Dak Prescott may not have gotten paid, but he continues to pay it forward.

Dak Prescott has paid his dues over four seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. He has started every game, won two division titles, won a playoff game, was named 2016 Offensive Rookie of the Year, and is a finalist for the Inaugural 2019 NFL “Anything but Ordinary Award”. He has accomplished all of this while playing on a modest 4th round rookie contract. Last season he was expected to become one of the highest paid players in the entire NFL but contract negotiations stalled and he was left without a long term deal despite putting up career numbers passing. This offseason, both he and the Dallas Cowboys continue to insist that they are working towards and intend to agree to a contract extension but there is an ever increasing possibility that he may play the 2020 season under the dreaded franchise tag.

All of this drama surrounding the contract negotiations is heightened when it concerns the starting quarterback of “America’s Team” and yet Dak Prescott has not let it effect his performance on the field. Unsurprisingly, he has handled the pressure even better off the field. This week, while in Miami for Super Bowl weekend, Dak Prescott volunteered to serve Campbell’s Chunky Soup to those in need at the Miami Rescue Mission. As part of the Campbell’s Champions of Chunky campaign which celebrates unsung heroes in local communities, 100 000 bowls of Campbell’s Chunky Soup were also donated to the Miami Homeless Shelter. The Head Chef at the Mission Calvin “Big Mac” McFadden was then surprised with 2 tickets to Super Bowl LIV in appreciation for his outstanding work in his local community.

Dak Prescott knows a thing or two about giving back. He is a finalist for the NFL Microsoft Surface “Anything but Ordinary Award as a result of his continuous work with his charity Faith. Fight. Finish. While his teammate Ezekiel Elliott held out for a contract dispute prior to the 2019 season, Dak Prescott continued to go to work every day, improving his craft, and saying and doing all the right things off the field.

There is no question that Dak Prescott is deserving of a lucrative contract extension based on what he has accomplished, what market value is for a quarterback, and what he represents as leader both on and off the field. Unfortunately, in the NFL deserving often does not correlate to who gets paid what. Every day Dak Prescott continues to be without a contract extension, he risks injury or some unforseen circumstance or event that could cost him millions of dollars. Every day the Dallas Cowboys delay in getting Dak Prescott signed, they risk the price tag increasing even higher much like it did following the Carson Wentz and Jared Goff extensions. It is clearly in the best interest of both parties to get a deal done so hopefully this does not drag into 2020. If it does play out that way, I fear it could become such a huge story, that it will cast a bigger shadow on the team than it did this past season.