3 reasons the Cowboys need to pay Dak Prescott this offseason

1. Quarterbacking instability slams Cowboys’ Super Bowl window

Jerry Jones wants to win at least one more Super Bowl before he dies. After winning three in his first decade of ownership, the Cowboys haven’t been to a Super Bowl since 1995. Many of the best players on the Cowboys weren’t even born the last time Dallas played for a Lombardi. How many current Cowboys even remember Dallas beating the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XXX?

By passing on paying Prescott, all that does is put the Cowboys into a cluster of teams nobody wants to be a part of: What’s your future at the quarterback position? If it takes more than a split second to answer, you’re in trouble. Should the Cowboys pay Prescott, they can safely say for the next four years he’s their guy, the guy who gives them the best chance to win a Super Bowl.

Maybe once a year or two, there will be a strong defensive-minded team who tries to convince us that team can win a Super Bowl. Teams like this include the 2017 Jacksonville Jaguars and the 2019 Chicago Bears. But what happens is those prove to be one-off situations, as even great defenses like Jacksonville and Chicago regress the following year. The offense never arrives.

Choosing to not pay Prescott means the Cowboys view themselves in the vein of Sean McDermott‘s Buffalo Bills. Maybe they’re the third best team in their own conference? The defense is great, but with questions surrounding the starting quarterback, they can’t be expected to reach a Super Bowl barring a few big upsets along the way. Just pay Dak and get it over with!