Former NFL player and current analyst Sam Acho is among noteworthy individuals who believe the Dallas Cowboys should sign quarterback Dak Prescott to a contract extension as soon as possible.
"If you’re Dallas, the reason you should pay Dak now is that if you don’t pay him now, that price is going to go up later," Acho said during Tuesday's edition of ESPN's "First Take" program, as shared by Bridget Hyland of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. "We’ve seen how astronomically the price for quarterbacks has risen over the last year. If Dallas decides to wait and lets Dak play another close-to-MVP season, that price that you pay now will be significantly lower than you would pay in the future."
According to Pro Football Reference, Prescott became a finalist for the 2023 regular-season Most Valuable Player Award after he ended Week 18 ranked second in the NFL among qualified players with a 72.7 adjusted QBR, third with 4,516 passing yards, first with 36 touchdowns through the air and second with a 51.5% passing success rate. The 30-year-old is in the final year of his contract that prevents the Cowboys from retaining his rights for 2025 via the franchise tag and seemingly isn't close to inking any type of extension.
Quarterback Jordan Love reportedly could receive a massive extension from the Green Bay Packers at any time, one that may be more expensive than the five-year deal worth up to $275M with $142M fully guaranteed that Jacksonville Jaguars signal-caller Trevor Lawrence signed last month. Some think Prescott shouldn't settle for any agreement that pays him less than $60M per season.
"...If you don’t stick with Dak, who are you going to go to next that can give you the same sustained success that you’ve seen from Dak over the last several years? And so for me, those are the many reasons why you should have Dak be the highest-paid quarterback right now," Acho added.
The Cowboys have unproven 24-year-old quarterback Trey Lance on their roster, and they could replace Prescott with a short-term option, such as Kirk Cousins of the Atlanta Falcons, in March 2025. Perhaps Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones wants to see if Prescott can improve his career playoff record of 2-5 before guaranteeing his QB1 any money beyond the upcoming campaign.
