There were three big contract situations the Dallas Cowboys could’ve addressed this offseason, and thus far there haven’t been any extensions agreed upon. Quarterback Dak Prescott, wide receiver CeeDee Lamb and pass rusher Micah Parsons are all in line to get new contracts, but the organization hasn’t been able to get any of them done.
That’s going to cost Jerry and Stephen Jones because as the days continue to pass, players at the same positions around the league are getting huge deals that cause prices to rise. It’s something the team has never understood, by waiting for the market to set and delaying large extensions, the cost always goes up, it never comes down. While smart teams are busy signing their best players, the Cowboys appear content to count the leaves.
Isn’t this the same franchise that boasted they aren’t aggressive in free agency because they like to sign their own players? Like much of what the Joneses say, that philosophy rings hollow.
Here’s a look at who has signed mega deals at QB, WR and edge that will force the Cowboys to pay more now than they would’ve if they had been more proactive.
QBs: Trevor Lawrence, Jared Goff, Kirk Cousins
If the Cowboys were waiting to see what some of the other QBs around the league were going to sign for, they likely aren’t pleased with the results.
Kirk Cousins signed with the Atlanta Falcons in free agency and will earn $45 million annually while getting $100 million guaranteed. That’s a large chunk of change for a quarterback who’s going to be 36-years old (five years older than Prescott) and coming off a torn Achilles.
In Detroit, the Lions extended Jared Goff with a four-year deal that averages $53 million per year and has over $170 million in total guarantees. Drafted in the same year as Prescott, Goff is a little younger, but Prescott has unquestionably been the better player. Its a huge deal for Goff, and until the next QB contract came along, should’ve given the Cowboys a clue at where they needed to be with Prescott.
Jacksonville Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence was the latest signal caller to cash in, signing a new deal worth $55 million annually, with $200 million guaranteed. If the Cowboys were waiting for Lawrence’s deal to count the leaves, they can’t be happy with the cleanup, and it illicited a great reaction from NFL Network team reporter Jane Slater.
Prescott has been a better player than Lawrence, and despite the age difference, Prescott has shown to be still in his prime with two monster seasons when healthy over the past three years. If Lawrence is worth $55 million per year, the talk that’s surrounding Prescott being worth $60 feels appropriate.
It’s also a number the Cowboys may not have had to reach if they had already extended Prescott.
WRs: Justin Jefferson, Amon-Ra St. Brown, A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, Nico Collins, Jaylen Waddle
More tree leaves have fallen over at wide receiver, and Lamb’s price has grown as well. Early on it was extensions for a couple of Philadelphia Eagle WRs who are now considered bargains.
A.J. Brown signed a three-year extension for $96 million, with $84 million in guarantees, while DeVonta Smith inked a new deal for $75 million with $51 million guaranteed.
The in-state rival Houston Texans also jumped in front of the Cowboys in the market by paying WR Nico Collins $72.75 million over three years, with $52 million guaranteed after his breakout season.
The Miami Dolphins agreed to an extension with fourth-year WR Jaylen Waddle. His deal is worth $84.75 million over three years and includes $76 million guaranteed.
Rising star WR Amon-Ra St. Brown scored a mega-deal with the Lions as well, and the numbers in his deal were eye-opening. Brown got a four-year extension for $120 million, where his $77 million guaranteed was the highest for a WR until the next receiver broke the bank.
That WR was Minnesota Viking Justin Jefferson, who agreed to a four-year, $140 million extension with a whopping $110 million guaranteed. The Cowboys wanted to see what Jefferson got and the contract was staggering, setting the parameters for where Lamb might slot in.
Aside from Jefferson, Lamb is the best WR among this group and a case can be made the Cowboys WR is closing the gap to be considered the top receiver in the league. Dallas waited to see what Jefferson was going to be paid, and now they’re going to need to find a way to match or surpass those numbers.
Edge rushers: Brian Burns, Josh Allen, Danielle Hunter
Parsons is two years away from free agency and neither the team nor Parsons realistically were going to agree to an extension this offseason. There’s too much time for Parsons to watch the price tag climb and after seeing what a few top candidates got this Spring, the All-Pro edge rusher isn’t just going to break the bank, he’s going to cause it to collapse.
The Jaguars agreed to a deal with their top pass rusher when they extended Josh Allen with a five-year, $150 million deal that includes $88 million guaranteed. With two double-digit sack seasons in five years and 17 sacks over the previous three seasons, Allen finally broke out in 2023 with 17.5 sacks. By comparison, Parsons has 40.5 sacks through his first three years and has been an All-Pro each season.
