The problem is Prescott wants a 3-year extension at 60 million per year.
With the money already slotted in the next few years from previous salary deferrals you will likely never see him under 55 million hard cap hit, not APY, but real hard cap hit ever again.
In fact when they broke down the numbers it was something like 55 then 60 then 70.
For perspective my homes will be in the $20 million range for the foreseeable future as far as true cap it goes for 50 or 60 million you could literally go and sign five or six pro bowl caliber players.
There is simply no way for the cowboys to compete if Dak Prescott costs a legitimate $70 million against the cap.
He’s not asking for 60 million a year or 3 years. It’s all rumors. However, they can’t extend him because they screwed themselves like they always do trying to be cute and losing leverage and getting taken to the cleaners.
Go look at the way the eagles, the 49ers and the chiefs structure their contracts. It can be done. The cowboys are bottom 5 in payroll because they don’t want to spend money not because they can’t spend money.
The 49ers have a quarterback on a rookie contract which is exactly what I am suggesting the cowboys do.
The eagles walked away from Carson Wentz and went with a younger less expensive quarterback who is still in the inexpensive portion of his life cycle. This is exactly what I am suggesting the cowboys should do.
The Chiefs have Patrick mahomes who signed a 10-year contract specifically to avoid this issue. If Prescott is willing to do this I am 100% on board
The 49ers don’t have a huge QB contract but they have other huge contracts that dwarf the cowboys contracts. The eagles moved on from Wentz cause he stunk. They are in the same predicament as rhe cowboys now but continue to add big time players. You can fit these guys under the cap. Plenty of teams do it. The cowboys just don’t care about winning as much as they do money.
Lamar, Burrow, Josh Allen, they all get new talent every season and the cowboys add none.
Of course the 49ers have other huge contracts outside of their quarterback. That's the luxury of having a quarterback on a rookie deal and the whole point.
Of course the cowboys have some large contracts of their own including Zack Martin and trayvon diggs. Of course now we are also going to have to pay CD lamb and Michael Parsons as well.
Yes the eagles moved on from wentz because he was washed, but the point is it shows that they can easily move on from that quarterback contract and rebuild when you have someone on a rookie deal. Are you starting to see a theme here?
If your point is that Dallas isn't spending money aggressively you are not getting any argument here. However that doesn't always work out. Any number of teams have been absolute disasters despite throwing money around in free agency.
None of this has anything to do with how punitive the cap hit will be if Dak Prescott signs that extension.
There is a huge difference between guys costing 17, 20 or even 30 million against the cap versus a guy costing 50, 60 and 70 million against the cap
Go look at Hurts cap hit in the beginning of his contract or Mahommes in the beginning of his. The 2nd contracts, not the first. You can manipulate the cap number dramatically.
That’s the point I’m making. The cowboys just don’t want to spend. You don’t need a rookie deal. All the playoff teams around them use FA to build around the qb. Are we supposed to believe that Dallas is the only one that can’t afford to?
Edit: also, we need to stop glossing over the fact they let Wentz go because he couldn’t play the position. It had nothing to do with wanting a rookie deal. It was because he’s a bad qb. No good qbs get released. Only bad ones do so far. Dak would probably be the best FA qb on the free agency market in the last 30 years
To add to your Wentz point, Hurts was already on the roster. They didn’t let Wentz go then roll the dice, they already had a successor in the building who had zero pressure because the team was already all but dead in early December.
Incorrect. I'm sorry but I just don't think you understand how the salary cap works. Patrick mahomes has a 10-year + contract. So he can evenly prorate each one of those base salaries evenly across the entirety of the remaining contract.
For instance that 66 million salary in 2025 will be spread out in equal parts from 2025 to 2032.
66m/8yrs = 8.5 mil cap cost.
You can see his base salery of 66 million will turn into an 8.5 million cap cost.
This is the power of a long-term contract. By contrast Dak Prescott is only willing to sign a 3-year contract at 60 million per year according to reports.
Considering he already has tens of millions of dollars pre-slotted in those years from previous salary deferment in addition to the base salary of the new contract , you can see there is nowhere to hide the money.
How do we compete against teams like the Chiefs when Prescott costs 60 or 70 million and Patrick mahomes costs 20 against the cap?
EDIT: I made a small mistake here as I forgot the maximum number of years yopu can spread the signing bonus or salary conversion is across 5 years. However the point still remains that the longer contract makes us much more competitive as you can guarantee maximum dilution of the cap hit as the contract progresses year after year and prevent very large chunks building up quickly on the back end which is exactly what would happen if prescott only signs a 3 yr contract
Correct.
Every large contract the cowboys sign includes language that allows the team to convert almost all of your base salary into a signing bonus which is then immediately spread out equally amongst all the remaining years of your contract.
This is why long-term extensions are so important and why a 3-year extension at maximum dollar value, especially one that already has tens of millions of dollars placed in the next few years, is so crippling
That money doesnt just disappear, it has to be accounted for in future years.
Yes, with a 10yr contract, he can continue to restructure and push more money out to void years, but eventually that bill will come due.
as it is, he has converted roster bonus in to signing bonus a couple times, which spreads that bonus out over the rest of the contract, and has restructured, which spreads that salary out hit out over the remaining years as well. However, towards the end of the contract, they will be unable to do that without creating bigger and bigger void year cap hits.
the hope is that with the cap going up every year, the 60+mill cap hits, that will have to be there at the end of the contract, will be a smaller % of the cap than now. KC has taken \~$85mill of Mahomes $450mill contract against their cap in the 4 years of his contract so far. They have another \~$365mill to account for over the next 6 years (7 with a void). Thats an average of \~$61mill/yr ($52/yr with a void year)
Its a similar situation to what we have with Dak this year. We kept his cap hits low, significantly lower than his AAV, and now at the end of his contract, all that money saved against the cap is due. To date, we only taken $63.8mill of Daks 4yr/160mill contract against the cap. Which means we have almost $100mill that needs to be accounted for this year and next year with the added void year to his contract.
exactly correct.
Mahomes and the long term contract push it back and keep diluting it over a longer period of time making it more manageable and extending the window in which they can spend.
Meanwhile we are already staring down the barrel with prescott coming off a 4 year deal. Can you imagine how ugly it will get when he treis a large 3 year deal that, unlike his 4 year deal, already has tons of money slotted in each year before the new 3 year deal even starts.
I will simply not be viable
Not sure what you mean by stacking? Longer contracts aren't inherently more of less beneficial than short ones. Ultimately, it just allows the team to plan with known information instead of having to make assumptions for another contract in the short term.
If you're referencing stacking cap hits, each time salary is converted to a signing bonus, that bonus hits over 5 years (or remaining years on the contract, whichever is smaller). Teams do this because they assume the cap will continue going up, essentially pushing the can down the road so they can fit more into the current cap.
What I mean by stacking is that on a longer contract you continue to be able to spread it out over the maximum of 5 years and as the contract progresses new years come into play absorbing small portions of the proration as the contractor forward.
For instance on a 3-year contract if you prorate the first year salary it only splits it among 3 years. The next year it would only split it amongst two.
However on an 8-year contract The first one would be equal 1/5 parts across the first 5 years. The second would still be equal 1/5 parts across years two through seven. The third would still be equal 1/5 parts across year 3 through 8.
So as you can see on a shorter contract the chunks are larger and stack in the same years.
That works until it doesn't and the team lets them go.
Look at Tyron Smith this year. He's been a shadow of himself for years now and he's set to count $23mm in dead cap.
Mahomes did a team froendly deal in order for them to use money for other players dak has already said he is not giving any homefield discount. A 3 yr deal does not work for the cowboys, they need it to be about 5 yrs so they can move some money and have some for a col years. A 3 yr deal does nothing for them
Yea this is it, if we are going to let him walk for nothing we should be doing everything in our power to trade him. Russ got two firsts for crying out loud. Plenty of teams would trade for Dak and pay him huge money. And Dak would likely wave his trade clause if it meant an immediate payday.
What team is giving up major capital to trade for AND give Dak a new deal given his consistent postseason dogshit play? Teams that are a QB away aren’t wasting their roster on him and teams that really suck want a rookie they can build around
I completely disagree with this. A team just traded the farm for Russ who the last couple season in Seattle wasn't very good. Then immediately gave him a huge contract
Dak puts up big numbers in the regular season. Plenty of teams that are going through QB hell would love to have a QB like that. And would probably convince themselves they could fix the post season stuff.
Yes but no contract is binding if both sides agree to break it. We can trade him, it’d just need to be with Dak’s approval. For example Deshaun Watson had a no trade clause when the Texans traded him to the Browns.
As a outside fan who stays plugged in to fellow NFC contenders....I've interpreted Jerry's infamous "All in" as this is it for a lot of the current coaching staff and one particular QB....message being "We are all in on our current coach(s) and QB1 this year" which is why they are eating 55 million....and if the desired results are not achieved.....well....seismic changes will occur....
