A contract extension for Dak Prescott seems unlikely before the deadline

July 15 represents the deadline for the Dallas Cowboys and their quarterback Dak Prescott to come to an agreement on a long-term contract extension.

But as of Tuesday, no deal sounds imminent. In fact, the two sides aren’t even at the table.

With a little more than 24 hours to go before the deadline, the #Cowboys & Dak Prescott remain dug in and no further talks are scheduled, per me and @TomPelissero. So barring a significant shift, Dak is in line to bet on himself again — this time playing on the $31.4 million tag.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 14, 2020

NFL insider Adam Schefter elaborated on the current state of negotiations, what he anticipates moving forward, and why the Cowboys could find themselves in a challenging position.

“There are no scheduled talks before Wednesday’s deadline. That doesn’t mean there can’t be a last minute push from each side, but there doesn’t appear to me any sense of urgency to do that right now … which is hard to imagine in Dallas’ case. If you’re the Dallas Cowboys, you’re looking at having Dak Prescott play this year on the franchise tag for $31.4 million … which means next season, to ensure keeping him, you have to franchise him again for $38 million in a time when the cap is gonna be flat at best, and very well may go down, which could cripple the Cowboys salary cap.”

On June 22, Prescott signed the exclusive franchise tag tender worth $31.4 million, which locked him in for the season,  ensuring he would not miss any time on the field.

If a long-term deal isn’t reached by 4 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Prescott will play the season on the tag and the sides can’t go to the negotiating table again until January 2021.

Since Prescott became eligible for a contract extension earlier this year, negotiations have been ongoing. All reports suggest that the two sides have been quarreling over the number of years in the contract as opposed to the number of dollars.

Prescott wants to hit the free agent market again in four years, while Dallas wants to lock its QB in for five years.

On Dak Prescott one source told me a lot of misinformation out on these streets. Prescott wants 4-yr. deal & Cowboys offering 5. Whatever the terms are it would make Prescott one of the highest paid at his position. He could be 1 or 2 at either average salary or guaranteed money.

— Calvin Watkins (@calvinwatkins) May 22, 2020

Dak made a little over $2 million in the final year of his rookie deal, and he’s brought in less than $5 million since he entered the league in 2016.

Prescott entered last season apparently looking to enhance those numbers through his play, considering the 2019 season was the best of his career. He had career highs in passing yards (4,902) and touchdown passes (30), and his QBR of 70.2 was 4th best in the league.

Nobody in @dallascowboys history has thrown for more yards in two games than @dak has in the past two weeks! ? pic.twitter.com/dCymKYsnA4

— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) November 17, 2019

And because of his impressive 2019 campaign, ESPN’s Marcus Spears believes that he has leverage if he hits free agency after this season.

“Dak Prescott is in a position of leverage to me now … The only leverage that an NFL player has is your performance and the opportunity to hit the open market, and Dak Prescott is trending in that direction if he doesn’t get a long-term deal done.”

Coming into the 2020 season, the Cowboys have a wide array of weapons on the offensive side of the ball, coming off a season when they led the NFL in total offense (431.5 yards per game).

Wide receivers Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup each went over 1,000 yards receiving, and Prescott came within one yard of tying Tony Romo‘s single-season Cowboys passing record.

And with the 17th pick in this year’s draft, Dallas added Oklahoma superstar wideout CeeDee Lamb.

Per @EliasSports, after the Cowboys drafted CeeDee Lamb, they became the 7th team all-time to draft a WR in the 1st round after having two 1,000-yard WRs the year prior (Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup). https://t.co/4LSxhiUW5Y

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) April 24, 2020

Lamb will don the famous No. 88 once the season begins, meaning the Cowboys expect big things out of the rookie.

First look at @_CeeDeeThree in 8️⃣8️⃣

BTS ? with @ATT pic.twitter.com/74L0yocLhQ

— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) July 14, 2020

Add Ezekiel Elliott into the mix, and former NFL running back Brian Westbrook believes that Dak’s value will only increase with another year on the field, considering the weapons he has at his disposal.

“If you’re Dak and you started 64 straight games and you bet on yourself, including last year … And now you’re saying, ‘Last year, I put up great numbers, but this year I get a better and more offensively-inclined coach in Mike McCarthy. I have better weapons in Ceedee Lamb and I get a hungry Zeke, and now I come back and I have the same type of stats, but I get more wins. We make the playoffs and potentially we make a run towards a Super Bowl. Now I’m more of a value.’”

“If I’m Dak I’m willing to roll the dice again. He’s bet on himself his entire career I don’t see that changing at this point.” — @36westbrook pic.twitter.com/RC16TT8mWW

— First Things First (@FTFonFS1) July 14, 2020

However, with the added offensive depth, Prescott might have even more pressure on his shoulders to take the Cowboys deep into the playoffs, considering last season, despite Dak’s individual success, the Cowboys struggled, finishing 8-8 and missing the playoffs.

Last season, Dak Prescott and the Cowboys were 1-6 against playoff teams and 7-2 against non-playoff teams.

Dak threw for an even 8 TD-8 Int in their games against playoff teams, and 22 TD-3 Int against non-playoff teams. pic.twitter.com/rgKSvkTJPC

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) May 20, 2020

Because of the Cowboys’ underwhelming campaign in 2019, Colin Cowherd believes Dak doesn’t have the upper hand in any negotiations.

“I’ve never understood this, ‘He’s got all the leverage.’ … This is not Tom Brady leaving New England. If Dak left, you’re not losing excellence. You’re not losing history. You’re not losing momentum. They were 8-8 last year. When Brady left, when Peyton Manning left, you’re losing tradition … There’s no momentum right now. They’ve underachieved, not overachieved … This is not Lamar Jackson. This is not Russell Wilson. This is not Aaron Rodgers. This is not Patrick Mahomes … Looks more like Andy Dalton to me.”

“I keep hearing about leverage with Dak… This is not a transformative talent.”@ColinCowherd lists 5 facts working against the Cowboys QB: pic.twitter.com/4ihZxmFjYj

— Herd w/Colin Cowherd (@TheHerd) July 14, 2020

There are less than 24 hours left before the Cowboys and Dak can no longer come to terms on a long-term agreement.

We’ll soon see what tomorrow holds.