Dallas Cowboys, Dak Prescott #4 (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
The starting quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys the past four seasons remains unsigned. So would Dak Prescott consider a different course of action?
He was a fourth-round draft choice in 2016 and the 135th player selected.
And Mississippi State quarterback Dak Prescott has started every game for the Dallas Cowboys for the past four seasons. That also includes a combined three postseason contests when the team won the NFC East in 2016 and ’18.
His 64 regular-season contests add up to a completion percentage of 65.8, good for 15,778 yards and more than twice as many touchdown passes (97) as interceptions (36). There’s also an additional 1,221 yards and 21 scores on the ground.
As a rookie (via Spotrac), Prescott inked a four-year, $2.72 million deal. These days, he’s an unsigned free agent that was slapped with the exclusive rights franchise tag. That means no offers from another club.
For now, Prescott – coming off the most productive season of his brief career – and the Cowboys have still not agreed to a new deal. There have been many numbers bantered about for the last few months. So what if the player and the team can’t get this done? Would the 2016 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and two-time Pro Bowler actually consider a holdout?
Not according to one football analyst.
ESPN’s Dan Graziano explained on Wednesday afternoon on NFL Live (courtesy of Riley Gates of 247Sports.com) that he did not feel the 26-year-old quarterback would sit out if the team doesn’t agree to a new contract.
“Because I think ultimately if they don’t get a deal done, I think Dak Prescott would play on a $31.4 million franchise tag this year. I don’t think that’s the worst possible outcome for a player that was making $2 million, say last season.”
The Dallas Cowboys have a new head coach in Mike McCarthy but the same offensive coordinator in Kellen Moore. That’s a positive for the team’s starting signal-caller the past four seasons, as well as the fact that the club’s pass-catching corps looks to be upgraded as well.
It would be a tough call not to want to play with the team’s array of offensive talent. And it’s a decision that would be very surprising given Prescott’s reliability.