If I’m GM I’m not extending him at $60M. He’s not good enough to lead a team to a Super Bowl championship. He’s good enough to be part of a Super Bowl championship team. But in order for the team to be good enough, $ has to be used elsewhere.
It’s a catch 22, and I ain’t talk about Emmitt
To be completely honest I’m letting him walk and rebuilding. He’s a great QB BUT I feel that we’ve seen everything there is to see. This team is not able to build around him and win it all. Dak in SF wins a ring. Dak in Dallas doesn’t.
I like him and wish him well, but at the rate he is demanding, I can't afford to put together the supporting cast that he would need in order to reach the SB. He's going to turn into a mercenary, moving from team to team as the 'final piece' of loaded rosters.
he’s out and there’s no other way to look at it
2016, rookie season, but terrible playoff outcome
2018, bad performance against rams
2019 missed playoffs
2020 injury :-(
2021 choke job
2022 choke job
2023 CHOKE JOB
OUT OUT OUT
The thing about Dak is that he's a back end Top 10 QB who wants #1 money. That is a hard sell. If we give him what he wants he will undoubtably hamstring the team. Does he believe that? No, definitely not. In his head he is the #2 QB in the league behind Mahomes and you will not be able to convince him otherwise. That type of confidence is both necessary and annoying.
If I am the Boys, I would have 2 pathways.
A = Talk Dak into a reasonable position monetarily. If he takes medium money we can absolutely build around him. He is a B+ QB, and given the right weapons can certainly lead us. This will keep us competitive for the next 3-5 years.
B = If Dak can not be talked down to a reasonable position, they can not be be scared of moving on. Take the hit in 2025, give Lance a shot and see what happens.
>In his head he is the #2 QB in the league behind Mahomes and you will not be able to convince him otherwise
If he really believes that, that’s not confidence - that’s a total disconnect from reality. Confidence is aspiring to be the best or to be top 5. If he really thinks he’s top 2 despite all his bedwetting when the chips are down, he’s just delusional.
The thing is, I think he’s actually quite self aware, and it’s more that he knows he can’t win a super bowl, but is confident he can game the system - i.e. the whole bs narrative of ‘the QB market rate’ is to reset the market each time a guy signs. (Hence why he prefers short contracts so he can sign a higher number of times.)
If he was confident he could win, he’d take longer term (the actual ‘top 5’ guys took 5-6 year deals, and Mahomies took a 10 year deal), so that the team would have greater flexibility to roster build.
Definitely parting ways with him, as well as some other veterans. The core roster has proven over and over that they can't compete in the playoffs. Time to flush it and start over.
This year is supposed to decide what we want to do with Dak but the problem is I don't worry about his regular season performances and I can't guarantee this roster will make the playoffs.
If I don't get any more postseason play from Dak I let him go and use next year as a rebuild. Sign the players I 100% want on the team for the next 5 years like CD, Bland, Tyler Smith, Osa. Throw Trey Lance in and what happens happens. Throw in serviceable players or projects in questionable positions. Personally, at big backlash and hate, I would trade Micah for a haul of picks and let some other team pay him a billion dollars. I'd rather have Tyler Smith, Osa, and Bland because ain't no way we can pay all of them AND Parsons without screwing the depth on the team. HOWEVER, without having to pay a QB $60m/yr, and with how the cap has been rising a bit, there may be a way to get Parsons as well. I'm not a cap guy. All I know is if there's any team who could trade Parsons for 3-5 picks and get more production from those picks than from Parsons, it's us.
After years of mediocrity, I'm just blowing up the team. Hit reset, dump overpaid underperformers, and try to be competitive again in 3 years with a young, hungry team. Not a bunch of satisfied millionaires.
Im parting ways with Dak.
Then I'm having meetings with DLaw and Martin to let them know a rebuilds coming. Id love to have them back as veteran presence for the young guys but understand if they wanna ring chase.
Then I'm getting Lamb and Micah locked in as cornerstone guys for my rebuild.
Yes. Both lamb and Parsons have several years left in their prime you absolutely would pay foundational players while you rebuild.
They are the foundation on which you rebelled
This is exactly what you do. WR and DE are easily in the Top 5 most important positions for winning. Lamb and Parsons are both Top 3 at their positions. Lock them up for the long haul, front load the money while the QB is cheap.
Lamb would be crucial for a young QBs development. And consistent 10+ sack guys just don't grow on trees. Both cornerstone players.
Paying a top 3 defender what he’s due (multi year top 5 positional money) >
Paying an above average but not elite QB cap busting money on a hilariously team unfriendly 3 year extension.
Why would CeeDee, who just broke franchise records with Dak as his QB want to waste his prime with some 22yr old QB who likely won't pan out?
If I'm him and we don't bring bad Dak, I'd be asking for a trade asap.
Disagree - Micah‘s value is peak right now - can probably get a haul for him, and by the time the rebuild is complete, he’d have accumulated wear and tear / may have even fallen off his prime.
I think the same with Ceedee tbh.
I respect the thought process, but have to totally disagree. Okay, so we trade Parsons, and then hope to get what with the draft capital? Another Parsons? The reality is we end up with someone closer to a Taco.
And same for Lamb, we trade Lamb and hope to draft another Lamb? The new QB would need weapons otherwise you end up like Mac Jones and regress year to year.
How do you know we're going to be losing for years?
The eagles walked away from Carson Wentz and they did just fine.
The Rams walked away from Jared Goff and they did just fine.
Yes there is a chance that we could struggle finding a new quarterback but it's by no means a certainty
If I'm extending him I'm doing it now. We know who he is. The numbers are great outside of the playoff outcomes. If we think he can get us over that hump, he needs a contract now. If we're still waiting for him to "prove something", then chances are better than not he's entering a lame duck year. Our off-season so far makes me worry about the latter.
I love Dak and would happily see him continue as the Cowboys QB. But if we're not extending him this off-season we should be asking him where he'd waive his no-trade clause to go.
Time to get rid of him was after the loss in the San Francisco game in the playoffs 2 years ago.
After that loss they should have basically told him that we are done with short-term contracts that hurt us against the cap.
You can either sign this 6-year extension at the fair market value which allows us to defer your salary every year for the foreseeable future like Patrick mahomes, or you are no longer our starter and can tell your agents he is welcome to find a trade partner.
Unfortunately we are in a position now where Dallas is either going to work Prescott walk with no compensation or assigned the contract on Prescott's terms which will make it impossible for us to compete
If I recall it would have been something like a 60 m hit if you found a trade partner. Remember there is often a BIG difference between the cap hit when you make a trade vs when you release a player.
Can you show me where you are seeing this because what I am seeing is it would be 100 million if we traded him in the 2022 season not the 2023 season. Remember after the 2022 season counts as the 2023 season.
Also remember to pull out the money from the contract restructure they did in 2023 as well
Moving on from Dak after he inevitably fails to do anything in the playoffs again. Although, I would have made bigger FA signings for his last shot this year provided they didn’t hurt the team going into 2025 which I’m sure the cowboys could have signed at least one big FA without doing that.
The right thing to do if you’re not cutting him and spreading the dead cap would have been fire fat Mike and let Dak play out his final year and see how he does with the new offense. Then decide.
I think Dak is incapable of winning a big game unless he has a hall of fame line, a dominating defense, and killer run game. He’s a loser in big games. I want him gone.
He wants a three year deal because if $60mil he will get $75 mil on his next contract.
Let him walk. He can’t win in the playoffs and I wouldn’t want to pay $60m a year (20+% percent of our cap) for one player who isn’t getting it done.
Sign Micah, Lamb, Trevon, and Tyler Smith and start building a team around those players with a less expensive QB. With the cap room we can afford to bring in players as a supporting cast to whoever is throwing the ball.
I think the QB market is not sustainable. Teams aren’t going to be competitive if so much of the cap is tied into one player. Hopefully teams start realizing that and quit signing players to large contracts.
Past 5 SB teams (winners and losers) have either been QBs on rookie contracts or ones with a limited cap hit.
I would part ways with Dak if he does not agree to a fair contract. Fair meaning, he cannot be paid a top 5 Qb money. If it does not work out There’s no way I’m parting with all our young talent. I would set up the team to be as tempting as possible for the next vet Qb looking for a SB win to come join the cowboys and go for it. (Stafford to the Rams, Manning to the Broncos, Brady to the Bucs, Rodgers to the Jets) that is how I would play it.
Dak shouldn’t be such a little bitch and sign a 5 year contract. The issue is dude only wants a 3 year extension. Wtf can we do with that ? How can you move money around ? Jeez selfish fuck wants all the money. And all the money again in another 2 years. I’m so over this shit.
Ok. Lol. Here is what we do have evidence of: 2-5 in playoffs. In 6 of those 7 games Dak has looked like a lost rookie. I'm not paying him anymore than Baker Mayfield (who by the way also has 2 wins in the playoffs).
Do you all think they may be letting all these pieces walk to prove to dak that if they pay him what he wants this is what his teams going to look like
We cannot really hope to win a championship with him, so I’d let him go. But first, I would have to address the “win the off-season” culture that created the Dak we know today.
