Dak Prescott (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
An NFL insider has provided surprising new details on the contract negotiations between quarterback Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys.

The soon-to-be 31-year-old Dak Prescott is entering the final season of a four-year, $160 million extension he signed in the 2021 offseason. Owner and de facto GM Jerry Jones almost always gets extensions done with his star players well ahead of time, so it’s quite noteworthy that No. 4 has yet to sign a new deal.

Speaking on “SportsCenter”, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports that contracts negotiations are “complicated because” Prescott carries a $61 million cap for the 2024 season. Fowler explains that Dallas wants to “tread carefully” in negotiating the next deal.

“Well, the Cowboys want to re-sign Dak Prescott. I continue to hear that talks and negotiations have been a little passive but they have told Dak directly that they want him there long term. It’s just complicated because he’s got a $61 million cap hit on the final year of his deal, a new contract is gonna have to be a huge number. So they want to tread carefully a little bit, as my understanding. If you jump out, you make an offer, if it’s not where it needs to be initially then things get complicated.

“They’ve already negotiated with him three or four years ago and that took a year and a half. So it’s a long process. And they know it’s gonna take a while so it’s something they’re probably slow playing. It’s a little bit of a stare off. But I think sometime this summer, this will heat up because it has to and you know he wants to stay a Cowboy but he is prepared for the notion that he could be a free agent next year. Like he’s open to that reality because things haven’t really launched off yet.”

Dak Prescott isn’t the only Cowboy who’s entering the final year of his contract. Head coach Mike McCarthy has one year left on the five-year deal he signed in 2020, and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb is heading into the final season of his rookie contract.

On top of that, superstar pass-rusher Micah Parsons is eligible for a contract extension after completing year three of his rookie deal. But surprisingly, Jones has yet to extend any of these four as training camp draws closer.

Dak Prescott & Cowboys Could Be Headed For A Divorce

Jerry Jones has never parted ways with a franchise-level quarterback in his prime during his near-40-year run as the owner of the Cowboys. Troy Aikman stayed here until he retired, and Tony Romo was only released because Prescott emerged as the new franchise sta QB during his injury absence.

Dak Prescott knows he can easily receive $50 million-plus on his next NFL contract. If the Cowboys aren’t willing to pay it, another QB-needy team (Las Vegas Raiders, anyone?) will happily pay it.

Prescott has lacked postseason success (a 2-5 record) up to this point of his career, but teams will be more than happy to pay top dollar for a QB who puts up top-10 stats annually.