Cowboys need to start treating Dak Prescott like a franchise quarterback

The Cowboys claim they want Dak Prescott to be their starting quarterback for years to come, but the organization’s actions don’t match their words. 

Slapping the franchise tag on Dak Prescott will allow the Cowboys to retain their starting quarterback in 2020. It’s time for Jerry Jones to step up and make sure he does something more than just preventing Prescott from leaving.

Placing the exclusive tag on Prescott makes it very clear the Cowboys aren’t going to let him leave this offseason. The franchise has no interest in dealing him in exchange for two first round picks. The team wants him to be their starter when the next regular season opens.

Functionally, this is a good move by the Cowboys. Letting Prescott leave via free agency would be a nightmare for the franchise. It would leave new head coach Mike McCarthy without a quarterback in his first season in charge of the Cowboys. Losing a player of Prescott’s popularity would also present the team with a public relations nightmare they desperately want to avoid.

The problem with the Cowboys’ strategy to date is that it does nothing to improve their actual relationship with arguably their most important player. Nothing about the way they’ve treated Prescott lately is going to give him any positive feelings about the only franchise he’s ever known. That might not increase his chances of leaving this offseason, but it could easily sow animosity that poisons the relationship between Prescott and the Cowboys when he does have a legitimate opportunity to play elsewhere.

It’s worth remembering that McCarthy didn’t rush to meet Prescott in person when he first took the job. That didn’t get the relationship between the new coach and his quarterback off to a great start. Cowboys’ officials have done an excellent job of downplaying that story since its inception, but it could still be simmering just underneath the surface.

The bigger issue, of course, is the Cowboys’ unwillingness to simply give Prescott the contract he deserves. They’ve had numerous opportunities to engage him in serious negotiations. Time after time, Jones and his front office have chosen to prioritize other things before paying Prescott. That’s only caused the player’s contract demands to skyrocket.’

In the end, the Cowboys’ unwillingness to ink Prescott to a long-term extension before now is going to cost them millions of dollars. At least, that’s all fans in Dallas hope it will cost their franchise. It might cost them the services of their franchise quarterback in a few years.