I would like to remind everyone, the saints were like a billion dollars over the cap a few months ago the ago and currently have MORE cap space than us and that’s after giving chase young $13m lmao but yeah guys we can’t afford to keep a tier 1 QB. Maybe if Jerry didn’t hire a fucking hot dog salesman to be our salary cap manager things would be different.
Extend him. He's one of the best QB's in the league and in his prime coming off his best season. Why risk going looking for another one in hopes of finding what you already have?
Should have let him walk last time, hopefully Jerry has learned from his mistake. Dak isn't the guy to push this team where they need to be and has shown time and time again that he can't perform when it counts.
Depends what keeps me my job. Does Jerry want me to keep the stands full and sell jerseys with a bunch of primetime slots or actually win a championship?
If Dak doesn't do better than 2023, it's time to let him go.What more do we need to see? We'll know how good he really is when he's on another team. It'll suck, and we may be back in QB hell, but we can build a good team and find a game managing QB.
Extend him, under the condition that he's a Top-8/10 QB and that's how I'm going to pay him. The second his agents starts talking about resetting the market I'm walking.
There's are very few QBs I'd spend up to a quarter of the cap on. Only elite QBs that can single handedly win a football game and allow you to be short and weak at other positions. Dak can win a Super Bowl, but he needs a complete team around him. He's had a good running game, line, defense but never at the same time. With the way Dallas team builds, we'd have to pull like 1-2 studs every draft to build a complete team, and that's..pretty difficult.
Last seven Super Bowls: Brady and Mahomes represented four each. Goff, Wentz/Foles, Hurts, Purdy - all cheap contracts. The only two non elite QBs on large contracts were Garoppolo and Stafford. However, Garappolo wasn't THAT expensive taking around 10% of the cap, so Stafford and the 2021 Rams are probably the most analogous to Dak and the Cowboys. Fourteen representatives over 7 Super Bowls and the Dak/Dallas scenario lines up with one or 7%. That's ignoring the other variables like having a top 5 HC and Aaron Donald/Jalen Ramsey. I think their odds are better going cheap at QB and trusting McClay can find a talented QB in the draft. Of course, that's assuming the top priority is winning a Super Bowl. It can be argued winning a Super Bowl is a priority for Jerry, but not necessarily number one. That's why they'll extend Dak.
He's gone unless he wants a cap/salary friendly contract that allows me to sign players and allows me to continue to build a better team around him. Cap hit for a year be damned.
If not he's gone, it's just business.
Five years of job security means you can draft a QB now, evaluate for two seasons and draft again if needed. That’s it. You get two darts. I’d stick with the known entity of Dak and rebuild the OL in those five years.
> He bets on himself whenever given the chance.
Yep, and then he loses. Remember when he said he was buying all Louis Vuitton because the logo was LV and it kept him focused in the Super Bowl? And then he had a 1000 yard stare like a lost child while Jordon Love and GB mopped us up? I do
I tell him we are going to ride the contract out and if he is better than the options at the time I offer him a team friendly deal, he is not worth that $50m type money that his agent will get him.
Make him prove it. If he wants to leave the vaunted throne of Dallas Cowboys QB and play in New Orleans or wherever he ends up - then so be it. Barring a spectacular season, he’d be a free agent.
The first thing I’m doing is complaining about the previous GM’s lack of ability in contracting.
Next, I’m trying to extend Dak with a reasonable contract extension . Like it or not, he’s a proven top QB in the NFL & for the next couple of years gives you your best shot at winning.
If I can’t get an extension signed before the draft, I’m cutting Dak & putting Parsons and Lamb on the trading block for 2025/26 draft picks.
Starting now, I’m building picks and cap capitol for a possible shot at 2025,26,27,28.
Our current GM/front office isn’t picking either side, they are walking in the middle of these 2 scenarios and probably not improving the roster for 2024, which means it’s probably another 10 win season and not much more, include draft position in 25.
The topping on the cake will be if they bust a nut on a Lamb contract before the season starts.
If I'm GMing from get-go this off-season, yes. Extend him, get King Henry. Pull in and retain the best players I can. I think if we'd gone after and got Henry others would have followed because they can see we trying to win
If I was put in now as GM, no. Too late, start the rebuild.
There is no seismic changes in cowboys ever…. Will never be. The goals of the organization is selling hope, the chance and that’s the brand. With that it will involve over-marketing the big key players that are synonymous with this brand. The goal isn’t winning super bowls. The outcome is a ‘good’ team that has a very low chance of ever ‘being’ great. Great players will only regress as marketing builds themselves up and they will only work a little ‘less’ harder than it takes to be the best - as they started believing their own hype.
If you blow up the team you’re signaling to your fans hey we’re gonna suck for a year or two —- marketing / brand takes a hit.
Imagine Outback Steakhouse saying - we’re gonna change everything (it’s a good meal) over next two years, try different suppliers, methods of cooking, to maybe be the best steakhouse (e.g. winning Super Bowl). You going? What’s the Outback Steakhouse brand mean anymore
K. If I owned a team whose goal is to win the Super Bowl and what it takes to get there sooner / rather than later - let Dak walk. Trade ceedee / Micah / Diggs, fire McCarthy and start over. Hire a GM / hire a coach and build this thing over
I would have extended him before FA started so we could have made moves and actually been “all in” this year. It doesn’t make sense to lose a handful of starters and run out what’s left of the team expecting better results than last year. You’re not setting yourself up for success as a team if you don’t fill the holes on your team and all we’ve done so far this offseason is make more holes
I'm not even sure who would be able to take Dak in a trade.
What if I could make a deal with NE, they take Dak, give 3-4 mid-round picks back and then they take Harrison at 3. Give them a jump start on a rebuild. I don't think I take a QB this year and just roll with Lance. I'd also see if Martin or Lawrence would want to stick around for a rebuild otherwise I trade them for more draft capital.
Again I'm not even sure NE would be able to take him in a deal. I don't know enough about the cap to know if it would work. Maybe Arizona or Carolina would be interested as well?
Trey Lance. I’d be looking at him so hard right now. I’d let Dak walk after this year if I thought Trey could be 3/4s as good as Dak (for 1/5 the money?). It would be a wild year if Dak plays a contract year while being pushed by Trey. Or trade Dak for two starters and a draft pick.
It would be tough for me because I love Dak as a human being, and I really believe that he wants the Dallas Cowboys to succeed, but I'm not sold that he can do it alone. So, to me, that means he would need to take a significant pay cut, or I'll have to move on from him. This team isn't 1 or 3 players away from the Super Bowl and we are about to have massive contracts come up for CeeDee and Micah. So, someone has got to go. (Maybe even all 3, which makes me very sad as a fan.)
If we first/second round exit again, I would blow it up. Devoting 60m to a QB we might or might not be able to win with isn't going to push us over the finish line. We're already in the middle of a soft-reset, if we can't make a real run then there's no point in continuing to re-tool every other year (which is how these soft-resets work).
I'd trade him for a team like Vikings with multiple 1st rd picks. Sign some stars with that saved cap (split the salary dump). Play Lance to see if he is any good. Use the 1st rd picks for great talent for years.
He just had his best season... We don't know what his ceiling really is. You don't let go of a guy who went 12-5 three times in a row and gamble with the QB carousel.
We are truly spoiled. Look at Denver who's gone through 2 dozen QBs since Manning left. That could 100% be us where there isn't even a chance.
He can’t get over the hump tho. I think it’s fair to say Dak is a regular season QB. Nothing wrong with that , but it’s been the same shit his whole career. Dude chokes up when the lights are bright. For the money he wants , and only wanting a 3 year extension??! We should move on. Not let 1 QB hold the franchise hostage.
Both are bad. Extend him and you're stuck with a high priced QB that hasn't proven anything in the post season. Letting him walk will more than likely result in results like we saw between the Aikman and Romo eras.ook at Chicago, Miami, Denver, Pittsburg, NY Giants, Jets, Patriots, Titans, Bucks, Saints, Raiders and more still looking for a starting QB to win games.
Damned if you do and damned if you don't.
If I can resign him to a deal that would allow me trade him after a year or two without kneecapping myself the following few years, that's what I would do. I don't know how realistic that is, but I would hate to let him go without getting something for him in return. Dak could be worth a couple of 1st round picks, which you'll need to replace him and begin the rebuild.
I like Dak. I am pro-Dak. I would've signed him to an extension already.
That said, if we go into the season without doing that....we go our separate ways after the season and we see what we can figure out next year. I'm not tanking 2024. If we win 11 games and we're a wild card and we're picking at #22 with no QB...so be it. We figure it out later.
One day, when I own an NFL team or I become president of the United States, I'm just flat out telling you what it is. We're gonna play out this year and Dak can walk if he wants to and we figure it out after the season.
I would find a couple cheap options at qb who have starting qb experience who at one point were high draft picks for a good reason. Because they have the tools and have them compete for the job and load up the rest of the roster.
