The Dallas Cowboys have reportedly signed quarterback Dak Prescott to a record $240 million, four-year contract deal, making him the most paid player in NFL history, just hours before their season opener against the Cleveland Browns.
Prescott and the Cowboys spent the offseason negotiating a long-term contract, reaching an agreement barely 90 minutes before the start of the regular season.According to ESPN, Prescott’s new contract includes $231 million in guaranteed money, making him the first player to earn $60 million per year on average.
Last season, Prescott was the runner-up for MVP after leading the NFL with a career-high 35 touchdown passes. However, the 31-year-old’s playoff record fell to 2-5 when he threw a pick-six as part of Dallas’ first-half collapse in a 48-32 home wildcard defeat to Green Bay, which rocked the team from owner Jerry Jones on down.
Dallas started the offseason with contract uncertainties around their star quarterback (Prescott), wide receiver (CeeDee Lamb), pass rusher (Micah Parsons), and head coach (Mike McCarthy).After signing Lamb to a long-term agreement, the Cowboys have officially locked up their quarterback for the next four years. Next up will be Parsons, who is looking for his own record contract. However, the coaching position remains uncertain, with McCarthy beginning his sixth season as the team’s head coach as a lame duck.
The Cowboys will start another season with Super Bowl dreams. And, while it took the majority of the summer to work out extensions for two of their key players, getting deals for Prescott and Lamb would quell speculation that Jones was open to resetting the roster and rebuilding in 2025 if the current bunch disappoints this year.
Dallas wide receiver Brandin Cooks lauded Prescott on Wednesday, as the Cowboys prepare to face Cleveland’s tough defense.
“The guy shows up year after year. Cooks described Prescott as “putting up numbers and leading his team.” “He can’t accomplish everything by himself. A lot of those great quarterbacks that I’ve worked with, Tom Brady and Drew Brees, don’t get me wrong, they won a lot of games and Super Bowls, but they also had a lot of aid around them, right?”
Prescott has won numerous games and now has a contract to show for it. However, people will continue to ask questions until he wins the correct ones.
“You have to enjoy it, honestly. “You have to embrace it,” Prescott stated this week. “That is the challenge.” Right now, it’s important to keep together and not put too much pressure on ourselves, while also acknowledging that the team will change after this. And it is simply the nature of the business. Yes, it’s now. Period.”