Ever since the 2020 season ended and the Dak Prescott contract talks were eligible to resume, Cowboy fans have been watching headlines, waiting to find out if and when a deal will get done. This has become an annual tradition for Cowboys fans along with debating whether or not it is worth it to pay market value on a Dak Prescott contract extension. While no new deal appears imminent, the intrigue and speculation have reached new heights following some rather peculiar events that took place this week.
READ MORE: AN OBJECTIVE LOOK AT THE FAILED DAK PRESCOTT DEAL
Reports of the Cowboys wanting to get a deal done and a potential second franchise tag to be applied should surprise no one. That is to be expected. The numerous wild trade proposals among talking heads on various media networks should also come as no surprise. Those should be ignored as per usual. However, the exclusion of Dak Prescott from the Dallas Cowboys 2021 hype video does warrant some attention. So too does the seemingly meaningless action of Dak Prescott following the Washington Football Team’s instagram account only to unfollow a couple of hours later.
The omission of Dak Prescott from the team hype video has since been addressed by Derek Eagleton, the Director of Media and Programming for the Dallas Cowboys.
It has also been pointed out by some that Dak may have been omitted simply because he is not currently under contract with the team, but then again…
Then ensued the social media drama where Dak Prescott followed then quickly unfollowed the Washington Football Team on instagram. Speaking of social media drama, there was also the incident involving the instagram poll asking if the Cowboys should Re-sign or Let Go of Dak Prescott (see below). Jerry Jones own grandson raised a bit of a stir by responding “Let Go”.
These incidents are all trifling, petty little things in of themselves but given the volatile nature of the Dak Prescott contract negotiation to date, they should not be completely ignored. By saying this, I may be worthy of being grouped among those accused of making a mountain out of a mole hill. Or, worse yet, stirring up drama and making baseless, irresponsible insinuations out of nothing. Still, I cannot avoid a feeling of anxiety as one who has been hoping all along for a Dak Prescott contract extension with the Dallas Cowboys.
No reliable source is saying that Dak’s omission from the video was deliberate or intended to disrespect the franchise QB. No opinions on either side were expressed in regards to the actions on social media from either Dak Prescott or Jerry Jones’ grandson. All reports point to the Dallas Cowboys intending to get a deal done despite knowing the cost has gone up and despite Dak suffering from a season ending injury. To that end, there have been no negative reports about Dak Prescott’s injured ankle despite the news coming out that he had a second surgery a couple of months ago.
But what would we expect to hear? It is unlikely, that if the Cowboys were having second thoughts about a Dak Prescott contract extension, it would be leaked out publicly. It is unlikely that if the hype video omission was indeed deliberate and not just an oversight that the team would admit that publicly either. It is highly unlikely that either side would admit to anything that would make them appear unfavourable in the public eye or that might appear to antagonise the opposition. However, it is highly likely that there has developed some bad blood over the course of nearly 3 years of failed contract negotiations. Bad blood can make things personal and when emotions are involved, that makes it nearly impossible for one side to concede or for both sides to come to a compromise. We have seen Jerry Jones let emotions get the best of him before when he and Jimmy Johnson parted ways many years ago. We saw it play out with Dez Bryant after he was cut unceremoniously by the Cowboys in 2018. Dez turned down opportunities from several teams because he was hoping to get a chance to punish his former team at that time. This is not unique to the Dallas Cowboys either. Sometimes the smallest of occurrences have the biggest consequences. Like the time a fax wasn’t sent on time resulting in the Denver Bronco’s cutting Elvis Dumervil instead of restructuring his contract. Or staying with the Bronco’s, when Josh McDaniels kicked the tires on trading Jay Cutler but decided against it. Cutler was not impressed and demanded a trade which was eventually granted to him. Sometimes petty little things can become the straw that breaks the camels back when underlying animosity already exists.
That is my biggest fear as a Cowboys fan and a believer in Dak Prescott. I remain hopeful that a deal can get done but the doubt only grows inside of me the longer this thing drags on. I would like to believe that the Dak Prescott contract situation is business only and nothing personal. However, how it has played out thus far defies logic and does not reflect sound business decisions on the part of the Dallas Cowboys. Not securing Dak to a long term deal at the first opportunity was unwise if their ultimate goal was to save money on his contract. And, if they were truly not willing to commit to him long term, allowing him to play out his contract and tagging him twice was not a good strategy if they wanted to get fair compensation for him via trade. Dak has to agree to and sign the franchise tag and he may not cooperate fully if the teams intention is to sell him off to the highest bidder after stringing him along for 2 1/2 years. The transition tag is an alternative option but the team has to be aware that this is not a good look for them and is not likely to resonate very well among the remaining players on the roster. Further complicating things is that whether the Dallas Cowboys intentions are to get this deal done or not, Dak’s injury and the temporary reduction in the salary cap for 2021 are factors as well.
Jerry Jones has always maintained that “deadlines make deals” and has reminded reporters that he has never failed to get a deal done. Those assertions are going to finally be put to the test because the eleventh hour has arrived. If a Dak Prescott contract extension isn’t agreed upon now, then it will never happen.
*Photo by Joe Glorioso All-Pro Reels https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/legalcode