The deadline has come and gone, and as of 3:00 p.m. central time, Dak Prescott still does not have a long-term deal with the Dallas Cowboys. Prescott has been seeking a multi-year agreement with the Cowboys for over a year, but the two sides have not been able to reach an accord on deal length and guaranteed money, two factors which go hand in hand.
The Cowboys slapped the exclusive franchise tag on Prescott on March 16, keeping him from negotiating with another club. Once the dust settled on the first phase of free agency, the amount locked in Prescott to a $31.4 million salary for 2020. The two sides had until July 15 to negotiate a long-term agreement, and now that the deadline has passed, they cannot negotiate anything but provisions on a one-year contract.
The deadline has passed. Dak Prescott and the Cowboys did not reach a multi-year contract. And now, they cannot finalize such a deal before the end of the 2020 season. Prescott will proceed under his one-year, $31.4M franchise tag.
— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) July 15, 2020
Related: Cowboys don’t have cap space to tag Prescott in 2021
That means the sides cannot open up negotiations on a long-term deal until after the end of the season. Prescott has already signed his tender, so he will be showing up for training camp when it opens.
The sides haven’t done much negotiating over the last several months, with the Cowboys reportedly insisting on a five-year deal and Prescott not budging from wanting a four-year contract.
Dallas’ most recent offer has been reported for an average of $35 million and for $106 million in guaranteed money. On the surface, those numbers seem to be close to market value, but not when one dives into it. Because the offer to Prescott is for five years of new money, the percentage of his contract that is guaranteed would have been much lower than journeyman QB Ryan Tannehill just signed with Tennessee. Carson Wentz and Jared Goff, classmates of Prescott who have made $30 million and $40 million more so far in their career, also have more money guaranteed in their four-year extensions than what Dallas has offered Prescott for five.
Whether or not the club changed their final offer is not known, though executive VP Stephen Jones has maintained his position publicly.
Prescott’s salary places him eighth overall in QB money for 2020, with no future money locked in. If franchise tagged in 2021, Prescott will make 120% of his current salary, or $37.69 million. Because there is no long-term deal, all of the salary hits the club’s salary cap.