Tag: Dak Prescott

No deal coming for Cowboys, Dak Prescott: ‘We are where we are’

From @ToddBrock24f7: Owner Jerry Jones suggested Prescott will play out the last year of his contract; a report says there’s no sign a deal is coming this offseason.

As recently as a few weeks ago, it seemed obvious that a contract extension for Dak Prescott was the top priority for the Cowboys front office, with a gargantuan salary cap hit basically forcing the club to do a new deal that would lock in their quarterback beyond next season and lessen the financial impact for the organization in 2024.

A quick restructure in mid-March added two void years, converted a $5 million roster bonus to a signing bonus, and shaved off $4 million from the cap hit to bring it to $55.445 million. It also looked to be the just first bookkeeping step in the process of a larger extension this offseason.

Now it appears that may be the only step the two sides take.

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports that Prescott and the Cowboys “have a mutual understanding of his contract situation,” with no further offer coming from the team.

“We are where we are,” Rapoport quoted owner Jerry Jones as saying. “We have our contract. We’re locked and loaded for this year.”

Prescott’s current deal binds last season’s MVP runner-up to the Cowboys for 2024 but not beyond.

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The Cowboys have already chosen to let several other big names depart in free agency this month, including longtime offensive tackle Tyron Smith, running back Tony Pollard and center Tyler Biadasz. Linebacker Leighton Vander Esch retired because of medical reasons. And defensive coordinator Dan Quinn took the head coaching job in Washington and took several assistants with him.

Previously, it had been revealed that Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy and the rest of his coaching staff would be working 2024 in the final year of their contracts, essentially making the coming season a prove-it campaign for the staff.

That may end up being the case for their franchise quarterback as well, with 2025 potentially shaping up to be a massive rebuild in Dallas.

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$255M salary cap gives Cowboys new flexibility in Prescott negotiations

Prescott had leverage on multiple levels, including timing. The new cap takes some of that away and provides the Jones family with more comfortable chairs at the negotiation tables. Here’s how, from @KDDrummondNFL.

It’s now easier for the Dallas Cowboys to walk away from Dak Prescott. On Friday, the NFL released the figures for the 2024 salary cap, $255.4 million, steamrolling past previous projections. Originally the number was rumored to be between $240 million and $245 million. The actual number comes in $13 million above the median of that range and Stephen Jones has to be ecstatic.

Why? Because it keeps them from being strong armed in the Dak Prescott contract negotiations. Don’t get it twisted, Prescott still has like 80% of all of the leverage here, but blowing things up just became a little bit more palatable for the Jones family. Even if they do end up signing Prescott long-term, the extra room means they don’t have to resolve Prescott’s situation before addressing other needs. If nothing else, the additional cap space buys the Cowboys time.

Prescott currently sits with a $59.5 million cap hit that can be easily reduced in many ways. The most likely way is that the team works out an extension that makes him the highest paid player in league history, but reduces the 2024 impact on the cap. But now, with this extra $13 million in space they can play a little more hardball because it’s not as catastrophic to their offseason to not get space from Prescott’s deal.

 

 

Cowboys News: Free agent frenzy, Complications with the Prescott contract

Free agent option swirl while complications with an extension for quarterback Dak Prescott are becoming apparent.

With February slowly coming to an end, March brings the NFL’s new league year in which free agents can cash in on crazy money that is likely to be thrown around. It is still to be determined what “All In” means, but there could be a scenario where the Cowboys can fill their needs, specifically on defense. Speaking of defense, it appears as if one current Cowboys may never see the field again. That opens the door for replacements that have experience with new Dallas defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer.

In other news, prospect projections are beginning to take form before the NFL scouting combine but how many draft-day trade scenarios could America’s Team be involved in? Speaking of trade options, could a Buffalo star make his way to Big D? Discussions about a big-name running back that could end up in Dallas make waves while another Cowboys player could see his tenure end with the team in this Friday edition of Cowboys News and Notes.

