The Dallas Cowboys finally put a ring on it by signing quarterback Dak Prescott to a four-year, $160 million contract on Monday evening.
As much as Houston sports fans don’t want to talk about the other team at the northern terminus of Interstate 45, the happenings with the Cowboys and Prescott do have an effect on the Houston Texans and their standoff with quarterback Deshaun Watson.
The first way the re-signing of Prescott affects Houston is it takes another quarterback off the market. Although it was highly unlikely the Cowboys would get rid of Prescott, the possibility was there if Dallas gave him the franchise tag for a second straight season. How much would it cost to get Dallas to deal Prescott? Or who can hold down the fort until the 2022 offseason when Prescott is a free agent?
Taking Prescott off the market means teams will have to evaluate other options, which includes gauging how much interest Texans general manager Nick Caserio really has in trading Watson. Even though the rookie general manager has said the club has “zero interest,” as he declared on Jan. 29, Watson similarly has zero interest in ever playing another down for Houston. He reportedly told new coach David Culley as much.
Teams will now focus their long-shot of acquiring Prescott into the other long-shot of acquiring Watson.
Prescott staying with Dallas also takes the Cowboys out of the Watson sweepstakes, even if they never were in them to begin with. It takes the wild-card of owner/president/general manager Jerry Jones making a splash for Watson out of the equation. Count Dallas among the Indianapolis Colts, Detroit Lions, and Los Angeles Rams as teams that will not be making a play for Watson this offseason.
Watson exit from Houston won’t end in Frisco. As has been all offseason, the focus is more eastward.
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