Dak Prescott has yet to play a down under the terms of the megacontract extension he signed with the Cowboys back in March, but the dollars-and-cents details of that deal have already changed.
The organization has restructured Prescott’s payout, converting $6.25 million of his $9 million 2021 base salary into a signing bonus. Prescott’s base salary for this season will now be $2.75 million.
The move creates $5 million in cap space for the Cowboys this season.
The Cowboys converted $6.25M of QB Dak Precott's base salary into a signing bonus, creating $5M in cap space.
The Titans converted $14M of WR Julio Jones' salary into a signing bonus, creating $11.2M in cap space (adding two void years as well).
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) September 7, 2021
Team owner Jerry Jones explained on Dallas radio that the move was all part of the original plan with the way they structured Prescott’s $160 million extension.
“It was looking around the corner, looking at what you’re going to need as you move through, if you will, even this season, but certainly into next season,” Jones told 105.3 The Fan. “It was anticipated when we made the contract, and it’s part of the contract that allows you to manage your roster. Everything about it was expected.”
The club similarly restructured running back Ezekiel Elliott’s contract last week, converting most of his 2021 base salary into a signing bonus in order to create about $7 million in room.
Left tackle Tyron Smith, right guard Zack Martin, and right tackle La’el Collins also recently had their contracts restructured in the same way. As the Dallas Morning News points out, “[T]eams are selective with these accounting tactics, doing them only with high-priced players whom they comfortably forecast will remain with the club.”
It is perhaps worth noting, then, that wide receiver Amari Cooper’s sizable contract has not undergone the same sort of tweaking.
So what happens with this new money that comes from the reworking of Prescott’s deal? In the short term, it could be used in free agency to sign a player or players. Or it could be part of a bankrolling effort with an eye toward re-signing a current player bound for free agency; Randy Gregory, Michael Gallup, and Leighton Vander Esch immediately come to mind. Or the money could be set aside for the 2022 draft class.
According to DMN‘s Michael Gehlken, though, “the Cowboys are expected to carry over the $5 million in cap space from 2021 to 2022.”
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