 

 

Cowboys News: ESPN host Stephen A.’s ankle, celebrity ballers latest Parsons victims

Parsons participation in NBA All-Star weekend ends up with his coach in the hospital after trying to get in his way and the celebrities on the other side not faring much better. | From @ArmyChiefW3

Reputed and outspoken Cowboys hater, Stephen A. Smith, has been known to use every available chance to throw shade at Cowboys fans worldwide. Those antics may have him rethinking the time and place after an encounter with Dallas star pass rusher Micah Parsons lands him in the hospital. Speaking of Parsons, his 37 points earn him Celebrity All Star MVP honors. As his new defensive coordinator gets comfortable in the role, Mike Zimmer is finalizing his staff of assistants which will include a former Cowboys player.

While on the topic of former players, Zimmer’s track record of guys who have succeeded under his tutelage speaks for itself.

The defensive ends were given a salary inspection which may lead some to believe the edge group could be a priority once the new league year begins. Before that day rolls around, Dallas hopes to have their franchise quarterback Dak Prescott locked up to a shiny new contract. The space created from a Prescott extension could prompt moves in the wide receiver room, should it? A former Cowboys head coach gives an honest assessment of the old and new defensive staffs. That and much more in this edition of Cowboys news and notes.

 

Lamar Jackson wins 2023 MVP Award, where did Josh Allen finish?

Lamar Jackson wins 2023 MVP Award, where did Josh Allen finish?

Josh Allen was always considered a longshot to win the 2023 NFL MVP Award and he ended up falling short again.

It’s the third time in his career that he’s been nominated, but the Buffalo Bills quarterback ended up finishing in fifth place overall in the weighted voting. Oddly enough, in terms of first-place votes, Allen was the only one other than the winner to receive a first-place talley.

In the end, Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson took home the honor. It’s the second time in Jackson’s career he’s won the MVP.

In the end, here’s the entire final voting results for this year’s MVP Award:

Fix is In: Twitter reacts to NFL rigging FedEx Air award, screwing Cowboys’ Prescott

The NFL re-ran a poll four times, and the guy who won each time didn’t win the award. That seems… wrong. It’s not the first time they did Dak dirty, either.

“Now in its third decade, the FedEx Air & Ground NFL Players of the Year Awards will once again honor the best quarterback and running back performances of the season.  Fans can help celebrate these standout athletes by voting for the FedEx Air & Ground NFL Players of the Year.”

But can they?

The NFL ran four different polls for the 2023 Air award since the end of the season. Dallas Cowboys’ QB Dak Prescott won every single one of them. Yet here is the NFL, awarding the honor to San Francisco 49ers QB Brock Purdy.

How, Sway?

This isn’t the first time the NFL has done Prescott dirty when it comes to the FedEx Air honor. In Week 18, Prescott was removed from already-in-progress voting after posting 279 passing yards and four touchdowns in securing the NFC East title for Dallas.

Check out the reactions to this latest debacle.

All 32 NFL QBs (including Panthers’ Bryce Young) ranked by passer rating for the 2023 regular season

32 starting QBs ranked by their 2023 passer ratings

Well, let’s just look back at this like a “Started from the bottom, now we here” meme by next year, shall we?

Here are all 32 NFL quarterbacks, including Bryce Young of the Carolina Panthers, ranked by passer rating from the 2023 season:

Ranking all 32 NFL teams (including the Eagles) by 2024 strength of schedule

We’re ranking all 32 NFL teams by their 2024 strength of schedule ahead of the offseason and NFL draft

We’re about 100 days from the 2024 NFL schedule reveal, but the world and Eagles fans already know who their opponents will be.

The league uses multiple factors in determining the year schedule of games.

There’s a cycle of inter-conference faceoffs; each NFC division rotates through each AFC division every four seasons and the other NFC divisions every three seasons.

In addition, where a team finishes within their division dictates a same-finish matchup with one team from the opposite conference and whichever divisions aren’t in the rotation for that season.

