Dallas Cowboys: Does Dak Prescott deserve elite money?

The Dallas Cowboys found their quarterback in Dak Prescott. Now, their looking to lock his future down in Big D. But does he deserve a near max contract?

They say football organizations are built through the NFL Drafts. For the Dallas Cowboys, the franchise found emergence through young talent, but have been devastated by old lucrative contracts that hampered the team for years.

The Cowboys felt the impact of giving top coins to top positional players, however, the return of investment just wasn’t there. Contracts for mega players like Dez Bryant and Brandon Carr come to mind.

Quarterback Tony Romo, being the exception, rode into retirement but his dead money on the books still haunted the bottom line for the Cowboys.

The management in Big D is pushing to keep the current young core together. DeMarcus Lawrence is locked down. But what does that mean for other top stars like Ezekiel Elliott, Amari Cooper, Byron Jones and of course, Dak Prescott?

The ‘Boys are shying away from the max contracts zones, hoping to entice the young stars with opportunities to gain Super Bowl glory in return. In the center of all of this is the Dallas Cowboys’ quarterback, arguably the most difficult spot to play in all of the sports.

Somehow, the Dallas Cowboys struck gold by drafting number four in the fourth round in 2016. Nobody at the time thought the Mississippi State product would turn out to be a franchise kid, let alone command a possible $30 million plus per season down the road.

The story of Rayne Dakota Prescott is the stuff of legends; a Cinderella type story we see scripted in Hollywood for the big screen. Whether you like Dak or not, one thing remains undeniable during this contract negotiation process: The type of coin this quarterback commands will have a ripple effect through the organization for years to come, not to mention the rest of the NFL in terms of the quarterback market pricing.

The Cowboys are in an organization altering phase. They won’t simply let the quarterback walk, knowing full well striking gold in the quarterback department these days is rare. Their history of quarterback ghosts includes Drew Henson, Drew Bledsoe, Vinny Testaverde, and Quincy Carter, to name a few.

One thing to consider is that Mr. Prescott has excelled in the NFL with lame playcalling. His skills weren’t fully utilized, his potential still rising and the ceiling is still unknown. He’s a mobile quarterback, with a top-notch offensive line, with many miles left in the tank considering he is only 25.

In three pro seasons, he eclipsed the 10,000 passing yards mark. He played in all 48 games from 2016 to 2018. He has 67 career touchdowns to 25 interceptions and also ran for another 18 scores in his career. Prescott needs another 56 yards rushing to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark for his career.

His overall rating over three seasons rests at 96.0. In comparison, Tony Romo finished his career with a 97.1 quarterback rating, which ranks fifth all time. If Prescott was plugged into that all-time leader list, he would sit behind Peyton Manning, who is seventh on the list with a 96.5 rating.

There’s no question the Dallas Cowboys love Prescott. The heavier topic and the murmur on every tongue is whether he qualifies as an elite starting quarterback. Some circles describe the young gun as a short passer operator, a sufficient game manager. And, who can forget his accuracy woes that were on full display when he dueled with former quarterback David Carr on live television.

For now, the Dallas Cowboys have found their franchise man, who can handle the hot spotlight that follows the quarterback playing for the biggest franchise in all of the sports. It would be foolish to spit back at fate, considering the amount of luck it took to land Prescott in the first place.

Prescott is commanding a pretty penny for a reason. Does he deserve it? Is he elite? Regardless of how you feel, Dak Prescott will get paid. Because that is the cost to have a franchise quarterback, especially in a town called Big D.