NFL Insider Explains Dak Prescott's Contract and Cowboys' Salary Cap Outlook for 2025

With the Dallas Cowboys seemingly comfortable with Dak Prescott playing out the final season of his current contract, there are a lot of questions about what the future looks like for him and the club.

Per ESPN's Todd Archer, the "deadline of deadlines" for Prescott to sign a new deal with the Cowboys is March 12, 2025, when the league year begins:

"Without a new contract by then, Prescott will count at least $40.46 million against the 2025 salary cap, and he will not be on the Cowboys' roster.

"With a contract done before then, Prescott's cap number will be at least $25 million as a result of the restructures the Cowboys have used on the current deal, including converting his $5 million roster bonus earlier this month. Add in the yearly proration of a new signing bonus plus his base salary, and it's likely Prescott's cap number on an extension will exceed $40 million in 2025."

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported on Tuesday both Prescott and the Cowboys have a "mutual understanding" of the quarterback's contract situation, and the team hasn't made him any offers for a new deal.

Dallas has already reworked Prescott's current deal by converting a $5 million roster bonus into a signing bonus to clear $4 million in cap space for the 2024 season.

Per Over the Cap, the Cowboys can still create up to $22.2 million in cap room for 2024 by restructuring Prescott's contract. This type of move would seem to indicate they intend to re-sign him, otherwise what would they gain by pushing even more of his money into the future when he might not be on the team after next season?

Archer noted there is really no reason for the Cowboys to restructure Prescott's deal at this point with all of the major free agents off the board.

"If they do restructure the base salary," Archer wrote, "then Prescott would count close to $58 million against the 2025 cap if he doesn't have an extension before the start of the next league year."

The Cowboys are currently projected to be $100.6 million under the 2025 cap estimated at $260 million, even with Prescott's $40 million cap hit on the books.

They have all that room to operate because CeeDee Lamb, DeMarcus Lawrence, Zack Martin and Brandin Cooks are entering the final season of their contracts before void years kick in.

The 2025 cap number will go down when the Cowboys pick up the fifth-year option on Micah Parsons' rookie deal.

Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News reported Parsons' option will be as a defensive end, rather than a linebacker. The fifth-year option as a defensive end will guarantee Parsons $21.32 million, rather than the $24 million he would get as a linebacker.

Lamb is expected to sign a long-term extension with the Cowboys at some point this offseason, but owner Jerry Jones at least floated other areas on the roster that might have to take a hit in order to keep a highly-paid wide receiver on the roster.

"He's out there and he's more valuable than anybody else," Jones said Tuesday at the NFL owners meetings. "But that valuable, to have to give up four or five players to have him, you have to get that reconciled. That's what I'm trying to say. It's a lot quicker and easier said than done."

It's not unusual to see teams try to save money at certain positions to give themselves some cap flexibility by trading away a good player when they are seeking a lucrative new deal.

Wide receiver is a prime example where some teams have tried to save money in recent years. The Minnesota Vikings used the first-round pick they acquired from the Buffalo Bills in the Stefon Diggs trade to draft Justin Jefferson in 2020.

This strategy is almost never employed with quarterbacks because of how risky it is to move on from one who has had a lot of success in the NFL.

Prescott's four-year, $160 million contract signed in March 2021 gave him tremendous leverage over the Cowboys. His camp was able to negotiate a no-tag and no-trade clause in the deal.

If for some reason Dallas decides it wants to go in a different direction at quarterback after the 2024 season, the front office won't be able to get anything in return for Prescott.

Prescott, whether it's from the Cowboys or another team, can reasonably seek the richest contract in NFL history because he's not facing the possibility of receiving the franchise tag.

Kirk Cousins, who will turn 36 in August and coming off a torn Achilles suffered on Oct. 29, got a four-year, $180 million contract with $100 million guaranteed from the Atlanta Falcons in free agency.

Prescott will only be 32 years old when the 2025 season begins. The three-time Pro Bowler has suffered significant injuries in his career, including a compound fracture and dislocated ankle in Week 5 of the 2020 season, but he's overcome those setbacks to play like one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL.

Since the start of the 2021 season, Prescott has the best touchdown percentage (6.1), ranks third in touchdown passes (96) and sixth in passing yards (11,825) among all quarterbacks.