Philadelphia previously had one of the more difficult schedules over the past two years, but 2024 will see the Eagles among the top ten easiest schedules based on win-loss percentages from last year.

Offering an early glimpse into where the Eagles could finish this season, here’s how Philadelphia’s 17-game slate for 2024 stacks up to the rest of the league, in February.

For Cowboys to be all-in, they need to re-sign Dak Prescott

“All in” can mean a number of things but if the Cowboys really intend to make a major effort in 2024, it means they have to re-sign Dak Prescott, says @ReidDHanson.

“The king is dead. Long live the king.” It’s a customary phrase said at the passing of a monarch. It symbolizes the turning of the page as the new king is coronated and serves to immediately shift focus from the past to the future.

For Cowboys’ fans – don’t worry, Jerry Jones appears to be in fine health – it illustrates the front office’s readiness to move on to the 2024 season. After such a disastrous ending to the previous campaign, the Cowboys are eager to pour dirt on the old season and immediate shift into 2024 mode in one fell swoop.

In discussions with reporters at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Jerry and Stephen Jones wasted no time hyping up the new season, giving just brief homage to the heartbreaking opportunity that was lost weeks ago.

“I think we’ll push the hell out of it,” Owner Jones said describing his level of aggressiveness in the coming offseason. “It will be going all in on different people than you’ve done in the past. We’ll be going all in…”

The, this year will be different vibe, was nothing new from Jones. The Cowboys’ master salesman does this every year about this time of winter, but use of the phrase “all in” was undoubtedly a new addition.

All-in is a strategy fans have been clamoring for, but the Cowboys have been avoiding. All in requires money and resources. It also could come at the cost of future campaigns. For a franchise that’s built on selling hope and hype each season, lean years are something they typically try to avoid.

But with fat new contracts approaching, the biggest window of opportunity appears to be closing. CeeDee Lamb and Micah Parsons will both be moving off their affordable rookie deals and into top-of-the-market territory. If Dallas wants to strike while the iron is hot and resources are available, 2024 is the time to do it.

Still, it’s difficult to hear the Joneses words without a certain degree of skepticism.

What is “all in?”

According to the most recent numbers from OTC, the Cowboys are over the cap already. Their -$22,805,299 in effective cap space ranks them bottom-six in the NFL this year. While most NFL fans know this cap number is highly malleable and not something that would inhibit a team from fulfilling their widest desires, the Cowboys typically paint the cap in a different light.

On countless occasions the Joneses have used the salary cap to explain and/or excuse their lack of activity in the offseason. They’ve used the excuse to avoid signing their own free agents and used it to explain why they didn’t sign good outside free agents.

The salary cap has served an important purpose for them and other owners. In many ways the salary cap was created by the owners to curb their own spending and justify it to their fanbases. It keeps their costs low and their profits high. It was made in the name of parity but used as a way to deflect blame.

When Jerry Jones says “all in” does he mean all that’s available today (which is nothing), a few dollars he’ll free up through restructuring deals in March (which is modest), or is he really talking about maximizing his spending power?

Bills’ Josh Allen named finalist for 2023 NFL MVP Award

#Bills’ Josh Allen named finalist for AP 2023 NFL MVP Award:

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen has been announced as a finalist for the Associated Press 2023 NFL MVP Award.

Allen led the Bills to their fourth-straight AFC title with an 11-6 record. Overall on the year, Allen completed 66.5 percent of his passes, put away 44 total touchdowns, with 4,306 passing yards which finished as the fourth-most among QBs in 2023.

As it naturally goes with Allen, his giveaways is what typically hampers him. His 18 interceptions was second-most in the league.

The winner of the 2023 NFL MVP Award will be announced during the 13th annual NFL Honors ceremony on Feb. 8.

In total, there are five players up for the honor, including the Bills quarterback.

Here’s the full list of MVP finalists for the 2023 regular season: