Dallas Cowboys must hand Dak Prescott the long-term contract he deserves

• Dak Prescott is heading for free agency again following $31 million franchise tag
• Cowboys face dilemma at quarterback after failing to agree contract extension
• Should Dallas hand Prescott a new contract?

It has been the elephant in the room in Dallas for the last two seasons: do the Dallas Cowboys sign Dak Prescott to a long term deal?

Both sides have merits. However, after how we watched the Cowboys stutter and stumble without Prescott and how inept they were in some games, it is the clear they should give Prescott his money.

Prescott signed the franchise tag in the off-season worth $31 million as he and Jerry Jones could not find common ground. This was despite both owner and player stating they wanted a resolution.

It’s not a good look when a player gets franchise tagged. Surely if Jerry Jones and the Cowboys thought Dak was the franchise’s quarterback for the next ten years then he would have already signed him up?

Dak Prescott: Failed contract extension talks

Heading into the season, Prescott bet on himself. Unfortunately, that bet seemed to lose.

Playing at home to the New York Giants, Prescott took off and got tackled. His ankle got caught underneath him and subsequently broke and dislocated. It was a truly horrible day for the guy who is so loved not only by fans and the locker room but the league as a whole.

So there it was, Dak bet on himself and lost. Or so we thought. With Prescott’s injury we were finally going to see just how important he was to the offense and my word it was an eye-opener.

Despite his 2-3 start to the season, Prescott played reasonably well and you could argue that had Ezekiel Elliott not fumbled the football for fun and if the defence could stop a nosebleed then the record could have been very different.

The defense was the worst in NFL history at one point and there was simply too much pressure on Prescott to consistently get touchdowns. Nevertheless, the Cowboys now had Andy Dalton to lead them for the rest of the year.

Dalton’s struggles

With Dalton at the helm, Dallas finished third in the division with a 6-10 record. It was up and down with Dalton, to say the least. Dalton suffered a 38-10 loss to the Cardinals, a 25-3 smashing from Washington and a 16-41 Thanksgiving blowout to the same opponent. Those disappointments were coupled with their final day 23-19 loss to the Giants where Dalton threw an awful pick that ended a bad season.

We should keep in mind the injuries that both Prescott and Dalton had to deal with. Tyron Smith was out for the majority of the year as was La’el Collins and add to that the retirement of Travis Frederick and all of a sudden that once-dominant offensive line was a shadow of its former self. Zach Martin was in and out of the team, too. It all adds up to the Cowboys 6-10 record.

It was not all doom and gloom, however, with Dalton leading the team on a three-game win streak, albeit over the Bengals, Eagles, and 49ers all of whom were injury-ravaged. Still, the issue remained. Dalton so often left a lot to be desired and at times it looked as if players simply were uninterested with him under centre.

There is no denying that Dak would have put up more points than 10, 3, 16, and 19 against the Cardinals, Giants, and Washington twice. Had Dak been playing you could make a very good argument that he would have beaten the Giants and Washington.

Injury shows Prescott’s value

If Dak’s injury showed us anything, it is just how valuable he is to the Cowboys and Jerry Jones has to swallow his pride and pay the man. Had he done it when he was supposed to, it could have saved him millions. Was he put off by the struggles of Jared Goff and Carson Wentz after they got big-money deals? Perhaps. Or does Jones not see Dak as the franchise’s quarterback?

As it stands the Cowboys have the No.10 pick in the 2021 draft and any Dallas fan will tell you that this pick should be on a defensive player. However, the big issue still remains and that is Dak Prescott’s contract.

It is clear how much he means to this organization and he is loved by both the fans and his team-mates.

Jerry Jones must open that cheque book because there is no doubt in anyone’s mind that Dak Prescott is the Dallas Cowboys quarterback for the next decade, because he is the undoubted leader of the franchise and the locker room.

Make it happen Jerry.