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Odds Favor Dak Prescott’s Next Contract with Cowboys Being for Only 1 Year

Robert Duff

by Robert Duff in NFL Football

Updated Jul 14, 2020 · 11:18 AM PDT

Dak Prescott celebrates
Time is running out for Dak and the Cowboys - will they get a long term deal done? Photo from Wiki Commons.
  • According to the latest odds, the next contract that Dak Prescott signs won’t be for more than one season
  • Should you play the favored under, or will the Dallas Cowboys be in the mood to lock their quarterback up for several years?
  • Analysis of these odds, and estimations on what the future holds for Prescott are assessed in the following story

Like most quarterbacks, Dak Prescott is more prone towards wanting to go long. The Dallas Cowboys, however, may be inclined to stick with the short game for the time being.

The Cowboys have already placed the franchise tag on Prescott. The QB opted to sign the franchise tender last month, meaning that he won’t be eligible for free agency until next year.

Due to the franchise tag being invoked, Dallas has until 4 p.m. ET on Wednesday to sign Prescott to a long-term pact. Otherwise, he’ll play this season on a one-year deal through which he’ll be paid $31.4 million.

A prop wager on Prescott’s contract status strongly favors the latter being the case. Odds are -225 that Prescott’s next contract with the Cowboys will be less than 1.5 years in length.

Odds on Length of Dak Prescott’s Next Contract With Dallas Cowboys

Length Odds
Under 1.5 years -225
Over 1.5 years +160

Odds taken July 14th.

Over 1.5 years comes with odds of +160 attached to it.

Time Is Running Out

If a new deal with Prescott isn’t done by the Wednesday deadline, the full $31.4 million of his franchise tag value will count against the Cowboys’ salary cap this season. That should offer incentive to get the deal done from the point of view of Dallas management.

According to sources close to the situation, the hold up in negotiations is more related to length of term than it is to monetary issues. Prescott’s camp is seeking a four-year deal. The Cowboys want to keep the meter running through five years.

Once Wednesday’s deadline passes, the one-year $31.4-million pact is the only option for either side. Players with franchise tags are prevented from signing any multi-year contracts until the end of the regular season on Jan. 3rd, 2021.

Cowboys Standing Pat

There is a constituency that believes the Cowboys dropped the ball by allowing the Super Bowl champions Kansas City Chiefs to sign QB Patrick Mahomes to a contract extension before Dallas had done its deal with Dak. In reality, this might prove to be the best thing for both sides in the Prescott negotiations.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones didn’t want to be the team to set the new bar on what elite NFL QBs will be paid going forward. The Chiefs have now done that and they’ve done so with arguably the best QB in the business.

Considering the perspective of the Cowboys, here’s why this is a good thing – paralleling Mahomes to Prescott is like comparing apples to road apples. It’s not that Prescott isn’t a solid QB. He passed for a career-high 4,902 yards last season. However, Mahomes captured an NFL MVP and a Super Bowl over the past two seasons. Prescott is 1-2 in the postseason.

If Mahomes can give the Chiefs a decade, surely Prescott can invest five years in Dallas.

From Prescott’s point of view, Mahomes got a 10-year deal worth up to $503 million. Suddenly, Dak’s asking price of $35 million per season doesn’t seem outrageous.

Dak Deal Will Prescott On

Eventually, the Cowboys and Prescott will find common ground. Odds that this happens before Wednesday at 4 pm? Slim to none.

If a deal was getting done before the season, logic suggests that it would’ve been signed by now.

Pick: Under 1.5 years (-225).

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