logo
Cowboys Called Out Over Dak Prescott Contract Decisions

Cowboys Called Out Over Dak Prescott Contract Decisions

Newsweek09-07-2025
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
When it comes to quarterbacks being on the hot seat, it's hard to imagine the Dallas Cowboys are looking at Dak Prescott as a potential benching candidate in 2025.
The former fourth-round pick will return under center as the guaranteed starter, coming off a long injury recovery. Although Prescott couldn't get a full season in last year, he left the field with a 3-5 record, throwing for under 2,000 yards and posting his worst passer rating.
There's a bad taste left, and it's caused some questions about his ability to be the guy to get the Cowboys to the NFL's biggest stage.
Read More: Dak Prescott Raves About Dallas Cowboys' Offseason Addition
While listing out the NFL's hot seat rankings for the quarterback position, Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio mentioned Prescott. Although he made it clear that Prescott probably isn't actually on the hot seat in Dallas, the reason behind that doesn't have anything to do with his play, however.
Dak Prescott #4 of the Dallas Cowboys looks on during the first half against the Detroit Lions at AT&T Stadium on October 13, 2024 in Arlington, Texas.
Dak Prescott #4 of the Dallas Cowboys looks on during the first half against the Detroit Lions at AT&T Stadium on October 13, 2024 in Arlington, Texas."He's probably not on the hot seat, because his $60 million per year contract would wreak havoc on the salary cap if the Cowboys were to cut or trade him," Florio wrote.
"The complication for the Cowboys is that his $45 million salary for 2027 becomes fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2026 league year. They're basically stuck — all because they waited too long to give him his second contract, and then waited too long to give him his third contract."
Reality is striking for Dallas. Prescott will be 35 in 2028, when he's set to make a base salary of $55 million. That's a large investment in the quarterback, and it's really in their best interest to see it through at this point.
Here's the good news for the Cowboys: Prescott's last full season was among his best.
Read More: Dak Prescott Gives Critical Injury Update Before Cowboys' Camp
The eight-game run in 2024 surely wasn't promising, but the 17-game stretch in 2023 involved some league-leading stats for the QB. Prescott completed an NFL-high 410 passes and tossed for 36 touchdowns, which also led the NFL. He threw just nine interceptions after throwing 15 the year prior.
In 2023, the Cowboys achieved a 12-5 record. Prescott completed a career-high 70 percent of his passes for 4,516 yards. He also rushed 55 times for 242 yards and two touchdowns.
With the Cowboys adding another notable weapon in George Pickens, Prescott has plenty to work with in the passing game in 2025. His value might be at its lowest after a rough season, but the Cowboys are unlikely to view Prescott as on the hot seat at this time.
For more New York Giants and NFL news, head over to Newsweek Sports
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Did the Steelers overpay T.J. Watt with $123 million extension
Did the Steelers overpay T.J. Watt with $123 million extension

Yahoo

time2 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Did the Steelers overpay T.J. Watt with $123 million extension

Yahoo Sports' Matt Harmon and Charles McDonald debate the 7-time Pro Bowl defensive ends recent contract extension with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Hear the full conversation on 'Football 301' - and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you listen. View more Video Transcript T.J. Watt gets a big bag from the Pittsburgh Steelers. They gave T.J. Watt a 3-year contract extension worth $123 million. The deal, uh, includes $108 million in guaranteed money. He is now the highest paid non-quarterback in the league. Watt's coming off, like, kind of a weird end to last season. What was your, uh, did you, did this one catch you by surprise at all when you saw this job? Uh, I like, yes and no, kind of, because was T.J. Watt ever going to play anywhere else but Pittsburgh? Like, there's just no shot. He's like, he's going to die in yellow and black. It would just feel weird if he played anywhere else. So I'm not surprised that they, they extended him. I guess the amount of money was a little surprising because I thought they were gonna play hardball a little bit, like, hey, you're 31 years old. You know, usually, usually don't see NFL teams like pay for past performance like this. Because I, I mean, the chances that T.J. Watt plays at like Myles Garrett or Micah Parsons level for the next two years, like where he's guaranteed to be on the roster, seems kind of slim to me, but I also kind of don't hate the idea of like just keeping your franchise legends around as long as they're still productive players. I do think that that matters. It's got, you know, intangible value that's kind of hard to to to nail down, but it just it would just suck to not have T.J. Watt in his Steelers uniform after all that he's done for that franchise and how good he's been. And if you can kind of become one of like the name brand defenders for that franchise, like you're on track to be in the Hall of Fame. So obviously it's a guy you want to keep around, but for him to become like the highest paid non-quarterback and to get all that guaranteed money, I mean, great, that's great for T.J. I was just a little surprised that they ended up honing that up, but, um, you know, the Steelers operate a little bit differently. I, I just thought that they were going to say, hey, that stuff was in the past, and we got to pay you for what we think you're gonna be in the future. I don't think he's gonna be the best edge rusher in football, but he's still got the back for it, so what do I know? Close

