The price of quarterbacks continues to rise. If you have even a decent quarterback, you better be prepared to pay the dough to keep him. The Dallas Cowboys are about to find that out firsthand with quarterback Dak Prescott, who stands to be a big winner of the latest wave of quarterback contracts.
The Jacksonville Jaguars signed Trevor Lawrence to a five-year extension that averages $55 million annually. That ties Lawrence with Bengals star Joe Burrow for the highest among all players, let alone quarterbacks, in the NFL.
This begs the question, "Who will be the first player to get $60 million per year?" That player may very well be Prescott.
That was further emphasized by NFL insider Jordan Schultz, who believes Lawrence's deal "reassures" Prescott will get $60 million per year, whether from the Cowboys or another team in free agency next season.
It's a fair belief. Most quarterbacks have received new deals to help reset the market. The only other quarterback in line for a new deal is Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. His contract may fall in line with those of Lawrence, Burrow, and Chargers signal-caller Justin Herbert, to name a few.
Prescott, on the other hand, had the pedigree and resume to command $60 million per year. He is starting to gain more leverage as the other deals happen. He can simply tell the Cowboys, "If you don't pay me, someone else will."
The Falcons just gave Kirk Cousins $45 million per year and $100 million guaranteed. If that doesn't tell you teams will pay for a quarterback, nothing will.
Prescott is standing on a gold mine, and he knows it. Maybe the Cowboys do feel Trey Lance is eventually the answer, but one can argue Prescott holds plenty of leverage here.
The bottom line is that it's becoming more and more real that Prescott will become the NFL's Six(ty) Million Dollar Man.
