language. Even with a deal imminent, Dak’s agent required them to franchise tag him a second time as a formality just so the chance of him being tagged a third time at any point in his career would be nearly impossible because of the financial implications of such a move made it cost-prohibitive. Team Dak made sure his tag days were over.
Dak almost caved on a small detail
There was a point late in the negotiations where the two sides were haggling over contract language, and Prescott wanted it to be over. It was a stipulation that could void guarantees if he was ever fined. Dak, believing it was a non-issue because he would never be fined, was willing to cave and just make the deal, but France protected his client. He told Prescott to sit tight, and it would get worked out. Three days later, it did. No such clause existed. Ironically, it turned out to be a good thing because Prescott did get fined the following year for making remarks condoning fans for throwing garbage at the officials after the Cowboys lost their Wild Card game against the San Francisco 49ers when time ran out on them after not being able to get a QB spike off.
Get it done, or Dak’s gone
Prescott didn’t ask for a lot of things, but he did make one request. If the two sides could not get a deal done by the start of the 2024 season, there would be no negotiations taking place during the year. He didn’t want to go into his bye week and hear about this or that with his contract. For Dak, that time was all about football. So, if they couldn’t reach an agreement by the start of the season, that’s it. No more talks, and he’s content to hit free agency in 2025. Additionally, his agents mentioned that the offseason would see a bidding war like no other, and France felt that would mean the end of his time in Dallas.
Fortunately, the Joneses were aware of this also, and it never got to that point, although they held their breath as long as they could with a new deal not getting done until hours before kickoff. Alas, Prescott was locked down long-term, and disaster was averted.
The “new” best contract of all time
Again, Team Dak came away the big winners. Prescott’s new deal was a four-year extension worth $240 million. Dak became the first (and only at this point) $60 million per year player and the first player in NFL history to earn $100 million in 12 months. And again, all the language favored Dak, with another no-trade clause.
In the video, everyone praised the Joneses for knowing what they were doing and the valiant effort they made in an attempt to get a player for a lower cost, but they had met their match with such strong representation from France and his team. Prescott was always going to get what he had earned, and with great patience and the perseverance to wait the Joneses out, Team D4K made sure of it.