Dolphins lineman Bayron Matos airlifted to hospital after suffering undisclosed injury, is in stable condition
Dolphins lineman Bayron Matos airlifted to hospital after suffering undisclosed injury, is in stable condition

Yahoo

time2 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Dolphins lineman Bayron Matos airlifted to hospital after suffering undisclosed injury, is in stable condition

Miami Dolphins offensive lineman Bayron Matos was airlifted by helicopter after suffering an undisclosed training camp injury Wednesday, according to the Miami Herald. The Herald reported that Matos is in stable condition but that the Dolphins declined to say anything else about the 6-foot-7, 334-pound lineman's injury. Matos' injury appeared to occur during an accidental collision with a teammate late in practice, per the Herald, which also reported that Matos remained on the field, where he was attended to by Dolphins medical staff and surrounded by teammates, for at least 10 minutes before his hospital trip. Matos didn't play a snap for the Dolphins last season, although he did see the field during the 2024 preseason. The former USF football walk-on is still relatively new to the sport. He was born in the Dominican Republic, where he played baseball and basketball. He moved to the United States when he was in high school and eventually played three years of Division I college basketball — the first two at New Mexico and the third at USF. He gave football a try at USF, initially lining up at defensive end before ultimately switching to the other side of the ball. Matos played 22 total snaps for the Bulls during the 2022 season, according to Pro Football Focus, which has him down for 11 special teams snaps and 11 defensive snaps that year. Flash forward to January 2024, and Matos was one of 16 NFL hopefuls who received an opportunity to showcase his talents via the league's International Player Pathway in 2024. The program provides international athletes a chance to work out in front of NFL scouts at IMG Academy before the draft and then be eligible to fill a 17th practice squad spot for any of the league's 32 teams. Matos went undrafted last year, yet the Dolphins signed him. After training camp, they brought him back for their practice squad.

Why the Commanders should ‘just pay' Terry McLaurin
Why the Commanders should ‘just pay' Terry McLaurin

Yahoo

time2 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Why the Commanders should ‘just pay' Terry McLaurin

Yahoo Sports' Matt Harmon and Charles McDonald react as Washington's top wide receiver does not report to training camp amid a contract dispute. Hear the full conversation on 'Football 301' - and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you listen. View more Video Transcript But I think the most important point is the Jayden Daniels part of this. Because you rarely see a rookie quarterback and wide receiver just catch fire like that in their first years working together. That is such an integral part of what they were on offense. Especially once you get into some of the red zone. Um, success that they had and really just like the whole I guess atmosphere around Jayden's rookie year, like it doesn't happen without Terry McLaurin being there and being as good as he was. Like that connection is so important that it would just be paramount for me to find them just to keep that together no matter what, and then we can build around that. Because as long as you got Jayden on the rookie contract. I would be surprised if Terry McLaurin is still on the team by the time you get to the Jayden Daniels extension. So why not just pay him now? A little weird that they're playing hardball. Um, but one thing I will say, Terry, go just go to practice and not get fined $50,000 every day because I don't care how much money you make. That's going to add up really quickly in a way that's probably going to hurt your pocket. So, um, just get there, see if you can hold and see if you can negotiate. But for the Commanders, again, kind of like the Bengals, are you not going for it all this year? You were just in the NFC title game. Um, and I know that the NFC title game didn't go well for you, and you're probably still a tier below the Eagles as far as overall roster construction, but this is arguably the most important part of your offense. I don't even know if it's arguably. Why not just get this done? I think it's really confusing. Again, like the past conversations, we don't have all the details on what exactly Terry is asking for, but I can't imagine he's getting asked to be paid like Jamar Chase or Justin Jefferson. So if I'm CD Lamb, uh, excuse me, if I'm, if I'm if I'm Terry McLaurin's agent, I'm saying like the like $32 million, just under $33 million that DK Metcalf got, like that Garrett Wilson got, that's what I'd want. And again, it's like a 3-year deal, uh, that's what I'd be looking for. It's, and he's totally justified in doing that, like he's coming off a much much better season than certainly DK Metcalf and Garrett Wilson too, honestly, just because, I mean, he played obviously in a much better, much better quarterback play. That's, that's just the nature of the receiver position. Close

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store