Players winning negotiating leverage over the teams they play for is still a bit of a sore subject in many fan circles. Some long for the days before NFL free agency when teams permanently held the rights to a player and contracts were negotiated in house rather than on the open market. These were days before the NFL salary cap and before teams like the Dallas Cowboys convinced fans spending money was zero-sum pie splitting.
In today’s NFL things sometimes tilt heavily into the players’ direction. The threat of free agency and scarcity of alternate options can make it a seller’s market, often leading to player-friendly deals. ESPN ran through a list of player-friendly deals position by position, and the Cowboys had a name on the top of that list.
It should be of no surprise Dak Prescott’s contract was named the most player-friendly contract of all NFL quarterbacks.
He’s not only the highest paid QB in the NFL, but he’s the highest paid player at any position. Prescott’s contract, negotiated last summer, reset the market to a level that has yet to be topped. The club waited until Joe Burrow, Jordan Love, Tua Tagovailoa and Jared Goff all signed before closing the deal with their own franchise quarterback. That’s a mistake that looks even more foolish a year after the deal was sealed.
Prescott is signed to a four-year, $240 million deal with $231 million in total guarantees. It includes both a no-trade clause as well as a no-tag clause, carryovers from the prior deal between the two sides. The $60 million average value zoomed past what appears to be the league’s ceiling of $55 million per year, and hasn’t been approached by either of the two deals signed this offseason; Josh Allen with Buffalo ($55 million) or Brock Purdy with San Francisco ($53 million).
When Prescott approached the 2024 season, the Cowboys had very few options. Since they couldn’t trade him, they risked losing him in free agency for nothing more than a midround compensatory pick. With no players ready in the pipeline it would have signaled what would likely be a multiyear rebuild with no guarantee they could replace Prescott with a QB of equal or greater talent.
The contract has sparked much criticism in the national media as well as internal Cowboys fan circles. The front office has pointed to this contract as a reason why they can’t upgrade other parts of the roster, and some fans have resented Prescott for it. In all fairness, Prescott’s injury history and paltry postseason success haven’t done him any favors either.
It’s safe to say if the Cowboys hadn’t had paid Prescott to a record-breaking player-friendly deal, someone else would have on the open market. Prescott was the runner up in MVP voting and has consistently posted elite passing numbers despite constant turnover at play-caller, offensive line, receiving corps and running back room.
The negotiations between the Cowboys and Prescott’s camp are a masterclass in leverage. The Cowboys used all of their leverage in franchise tagging Prescott for a season and Prescott’s team won the leverage battle every day since.
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Cowboys overshot market by $5 million as ESPN IDs league’s most player-friendly contract
Reporting by Reid D Hanson, Cowboys Wire / Cowboys Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