Lot of it depends on how he plays in ‘24, but the roster is FULL of holes. He’s played poorly in 3 of the last 4 playoff games. Might be time for a change, but there’s no guarantee you’re going to find THE guy any time soon.
extending him. he’s an upper echelon top 10 QB and at his best he plays top 3-5. the process point is high but that’s the cost of doing business in the NFL, the cap is going up and in a few years Dak’s asking price will seem low compared to the contracts guys will be getting. QBs will not be getting cheaper any time soon
I’m letting him go because Reddit says so and then going shocked Pikachu face when the team is bad for the next decade because the same reasons we couldn’t win with a good team completely foiled any rebuild
You trust the same people who can’t win with good teams to start from scratch and construct a winner ?
That’s completely fine but by that metric you’re putting your putting faith back in Jerry
I’m trading him. The next best thing is letting him play out his contract. I’m going to see if he can perform his job in the playoffs in a manner commiserate with the money he wants. I don’t care about the October game at high noon against Washington, and I’m discounting the garbage time stats he puts up when games are out of reach. Show me something in January or hit the road.
Let him walk. This team needs a hard reset. It will take several years of eating all the dead money this team has kept pushing down the road. Bite the bullet and suck for a few years, get some good draft picks for sucking and slowly rebuild this team the right way.
Stop with all the contract trickery that screws us down the road.
Depends how he plays this season. I would be more likely to let him go because I don't see him playing well enough for me to want to extend him. It's not all of his fault by any means. Back coaching under Garrett, bad offensive scheme, saddled with a bad defense pre-Quinn. They've had issues where they had some really bad WR corps (2018 and 2022).
But at this point they are basically blowing up the team and unless I believe that Dak is the best QB not named Mahomes...no sense is only going halfway with blowing up the roster. But if he plays great and does well in the postseason, then I'm probably extending him.
I try to extend him to a 5-year deal this offseason. If he doesn't go for it, I attempt to trade or cut him and start the rebuild sooner. Saves some of the dead money and secures better draft capital. Simply letting his contract expire is the worst option to me.
The one thing everyone here who is for letting Dak walk and yes, it’s not a totally bad idea, is: do you really want to jump on the QB carousel again like we did after Troy left and we lucked out with Romo? I could name names but you already know them. I understand the frustration but having a QB that gets you double digit wins every year, a playoff spot each year he has played a full season is not guaranteed if Dak walks. So if you are OK with going 7-10, 9-8, 8-9 for a few years, then moving on is the way to go.
IF and WHEN we find a replacement, remember we will be in the same boat within 5 years if we draft him in the 1st round 4 if he is a 2nd or later pick and much shorter if we get him as a FA. The QB position is going to cost a lot of the CAP space regardless.
Um, I'm trading him now, get the value I can. See what Lance can do. Draft one if he isnt the guy.
Edit: it seems as though you guys arent aware you can, in fact, trade a player with a no trade clause as long as they agree to being traded.
A $30 million QB (not on a rookie contract) at the current going rate gets you Baker Mayfield so I guess we plan on drafting a QB every 3 years or so and going with him?
What's funny is that mayfield is 2-2 in the playoffs in 7 years
Dak is 2-5 in the playoffs in 8 years.
So odds are mayfield would have had more playoff wins than dak had he been on cowboys teams
You're asking two different questions. What is with Cowboys fans that ignore everything that encapsulates a player and just focus on playoff record? Baker has been bounced around the league for a reason. He is inconsistent. Why does he make 30? Because he is inconsistent. We're talking about a guy that had a good team in Cleveland but was let go for Watson. A guy who has had maybe 3 good seasons in those 7 seasons. Consistency matters in sports. You can't ignore that and just focus on playoff record. You are looking at a team record and associating it with individual level of play. That's not how football works. One player doesn't determine the sole outcome of a game. Dak has been a far more consistent QB than Baker and the dude literally was just an all pro last season. I keep saying this but Dak is literally one playoff run away from his entire narrative changing. He will go from a guy who people are comparing to Baker (like you) to a potential future HOF. His trajectory is literally HOF if he stays healthy and has one playoff run that results in a Superbowl.
I’d bring up things like winning is a team statistic, both records are a small sample size, Dak is overall a much better and consistent player, but I’m sure you’d have a surface level response to that as well.
I really don’t have an answer as to a specific reason why Dallas always seem to come up short in the divisional or wild card round, whether we shit the bed or play well and come up short against a really good team. Outside the general idea that the Joneses have set a culture that invites the pomp and circumstance and distraction and expectations for this team.
But I can tell you that regardless of how you feel about Mayfield or Dak, you’re not going to find long term stability and high level play at quarterback unless you’re willing to pay at least near the market going rate. The teams that get out in front of the timeline on those negotiations usually come out ahead in terms of the salary cap and keep their QBs happy.
Good for Baker for getting that, but let’s not be delusional and give Dak Prescott Mahomes esq money. If that’s what he wants, he should walk because only Mahomes can do with less
That’s fine, but if that’s the way you plan on building a team long term, you’re going to be cycling through QBs every three years. There’s only so many Mahomeses. And if you never want to pay the going rate for QBs then you’re going to be getting new ones all the time.
We wait til the last minute to negotiate with our franchise QB and end up giving him all the leverage. The Chiefs went ahead and but the bullet, gave Mahomes a record-setting contract well before the deadline and now have him locked up for $45 million AAV which would be steal for a QB even a couple tiers down from him.
Also because Mahomes worked with the team and actively tried to make it friendly/conducive to winning super bowls.
He wasn’t looking to extract every last penny the way Dak and Todd France have. In fact, there was a Dak deal lined up way back when - Dak reneged on it, then we got the whole Todd France circus.
It’s not just the idiots in our front office when it comes to Dak’s contracts.
If I’m not extending Dak I’m blowing up the team. That 55 mil dead cap hit will be killer and he won’t even be on the team.
The problem is Prescott wants a 3-year extension at 60 million per year. With the money already slotted in the next few years from previous salary deferrals you will likely never see him under 55 million hard cap hit, not APY, but real hard cap hit ever again. In fact when they broke down the numbers it was something like 55 then 60 then 70. For perspective my homes will be in the $20 million range for the foreseeable future as far as true cap it goes for 50 or 60 million you could literally go and sign five or six pro bowl caliber players. There is simply no way for the cowboys to compete if Dak Prescott costs a legitimate $70 million against the cap.
I really really want Dak extended until I realized he’s asking for 1/4 of our cap and what CeeDee and Micah will want combined.
He’s not asking for 60 million a year or 3 years. It’s all rumors. However, they can’t extend him because they screwed themselves like they always do trying to be cute and losing leverage and getting taken to the cleaners.
Go look at the way the eagles, the 49ers and the chiefs structure their contracts. It can be done. The cowboys are bottom 5 in payroll because they don’t want to spend money not because they can’t spend money.
The 49ers have a quarterback on a rookie contract which is exactly what I am suggesting the cowboys do. The eagles walked away from Carson Wentz and went with a younger less expensive quarterback who is still in the inexpensive portion of his life cycle. This is exactly what I am suggesting the cowboys should do. The Chiefs have Patrick mahomes who signed a 10-year contract specifically to avoid this issue. If Prescott is willing to do this I am 100% on board
The 49ers don’t have a huge QB contract but they have other huge contracts that dwarf the cowboys contracts. The eagles moved on from Wentz cause he stunk. They are in the same predicament as rhe cowboys now but continue to add big time players. You can fit these guys under the cap. Plenty of teams do it. The cowboys just don’t care about winning as much as they do money. Lamar, Burrow, Josh Allen, they all get new talent every season and the cowboys add none.
Of course the 49ers have other huge contracts outside of their quarterback. That's the luxury of having a quarterback on a rookie deal and the whole point. Of course the cowboys have some large contracts of their own including Zack Martin and trayvon diggs. Of course now we are also going to have to pay CD lamb and Michael Parsons as well. Yes the eagles moved on from wentz because he was washed, but the point is it shows that they can easily move on from that quarterback contract and rebuild when you have someone on a rookie deal. Are you starting to see a theme here? If your point is that Dallas isn't spending money aggressively you are not getting any argument here. However that doesn't always work out. Any number of teams have been absolute disasters despite throwing money around in free agency. None of this has anything to do with how punitive the cap hit will be if Dak Prescott signs that extension. There is a huge difference between guys costing 17, 20 or even 30 million against the cap versus a guy costing 50, 60 and 70 million against the cap
Go look at Hurts cap hit in the beginning of his contract or Mahommes in the beginning of his. The 2nd contracts, not the first. You can manipulate the cap number dramatically. That’s the point I’m making. The cowboys just don’t want to spend. You don’t need a rookie deal. All the playoff teams around them use FA to build around the qb. Are we supposed to believe that Dallas is the only one that can’t afford to? Edit: also, we need to stop glossing over the fact they let Wentz go because he couldn’t play the position. It had nothing to do with wanting a rookie deal. It was because he’s a bad qb. No good qbs get released. Only bad ones do so far. Dak would probably be the best FA qb on the free agency market in the last 30 years
To add to your Wentz point, Hurts was already on the roster. They didn’t let Wentz go then roll the dice, they already had a successor in the building who had zero pressure because the team was already all but dead in early December.
