If you truly love your franchise quarterback, why not leak a false story about him demanding $40 million per year and see how it lands?
That appears to be what the Cowboys did with Dak Prescott. But the NFL Network report to that effect landed with a thud.
I don’t have actual proof this is what happened, but this reeks of a poorly executed smear campaign. It’s a foolish ploy by Jerry Jones and son Stephen, if that’s in fact what happened. It only sows seeds of discord with Prescott and his high-powered reps at CAA. Of course, all this will go away once Prescott signs a record-breaking contract that pays him more than $30 million per season. It seems to be the going rate, even for quarterbacks such as Prescott who haven’t led a team to conference title games.
Jerry insists what other players are making isn’t what is driving this negotiation.
“My focus is on our team, not where any of these players contracts are relative to another player,” Jones told reporters. “I’m not dealing in the market. I’m dealing with how to fit this team together.”
Prescott has wisely kept his cool during these negotiations. He is the consummate pro in that he knows his teammates have their eye on his every move. This is no time for him to express displeasure because he’s eventually going to get paid. I’ve advocated for months the Cowboys should consider letting Prescott play into the final year of his contract. He may drive up the money with a great season, but that’s not a bad thing for anyone, including Jerry. Prescott can afford to play it cool, in part because everyone admits he’s quarterback of the future for this organization.
His good friend Zeke Elliott has taken a different approach, because he knows his days in the league are numbered based on the position he plays. There’s no turning back for him at this point. This orchestrated campaign by Jerry and Stephen to suggest rookie Tony Pollard is the complete package is borderline comical. It’s a little embarrassing that the media seems to be joining this ruse. I knew even before the holdout Pollard might reach “camp phenom” status, but now he’s become a bargaining tool for the Joneses. I bet even the coaches from his alma mater Memphis are surprised to hear Pollard discussed as a potential every-down back. Elliott and his representatives will not fall for this tactic. Deadlines are what get these deals done, and Jerry freely admitted Tuesday that missing regular-season games is the only real leverage Elliott has.
What Elliott has already accomplished is throwing Jones off his negotiating schedule. He likely planned to do Elliott’s contract third, based on the running back having two years left. Zeke has stiff-armed his way to the front, with no regard for Jerry having done battle with Roger Goodell on his behalf two years ago. None of this is truly a distraction unless Elliott doesn’t have a deal done before the season opener. It’s a been a fun national and local talking point, but Elliott’s absence certainly hasn’t undermined camp.
The way Amari Cooper and Prescott have handled questions about their contracts has only endeared them to teammates and fans. I know $30 million per season seems obscene for a quarterback who doesn’t put up numbers like Pat Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers, but no one will care if Prescott leads his team to a Super Bowl.
The Cowboys set the precedent for paying huge money to a quarterback with limited playoff success during the Tony Romo era. In many ways, this is business as usual. I don’t believe for a second Jerry or Stephen think any less of Prescott because his agents are trying to extract a huge pay day. And that’s why leaking negative information seems like such a poor strategy.
If Prescott doesn’t get a deal before the regular-season, I don’t think it will impact his performance. The Cowboys are fortunate to have non-divas in Dak and Amari. The one diva on this roster has cut in line for his pay day. What else would you expect?