Veteran edge rusher Brian Burns was traded to the New York Giants this offseason and agreed to a new deal nearly identical to Allen’s. The contracts value is $150 million over five years and with $87.5 million guaranteed. Burns has 29.5 sacks over the past three years.
One of the top free agents in the offseason, veteran pass rusher Danielle Hunter, got a shorter deal, but almost all of it is guaranteed. The two-year, $49 million deal came with $48 million guaranteed, a structure which might be of interest to Parsons. Hunter’s annual cost isn’t among the top 5 like Allen or Burns, but his contract length and guarantees are noteworthy.
Parsons is better than any pass rusher on this list and he expects to be paid like one of the top players in the game, not just for his position.
It was doubtful Parsons was going to be extended this offseason, but the Cowboys got to see the cost for the top edge rushers in the league. The price for one of the NFL’s best players at any position continues to rise.
Who's next? Tua Tagovailoa, Jordan Love, Ja'Marr Chase, Brandon Aiyuk
The Cowboys have missed the boat on getting out ahead of most deals, but there’s good news, there are other players in need of extensions and the Joneses can still win a deal or two before those dominoes fall.
QBs who are eligible for considerable new deals include the Dolphins signal caller Tua Tagovailoa and Green Bay Packers’ QB Jordan Love. It’s hard to see either getting more than Lawrence got, but Love’s stock is on the rise after he improved rapidly last season and outplayed Prescott in the wild-card game. Tagovailoa is a solid QB, but he’s not a top-five guy, and he’s not in Prescott’s class.
However both young QBs could cash in before Prescott does.
At WR, Chase and Lamb are similar players and two of the few receivers in the league who are considered among the top 5 in the league. Since Jefferson got paid, the expectation is that Chase and Lamb’s deal (if done) will come in just slightly below that threshold. Lamb has statistically been the better player, but there’s little separation between the two talented WRs. If the Cowboys wait much longer, they risk Chase getting a big extension that Lamb’s representatives will measure for a potential deal. After waiting all offseason for Jefferson, the team would be wise not wait again on Chase.
Aiyuk is also due for a new contract and although he’s not in Lamb’s class he’s one of the best all-around WRs. The last two seasons have been Aiyuk’s only 1,000-yard campaigns and he is coming off his best season with a career-high 1,342 yards receiving and almost 18 yards per catch.
The San Francisco 49ers haven’t extended Aiyuk and there have been rumors they were shopping him in possible trades, but that never materialized. Aiyuk isn’t likely to get the type of deal Jefferson did, yet he could approach what some of the other WRs got this offseason. At $25 million-plus annually, it would be the type of deal the Cowboys would have to pay attention to and beat with Lamb.
What happens now?
It takes two to tango. The agents for Prescott and Lamb might have been waiting to see what happened with other players just as much as the Cowboys. The leaves appear to all but have fallen, so the framework for deals with Prescott, Lamb and Parsons have become clearer.
There’s still time to get deals done with any of the Big 3, and the Cowboys are notorious for getting contracts completed in training camp. The latest example came last July at the start of camp when the team extended cornerback Trevon Diggs, so there’s no need to panic.
However, as the summer wears on it becomes increasingly tougher to find the middle ground. For Prescott, he may find it more advantageous to wait until after the season and become a free agent. Since the Cowboys can’t use the franchise tag, Prescott would be in line to get one of the biggest contracts in NFL history on the open market.
If Lamb and the team can’t come to an agreement before the season, the Cowboys could use the franchise tag to keep him from becoming a free agent in 2025. And if they still can’t get a deal, the team can use the tag again in the following two seasons. That seems unrealistic, but with the Joneses, one never knows.
The team has already exercised the fifth-year option for next season, and they also can keep Parsons with the franchise tag starting in 2026. Dallas controls Parsons for longer than either Lamb or Prescott, so they have more time to work out a long-term deal.
In what has been a disaster of an offseason for the Cowboys, perhaps the biggest mistake is not getting out ahead of these negotiations and extending Prescott or Lamb. The price to retain these All-Pro players has continued to rise, and playing a game of chicken with your franchise QB is the epitome of stupid.
Time is close to running out on extending their priority players and if the Cowboys do find a way to gets deals done, they’ll now be paying a premium. That’s the cost of waiting, a lesson the Joneses fail to learn.