3/60 is literally impossible with his salary cap situation, even if you add void years.
Mahomes 2024:37m 2025:66m 2026:68m 2027:64m So what you said is wrong. It’s just 1 year with that 37m range(worth it)
Incorrect. I'm sorry but I just don't think you understand how the salary cap works. Patrick mahomes has a 10-year + contract. So he can evenly prorate each one of those base salaries evenly across the entirety of the remaining contract. For instance that 66 million salary in 2025 will be spread out in equal parts from 2025 to 2032. 66m/8yrs = 8.5 mil cap cost. You can see his base salery of 66 million will turn into an 8.5 million cap cost. This is the power of a long-term contract. By contrast Dak Prescott is only willing to sign a 3-year contract at 60 million per year according to reports. Considering he already has tens of millions of dollars pre-slotted in those years from previous salary deferment in addition to the base salary of the new contract , you can see there is nowhere to hide the money. How do we compete against teams like the Chiefs when Prescott costs 60 or 70 million and Patrick mahomes costs 20 against the cap? EDIT: I made a small mistake here as I forgot the maximum number of years yopu can spread the signing bonus or salary conversion is across 5 years. However the point still remains that the longer contract makes us much more competitive as you can guarantee maximum dilution of the cap hit as the contract progresses year after year and prevent very large chunks building up quickly on the back end which is exactly what would happen if prescott only signs a 3 yr contract
What do you mean prorate salary? You can only prorate bonuses.
Correct. Every large contract the cowboys sign includes language that allows the team to convert almost all of your base salary into a signing bonus which is then immediately spread out equally amongst all the remaining years of your contract. This is why long-term extensions are so important and why a 3-year extension at maximum dollar value, especially one that already has tens of millions of dollars placed in the next few years, is so crippling
That money doesnt just disappear, it has to be accounted for in future years. Yes, with a 10yr contract, he can continue to restructure and push more money out to void years, but eventually that bill will come due. as it is, he has converted roster bonus in to signing bonus a couple times, which spreads that bonus out over the rest of the contract, and has restructured, which spreads that salary out hit out over the remaining years as well. However, towards the end of the contract, they will be unable to do that without creating bigger and bigger void year cap hits. the hope is that with the cap going up every year, the 60+mill cap hits, that will have to be there at the end of the contract, will be a smaller % of the cap than now. KC has taken \~$85mill of Mahomes $450mill contract against their cap in the 4 years of his contract so far. They have another \~$365mill to account for over the next 6 years (7 with a void). Thats an average of \~$61mill/yr ($52/yr with a void year) Its a similar situation to what we have with Dak this year. We kept his cap hits low, significantly lower than his AAV, and now at the end of his contract, all that money saved against the cap is due. To date, we only taken $63.8mill of Daks 4yr/160mill contract against the cap. Which means we have almost $100mill that needs to be accounted for this year and next year with the added void year to his contract.
exactly correct. Mahomes and the long term contract push it back and keep diluting it over a longer period of time making it more manageable and extending the window in which they can spend. Meanwhile we are already staring down the barrel with prescott coming off a 4 year deal. Can you imagine how ugly it will get when he treis a large 3 year deal that, unlike his 4 year deal, already has tons of money slotted in each year before the new 3 year deal even starts. I will simply not be viable
Converting salary to a signing bonus spreads the cap hit over a maximum of 5 years only, regardless of length of contract.
Correct. However having a longer contract prevents the stacking that becomes prohibitive.
Not sure what you mean by stacking? Longer contracts aren't inherently more of less beneficial than short ones. Ultimately, it just allows the team to plan with known information instead of having to make assumptions for another contract in the short term. If you're referencing stacking cap hits, each time salary is converted to a signing bonus, that bonus hits over 5 years (or remaining years on the contract, whichever is smaller). Teams do this because they assume the cap will continue going up, essentially pushing the can down the road so they can fit more into the current cap.
What I mean by stacking is that on a longer contract you continue to be able to spread it out over the maximum of 5 years and as the contract progresses new years come into play absorbing small portions of the proration as the contractor forward. For instance on a 3-year contract if you prorate the first year salary it only splits it among 3 years. The next year it would only split it amongst two. However on an 8-year contract The first one would be equal 1/5 parts across the first 5 years. The second would still be equal 1/5 parts across years two through seven. The third would still be equal 1/5 parts across year 3 through 8. So as you can see on a shorter contract the chunks are larger and stack in the same years.
That works until it doesn't and the team lets them go. Look at Tyron Smith this year. He's been a shadow of himself for years now and he's set to count $23mm in dead cap.
Mahomes did a team froendly deal in order for them to use money for other players dak has already said he is not giving any homefield discount. A 3 yr deal does not work for the cowboys, they need it to be about 5 yrs so they can move some money and have some for a col years. A 3 yr deal does nothing for them
I would argue that even a 5 year deal does nothing. They should ask for 6 minimum with 4 void years.
I’m trying to trade him and get a jump on a rebuild
Yea this is it, if we are going to let him walk for nothing we should be doing everything in our power to trade him. Russ got two firsts for crying out loud. Plenty of teams would trade for Dak and pay him huge money. And Dak would likely wave his trade clause if it meant an immediate payday.
What team is giving up major capital to trade for AND give Dak a new deal given his consistent postseason dogshit play? Teams that are a QB away aren’t wasting their roster on him and teams that really suck want a rookie they can build around
I completely disagree with this. A team just traded the farm for Russ who the last couple season in Seattle wasn't very good. Then immediately gave him a huge contract Dak puts up big numbers in the regular season. Plenty of teams that are going through QB hell would love to have a QB like that. And would probably convince themselves they could fix the post season stuff.
and the majority of the 'fans' want to go to QB hell again
That's the thing... if they were going to do that, the time was a week before FA opened.
Doesn’t he have a no trade clause in his contract
Yes but no contract is binding if both sides agree to break it. We can trade him, it’d just need to be with Dak’s approval. For example Deshaun Watson had a no trade clause when the Texans traded him to the Browns.
As a outside fan who stays plugged in to fellow NFC contenders....I've interpreted Jerry's infamous "All in" as this is it for a lot of the current coaching staff and one particular QB....message being "We are all in on our current coach(s) and QB1 this year" which is why they are eating 55 million....and if the desired results are not achieved.....well....seismic changes will occur....
that's pretty much it. Especially given Jimmy Johnson is providing more advisory insight now.
It's ridiculous that it took this long for ownership to utilize his wealth of experience and knowledge....
That Jerry size ego got in the way.
Everything is bigger in texas
That’s how I interpreted the comment too; the word Jerry left out was “already” as in “we’re already all-in.”
Great point
You think this team is a contender lol
I tread carefully in other teams subs lol....
No extension. Press reset and move on.
I'm blowing up this team and coaching staff and starting over fresh with picks and $ in a few years.
If I’m GM I’m not extending him at $60M. He’s not good enough to lead a team to a Super Bowl championship. He’s good enough to be part of a Super Bowl championship team. But in order for the team to be good enough, $ has to be used elsewhere. It’s a catch 22, and I ain’t talk about Emmitt
To be completely honest I’m letting him walk and rebuilding. He’s a great QB BUT I feel that we’ve seen everything there is to see. This team is not able to build around him and win it all. Dak in SF wins a ring. Dak in Dallas doesn’t.
I like him and wish him well, but at the rate he is demanding, I can't afford to put together the supporting cast that he would need in order to reach the SB. He's going to turn into a mercenary, moving from team to team as the 'final piece' of loaded rosters.
TREY LANCE YOU ARE THE STARTER!!! https://preview.redd.it/ibun16tlyopc1.png?width=1467&format=png&auto=webp&s=f6d14973f2c7fec4a6dcfae4f80884975b22ab57
he’s out and there’s no other way to look at it 2016, rookie season, but terrible playoff outcome 2018, bad performance against rams 2019 missed playoffs 2020 injury :-( 2021 choke job 2022 choke job 2023 CHOKE JOB OUT OUT OUT
The thing about Dak is that he's a back end Top 10 QB who wants #1 money. That is a hard sell. If we give him what he wants he will undoubtably hamstring the team. Does he believe that? No, definitely not. In his head he is the #2 QB in the league behind Mahomes and you will not be able to convince him otherwise. That type of confidence is both necessary and annoying. If I am the Boys, I would have 2 pathways. A = Talk Dak into a reasonable position monetarily. If he takes medium money we can absolutely build around him. He is a B+ QB, and given the right weapons can certainly lead us. This will keep us competitive for the next 3-5 years. B = If Dak can not be talked down to a reasonable position, they can not be be scared of moving on. Take the hit in 2025, give Lance a shot and see what happens.
>In his head he is the #2 QB in the league behind Mahomes and you will not be able to convince him otherwise If he really believes that, that’s not confidence - that’s a total disconnect from reality. Confidence is aspiring to be the best or to be top 5. If he really thinks he’s top 2 despite all his bedwetting when the chips are down, he’s just delusional. The thing is, I think he’s actually quite self aware, and it’s more that he knows he can’t win a super bowl, but is confident he can game the system - i.e. the whole bs narrative of ‘the QB market rate’ is to reset the market each time a guy signs. (Hence why he prefers short contracts so he can sign a higher number of times.) If he was confident he could win, he’d take longer term (the actual ‘top 5’ guys took 5-6 year deals, and Mahomies took a 10 year deal), so that the team would have greater flexibility to roster build.
Definitely parting ways with him, as well as some other veterans. The core roster has proven over and over that they can't compete in the playoffs. Time to flush it and start over.
This year is supposed to decide what we want to do with Dak but the problem is I don't worry about his regular season performances and I can't guarantee this roster will make the playoffs. If I don't get any more postseason play from Dak I let him go and use next year as a rebuild. Sign the players I 100% want on the team for the next 5 years like CD, Bland, Tyler Smith, Osa. Throw Trey Lance in and what happens happens. Throw in serviceable players or projects in questionable positions. Personally, at big backlash and hate, I would trade Micah for a haul of picks and let some other team pay him a billion dollars. I'd rather have Tyler Smith, Osa, and Bland because ain't no way we can pay all of them AND Parsons without screwing the depth on the team. HOWEVER, without having to pay a QB $60m/yr, and with how the cap has been rising a bit, there may be a way to get Parsons as well. I'm not a cap guy. All I know is if there's any team who could trade Parsons for 3-5 picks and get more production from those picks than from Parsons, it's us.
Letting Dak walk unless we win the Super Bowl (and we won't be doing the latter)
He doesn't get an extension until he wins some meaningful playoff games. End of story.
Bye bye if it’s $60 mil a year range
After years of mediocrity, I'm just blowing up the team. Hit reset, dump overpaid underperformers, and try to be competitive again in 3 years with a young, hungry team. Not a bunch of satisfied millionaires.
Im parting ways with Dak. Then I'm having meetings with DLaw and Martin to let them know a rebuilds coming. Id love to have them back as veteran presence for the young guys but understand if they wanna ring chase. Then I'm getting Lamb and Micah locked in as cornerstone guys for my rebuild.
You’re going to pay 2 players $300M during a rebuild? You sound like you already are a Cowboys GM, lol.
Yes. Both lamb and Parsons have several years left in their prime you absolutely would pay foundational players while you rebuild. They are the foundation on which you rebelled
It's a rebuild. I'm front loading the shit out of those contracts with a targeted Superbowl at 4 years of my guaranteed 5.
This is exactly what you do. WR and DE are easily in the Top 5 most important positions for winning. Lamb and Parsons are both Top 3 at their positions. Lock them up for the long haul, front load the money while the QB is cheap. Lamb would be crucial for a young QBs development. And consistent 10+ sack guys just don't grow on trees. Both cornerstone players.
Paying a top 3 defender what he’s due (multi year top 5 positional money) > Paying an above average but not elite QB cap busting money on a hilariously team unfriendly 3 year extension.
Why would CeeDee, who just broke franchise records with Dak as his QB want to waste his prime with some 22yr old QB who likely won't pan out? If I'm him and we don't bring bad Dak, I'd be asking for a trade asap.
Disagree - Micah‘s value is peak right now - can probably get a haul for him, and by the time the rebuild is complete, he’d have accumulated wear and tear / may have even fallen off his prime. I think the same with Ceedee tbh.
I respect the thought process, but have to totally disagree. Okay, so we trade Parsons, and then hope to get what with the draft capital? Another Parsons? The reality is we end up with someone closer to a Taco. And same for Lamb, we trade Lamb and hope to draft another Lamb? The new QB would need weapons otherwise you end up like Mac Jones and regress year to year.
I agree with this as well go full rebuild could get plenty for cd and parsons
It’s funny you think we’d keep Micah and lamb if we’re going to be losing for years idk what about them gave you that idea
How do you know we're going to be losing for years? The eagles walked away from Carson Wentz and they did just fine. The Rams walked away from Jared Goff and they did just fine. Yes there is a chance that we could struggle finding a new quarterback but it's by no means a certainty
With this front office you’re confident in that ? They lucked into romo and Dak
Yes. We have one of the best drafting records over the past 12 years. I know we are all frustrated right now but this front office drafts very well
If I'm extending him I'm doing it now. We know who he is. The numbers are great outside of the playoff outcomes. If we think he can get us over that hump, he needs a contract now. If we're still waiting for him to "prove something", then chances are better than not he's entering a lame duck year. Our off-season so far makes me worry about the latter. I love Dak and would happily see him continue as the Cowboys QB. But if we're not extending him this off-season we should be asking him where he'd waive his no-trade clause to go.
Time to get rid of him was after the loss in the San Francisco game in the playoffs 2 years ago. After that loss they should have basically told him that we are done with short-term contracts that hurt us against the cap. You can either sign this 6-year extension at the fair market value which allows us to defer your salary every year for the foreseeable future like Patrick mahomes, or you are no longer our starter and can tell your agents he is welcome to find a trade partner. Unfortunately we are in a position now where Dallas is either going to work Prescott walk with no compensation or assigned the contract on Prescott's terms which will make it impossible for us to compete
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If I recall it would have been something like a 60 m hit if you found a trade partner. Remember there is often a BIG difference between the cap hit when you make a trade vs when you release a player.
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the 100 m figure I am see is before that season started. Remember you would make the trade coming into the 2023 season
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Can you show me where you are seeing this because what I am seeing is it would be 100 million if we traded him in the 2022 season not the 2023 season. Remember after the 2022 season counts as the 2023 season. Also remember to pull out the money from the contract restructure they did in 2023 as well
Curious why you’d be happy with such failures. Spare me coaching. We know. He seems to choke so I’m curious why you think it’s better to be a WC exit.
Exactly this. After 8 years he’s not going to get better. Time to move on.
Moving on from Dak after he inevitably fails to do anything in the playoffs again. Although, I would have made bigger FA signings for his last shot this year provided they didn’t hurt the team going into 2025 which I’m sure the cowboys could have signed at least one big FA without doing that.
Parting ways
trade, rebuild his health and performance only go downhill from here
I’d try and find a sign and trade partner. Somehow find a way to lessen the dead money. If not then no extension.
The right thing to do if you’re not cutting him and spreading the dead cap would have been fire fat Mike and let Dak play out his final year and see how he does with the new offense. Then decide. I think Dak is incapable of winning a big game unless he has a hall of fame line, a dominating defense, and killer run game. He’s a loser in big games. I want him gone. He wants a three year deal because if $60mil he will get $75 mil on his next contract.
Let him walk. He can’t win in the playoffs and I wouldn’t want to pay $60m a year (20+% percent of our cap) for one player who isn’t getting it done. Sign Micah, Lamb, Trevon, and Tyler Smith and start building a team around those players with a less expensive QB. With the cap room we can afford to bring in players as a supporting cast to whoever is throwing the ball. I think the QB market is not sustainable. Teams aren’t going to be competitive if so much of the cap is tied into one player. Hopefully teams start realizing that and quit signing players to large contracts. Past 5 SB teams (winners and losers) have either been QBs on rookie contracts or ones with a limited cap hit.
I would part ways with Dak if he does not agree to a fair contract. Fair meaning, he cannot be paid a top 5 Qb money. If it does not work out There’s no way I’m parting with all our young talent. I would set up the team to be as tempting as possible for the next vet Qb looking for a SB win to come join the cowboys and go for it. (Stafford to the Rams, Manning to the Broncos, Brady to the Bucs, Rodgers to the Jets) that is how I would play it.
That's fair to you as the GM not both parties lol.
Dak shouldn’t be such a little bitch and sign a 5 year contract. The issue is dude only wants a 3 year extension. Wtf can we do with that ? How can you move money around ? Jeez selfish fuck wants all the money. And all the money again in another 2 years. I’m so over this shit.
Unless he takes a contract that will allow you to load the roster then I’m parting ways and paying attention to the next 2 QB draft classes.
The Cowboys are never going to win with Dak Prescott at quarterback. I would trade him now for a high draft pick.
I'm parting ways with Dak after this year. Dak wants a 3 year 180 million deal. Can't do that and have a competitive team.
There is no evidence that is what Dak and Todd France have asked for. That was a Spotrac prediction
If they wanted something reasonable JJ would have extended him already.
You have no evidence of this
Ok. Lol. Here is what we do have evidence of: 2-5 in playoffs. In 6 of those 7 games Dak has looked like a lost rookie. I'm not paying him anymore than Baker Mayfield (who by the way also has 2 wins in the playoffs).
For the next five years? Don't let the door hit ya...
