The Dallas Cowboys have agreed on a new contract with quarterback Dak Prescott. Various US media reports unanimously.
Prescott’s new contract is expected to run for four years and bring in the quarterback $ 160 million. By reaching certain contractual clauses, the sum can apparently rise to up to 164 million euros. $ 95 million is fully guaranteed, $ 126 million in the event of a serious injury, and the contract includes a $ 66 million signing bonus, the highest in NFL history.
In the first year of his contract, the 27-year-old will apparently receive $ 75 million – more than any player before him. However, Prescott’s cap hit next season will only be $ 22.2 million. Had Prescott been held on a franchise day, that amount would have been around $ 15 million higher.
Prescott’s contract should also contain a no-trade and a no-tag clause. This means that the quarterback cannot be traded against his will and at the end of his deal cannot be held by franchise tag.
In addition, the contract includes two so-called void years, i.e. contract years that dissolve automatically and only serve to extend the signing bonus over the maximum number of years (5) for the cap hit calculation. As a result, Prescott will still be on the cowboys’ books with $ 13.2 million in dead money in 2025 – unless another contract is agreed by then.
NFL: Dak Prescott is the most sought-after free agent on the market
Prescott was selected by the Cowboys in the fourth round of the 2016 draft and then surprisingly developed into the team’s starter. From 2016 to 2020 he started every game for his franchise, last season he seriously injured his ankle in the fifth game of the season and missed the rest of the season.
Due to his contract extension, the most sought-after free agent will not come onto the market. On top of that, the Cowboys should no longer be a candidate for a signing from Russell Wilson. The Seahawks quarterback had recently named Dallas as a possible target of his own.
Dak Prescott: The new contract at a glance
| season | Age | Basic content | Proportional signing bonus | Squad bonus | Guaranteed salary | Cap hit |
| 2021 | 28 | 9,000,000 | 13,200,000 | – | 9,000,000 | 22,200,000 |
| 2022 | 29 | 20,000,000 | 13,200,000 | – | 20,000,000 | 33,200,000 |
| 2023 | 30th | 31,000,000 | 13,200,000 | – | – | 44,200,000 |
| 2024 | 31 | 29,000,000 | 13,200,000 | 5,000,000 | – | 47,000,000 |
| 2025 | 32 | Void | 13,200,000 | – | 13,200,000 | |
| 2026 | 33 | Void | – | – | – | – |
| total | 89,000,000 | 66,000,000 | 5,000,000 | 29,000,000 | 160,000,000 |
*) Salary in US dollars.