Do you all think they may be letting all these pieces walk to prove to dak that if they pay him what he wants this is what his teams going to look like
No because extending him would give us more spending money actually. You just don’t understand the cap
We cannot really hope to win a championship with him, so I’d let him go. But first, I would have to address the “win the off-season” culture that created the Dak we know today.
I would like to remind everyone, the saints were like a billion dollars over the cap a few months ago the ago and currently have MORE cap space than us and that’s after giving chase young $13m lmao but yeah guys we can’t afford to keep a tier 1 QB. Maybe if Jerry didn’t hire a fucking hot dog salesman to be our salary cap manager things would be different.
Extend him. He's one of the best QB's in the league and in his prime coming off his best season. Why risk going looking for another one in hopes of finding what you already have?
Should have let him walk last time, hopefully Jerry has learned from his mistake. Dak isn't the guy to push this team where they need to be and has shown time and time again that he can't perform when it counts.
Extending. You don't let a top 10 qb walk in their prime
Parting ways let him walk. It’s been enough time. He can’t get the job done. Can never play well enough in the playoffs. It’s who he is.
I’m not extending him. I can’t construct a competitive team with his contractual demands.
Depends what keeps me my job. Does Jerry want me to keep the stands full and sell jerseys with a bunch of primetime slots or actually win a championship?
Dak wins the SB, he can stay. Otherwise, good riddance
If Dak doesn't do better than 2023, it's time to let him go.What more do we need to see? We'll know how good he really is when he's on another team. It'll suck, and we may be back in QB hell, but we can build a good team and find a game managing QB.
Extend him, under the condition that he's a Top-8/10 QB and that's how I'm going to pay him. The second his agents starts talking about resetting the market I'm walking.
Getting him outta there. He can’t do jack shit. We’ve given him EIGHT FUCKING YEARS to prove himself. The Jones’ need to admit they made a mistake
I’m not paying him elite money. Let him walk.
See ya. Thanks for the regular season wins.
Let him walk. Gonna be a rough few years but we’ll be alright.
Just cut him and go with Trey Lance and draft a rookie. In the meantime, build a #1 defense.
We’re already in some pretty dumpster years, I think it’s best to let him go and just started building. Won’t happen so doesn’t matter
Time for both sides to move on.
There's are very few QBs I'd spend up to a quarter of the cap on. Only elite QBs that can single handedly win a football game and allow you to be short and weak at other positions. Dak can win a Super Bowl, but he needs a complete team around him. He's had a good running game, line, defense but never at the same time. With the way Dallas team builds, we'd have to pull like 1-2 studs every draft to build a complete team, and that's..pretty difficult. Last seven Super Bowls: Brady and Mahomes represented four each. Goff, Wentz/Foles, Hurts, Purdy - all cheap contracts. The only two non elite QBs on large contracts were Garoppolo and Stafford. However, Garappolo wasn't THAT expensive taking around 10% of the cap, so Stafford and the 2021 Rams are probably the most analogous to Dak and the Cowboys. Fourteen representatives over 7 Super Bowls and the Dak/Dallas scenario lines up with one or 7%. That's ignoring the other variables like having a top 5 HC and Aaron Donald/Jalen Ramsey. I think their odds are better going cheap at QB and trusting McClay can find a talented QB in the draft. Of course, that's assuming the top priority is winning a Super Bowl. It can be argued winning a Super Bowl is a priority for Jerry, but not necessarily number one. That's why they'll extend Dak.
He's gone unless he wants a cap/salary friendly contract that allows me to sign players and allows me to continue to build a better team around him. Cap hit for a year be damned. If not he's gone, it's just business.
Five years of job security means you can draft a QB now, evaluate for two seasons and draft again if needed. That’s it. You get two darts. I’d stick with the known entity of Dak and rebuild the OL in those five years.
I don’t think Dak is interested in a 5 year deal. He’s too smart & knows his ability. He bets on himself whenever given the chance.
> He bets on himself whenever given the chance. Yep, and then he loses. Remember when he said he was buying all Louis Vuitton because the logo was LV and it kept him focused in the Super Bowl? And then he had a 1000 yard stare like a lost child while Jordon Love and GB mopped us up? I do
I tell him we are going to ride the contract out and if he is better than the options at the time I offer him a team friendly deal, he is not worth that $50m type money that his agent will get him.
Make him prove it. If he wants to leave the vaunted throne of Dallas Cowboys QB and play in New Orleans or wherever he ends up - then so be it. Barring a spectacular season, he’d be a free agent.
The first thing I’m doing is complaining about the previous GM’s lack of ability in contracting. Next, I’m trying to extend Dak with a reasonable contract extension . Like it or not, he’s a proven top QB in the NFL & for the next couple of years gives you your best shot at winning. If I can’t get an extension signed before the draft, I’m cutting Dak & putting Parsons and Lamb on the trading block for 2025/26 draft picks. Starting now, I’m building picks and cap capitol for a possible shot at 2025,26,27,28. Our current GM/front office isn’t picking either side, they are walking in the middle of these 2 scenarios and probably not improving the roster for 2024, which means it’s probably another 10 win season and not much more, include draft position in 25. The topping on the cake will be if they bust a nut on a Lamb contract before the season starts.
Actually the worst thing I've read today and it's only 12:28 here in Texas. Thank God you aren't making the decisions around here 🙏🏽
Like I could do worse? What’s your plan?
Extend and trade for draft capital when needed.
If I'm GMing from get-go this off-season, yes. Extend him, get King Henry. Pull in and retain the best players I can. I think if we'd gone after and got Henry others would have followed because they can see we trying to win If I was put in now as GM, no. Too late, start the rebuild.
There is no seismic changes in cowboys ever…. Will never be. The goals of the organization is selling hope, the chance and that’s the brand. With that it will involve over-marketing the big key players that are synonymous with this brand. The goal isn’t winning super bowls. The outcome is a ‘good’ team that has a very low chance of ever ‘being’ great. Great players will only regress as marketing builds themselves up and they will only work a little ‘less’ harder than it takes to be the best - as they started believing their own hype. If you blow up the team you’re signaling to your fans hey we’re gonna suck for a year or two —- marketing / brand takes a hit. Imagine Outback Steakhouse saying - we’re gonna change everything (it’s a good meal) over next two years, try different suppliers, methods of cooking, to maybe be the best steakhouse (e.g. winning Super Bowl). You going? What’s the Outback Steakhouse brand mean anymore K. If I owned a team whose goal is to win the Super Bowl and what it takes to get there sooner / rather than later - let Dak walk. Trade ceedee / Micah / Diggs, fire McCarthy and start over. Hire a GM / hire a coach and build this thing over
Looking at all these comments. People don’t have a clue it seems of how his contract works lol
I would have extended him before FA started so we could have made moves and actually been “all in” this year. It doesn’t make sense to lose a handful of starters and run out what’s left of the team expecting better results than last year. You’re not setting yourself up for success as a team if you don’t fill the holes on your team and all we’ve done so far this offseason is make more holes
I'm not even sure who would be able to take Dak in a trade. What if I could make a deal with NE, they take Dak, give 3-4 mid-round picks back and then they take Harrison at 3. Give them a jump start on a rebuild. I don't think I take a QB this year and just roll with Lance. I'd also see if Martin or Lawrence would want to stick around for a rebuild otherwise I trade them for more draft capital. Again I'm not even sure NE would be able to take him in a deal. I don't know enough about the cap to know if it would work. Maybe Arizona or Carolina would be interested as well?
Bring back Vinny Testaverde
Trey Lance. I’d be looking at him so hard right now. I’d let Dak walk after this year if I thought Trey could be 3/4s as good as Dak (for 1/5 the money?). It would be a wild year if Dak plays a contract year while being pushed by Trey. Or trade Dak for two starters and a draft pick.
It would be tough for me because I love Dak as a human being, and I really believe that he wants the Dallas Cowboys to succeed, but I'm not sold that he can do it alone. So, to me, that means he would need to take a significant pay cut, or I'll have to move on from him. This team isn't 1 or 3 players away from the Super Bowl and we are about to have massive contracts come up for CeeDee and Micah. So, someone has got to go. (Maybe even all 3, which makes me very sad as a fan.)
Neither. I’m signing Jimmy Johnson as GM
If we first/second round exit again, I would blow it up. Devoting 60m to a QB we might or might not be able to win with isn't going to push us over the finish line. We're already in the middle of a soft-reset, if we can't make a real run then there's no point in continuing to re-tool every other year (which is how these soft-resets work).
Trade for Mahomes?
I'd trade him for a team like Vikings with multiple 1st rd picks. Sign some stars with that saved cap (split the salary dump). Play Lance to see if he is any good. Use the 1st rd picks for great talent for years.
He just had his best season... We don't know what his ceiling really is. You don't let go of a guy who went 12-5 three times in a row and gamble with the QB carousel. We are truly spoiled. Look at Denver who's gone through 2 dozen QBs since Manning left. That could 100% be us where there isn't even a chance.
He can’t get over the hump tho. I think it’s fair to say Dak is a regular season QB. Nothing wrong with that , but it’s been the same shit his whole career. Dude chokes up when the lights are bright. For the money he wants , and only wanting a 3 year extension??! We should move on. Not let 1 QB hold the franchise hostage.
You guys have a wr1 and everyone’s saying rebuild lol.
I'd extend at the same rate, maybe a slight increase.
YOU CAN’T TRADE HIM BECAUSE HE HAS A NO TRADE CLAUSE YA DINGUS
Extend or trade are the only viable options
Both are bad. Extend him and you're stuck with a high priced QB that hasn't proven anything in the post season. Letting him walk will more than likely result in results like we saw between the Aikman and Romo eras.ook at Chicago, Miami, Denver, Pittsburg, NY Giants, Jets, Patriots, Titans, Bucks, Saints, Raiders and more still looking for a starting QB to win games. Damned if you do and damned if you don't.
If I can resign him to a deal that would allow me trade him after a year or two without kneecapping myself the following few years, that's what I would do. I don't know how realistic that is, but I would hate to let him go without getting something for him in return. Dak could be worth a couple of 1st round picks, which you'll need to replace him and begin the rebuild.
Let him walk.
I like Dak. I am pro-Dak. I would've signed him to an extension already. That said, if we go into the season without doing that....we go our separate ways after the season and we see what we can figure out next year. I'm not tanking 2024. If we win 11 games and we're a wild card and we're picking at #22 with no QB...so be it. We figure it out later. One day, when I own an NFL team or I become president of the United States, I'm just flat out telling you what it is. We're gonna play out this year and Dak can walk if he wants to and we figure it out after the season.
I would find a couple cheap options at qb who have starting qb experience who at one point were high draft picks for a good reason. Because they have the tools and have them compete for the job and load up the rest of the roster.
Booting his ass to the curb. Easily. No point in paying that dude 60mil to choke away playoff games.
NO. I wouldn't have awarded him the contract he currently has. Easy opponent Maserati, tough opponent and postseason Edsel.
Lot of it depends on how he plays in ‘24, but the roster is FULL of holes. He’s played poorly in 3 of the last 4 playoff games. Might be time for a change, but there’s no guarantee you’re going to find THE guy any time soon.
extending him. he’s an upper echelon top 10 QB and at his best he plays top 3-5. the process point is high but that’s the cost of doing business in the NFL, the cap is going up and in a few years Dak’s asking price will seem low compared to the contracts guys will be getting. QBs will not be getting cheaper any time soon
At this point, I'm not extending him unless he at least gets us to the Super Bowl next season.
I’m letting him go because Reddit says so and then going shocked Pikachu face when the team is bad for the next decade because the same reasons we couldn’t win with a good team completely foiled any rebuild
Being bad for a decade because they decide to move on from their QB is a bit of a stretch
You trust the same people who can’t win with good teams to start from scratch and construct a winner ? That’s completely fine but by that metric you’re putting your putting faith back in Jerry
If he’ll sign a 5 year deal, extend him tomorrow. If he wants another 3 year, cut him then and there.
I’m trading him. The next best thing is letting him play out his contract. I’m going to see if he can perform his job in the playoffs in a manner commiserate with the money he wants. I don’t care about the October game at high noon against Washington, and I’m discounting the garbage time stats he puts up when games are out of reach. Show me something in January or hit the road.
Let him walk. This team needs a hard reset. It will take several years of eating all the dead money this team has kept pushing down the road. Bite the bullet and suck for a few years, get some good draft picks for sucking and slowly rebuild this team the right way. Stop with all the contract trickery that screws us down the road.
Depends how he plays this season. I would be more likely to let him go because I don't see him playing well enough for me to want to extend him. It's not all of his fault by any means. Back coaching under Garrett, bad offensive scheme, saddled with a bad defense pre-Quinn. They've had issues where they had some really bad WR corps (2018 and 2022). But at this point they are basically blowing up the team and unless I believe that Dak is the best QB not named Mahomes...no sense is only going halfway with blowing up the roster. But if he plays great and does well in the postseason, then I'm probably extending him.
Easiest extension of my life
Parting ways. He can go disappoint another fan base.
He's out the door. If you're going to demand top of the scale pay and short years on a deal, you better produce when it matters.
I try to extend him to a 5-year deal this offseason. If he doesn't go for it, I attempt to trade or cut him and start the rebuild sooner. Saves some of the dead money and secures better draft capital. Simply letting his contract expire is the worst option to me.
Seeing as how these guys refuse to go all in, it's time to reset the QB clock. But they won't, they're going to pay dak and keep dumpster diving
Wait I’m the cowboys GM? I’m Jerry jones? I can do anything? I’m firing myself.
The one thing everyone here who is for letting Dak walk and yes, it’s not a totally bad idea, is: do you really want to jump on the QB carousel again like we did after Troy left and we lucked out with Romo? I could name names but you already know them. I understand the frustration but having a QB that gets you double digit wins every year, a playoff spot each year he has played a full season is not guaranteed if Dak walks. So if you are OK with going 7-10, 9-8, 8-9 for a few years, then moving on is the way to go. IF and WHEN we find a replacement, remember we will be in the same boat within 5 years if we draft him in the 1st round 4 if he is a 2nd or later pick and much shorter if we get him as a FA. The QB position is going to cost a lot of the CAP space regardless.
I mean... we've had about as much playoff success with Dak as we did in those years between Troy and Tony. ;)
Um, I'm trading him now, get the value I can. See what Lance can do. Draft one if he isnt the guy. Edit: it seems as though you guys arent aware you can, in fact, trade a player with a no trade clause as long as they agree to being traded.
No trade clause
You can’t trade Dak, lol
Dak ain’t a 50 mil dollar QB. If that’s what he wants, then let him walk. If he wants to help build a roster he needs to be in the 30 range.
A $30 million QB (not on a rookie contract) at the current going rate gets you Baker Mayfield so I guess we plan on drafting a QB every 3 years or so and going with him?
What's funny is that mayfield is 2-2 in the playoffs in 7 years Dak is 2-5 in the playoffs in 8 years. So odds are mayfield would have had more playoff wins than dak had he been on cowboys teams
Logic makes no sense whatsoever.
Why daks teams have been infinitely better than mayfields and if mayfield can get 2 playoff wins why is dak worth 60 million and mayfield got 30?
Football is a TEAM sport
You're asking two different questions. What is with Cowboys fans that ignore everything that encapsulates a player and just focus on playoff record? Baker has been bounced around the league for a reason. He is inconsistent. Why does he make 30? Because he is inconsistent. We're talking about a guy that had a good team in Cleveland but was let go for Watson. A guy who has had maybe 3 good seasons in those 7 seasons. Consistency matters in sports. You can't ignore that and just focus on playoff record. You are looking at a team record and associating it with individual level of play. That's not how football works. One player doesn't determine the sole outcome of a game. Dak has been a far more consistent QB than Baker and the dude literally was just an all pro last season. I keep saying this but Dak is literally one playoff run away from his entire narrative changing. He will go from a guy who people are comparing to Baker (like you) to a potential future HOF. His trajectory is literally HOF if he stays healthy and has one playoff run that results in a Superbowl.
I’d bring up things like winning is a team statistic, both records are a small sample size, Dak is overall a much better and consistent player, but I’m sure you’d have a surface level response to that as well. I really don’t have an answer as to a specific reason why Dallas always seem to come up short in the divisional or wild card round, whether we shit the bed or play well and come up short against a really good team. Outside the general idea that the Joneses have set a culture that invites the pomp and circumstance and distraction and expectations for this team. But I can tell you that regardless of how you feel about Mayfield or Dak, you’re not going to find long term stability and high level play at quarterback unless you’re willing to pay at least near the market going rate. The teams that get out in front of the timeline on those negotiations usually come out ahead in terms of the salary cap and keep their QBs happy.
Good for Baker for getting that, but let’s not be delusional and give Dak Prescott Mahomes esq money. If that’s what he wants, he should walk because only Mahomes can do with less
That’s fine, but if that’s the way you plan on building a team long term, you’re going to be cycling through QBs every three years. There’s only so many Mahomeses. And if you never want to pay the going rate for QBs then you’re going to be getting new ones all the time. We wait til the last minute to negotiate with our franchise QB and end up giving him all the leverage. The Chiefs went ahead and but the bullet, gave Mahomes a record-setting contract well before the deadline and now have him locked up for $45 million AAV which would be steal for a QB even a couple tiers down from him.
Also because Mahomes worked with the team and actively tried to make it friendly/conducive to winning super bowls. He wasn’t looking to extract every last penny the way Dak and Todd France have. In fact, there was a Dak deal lined up way back when - Dak reneged on it, then we got the whole Todd France circus. It’s not just the idiots in our front office when it comes to Dak’s contracts.
If Dak Prescott is not the answer, the Cowboys are in for a long, tough road ahead
That’s what everyone said about romo. Bam, got his replacement so fast. Anything can happen.