Cowboys ineptitude on full display as Dak Prescott's asking price just went way up

The thing about NFL salaries is they're always rising. The cost of waiting to sign a star player to an extension can be immense with the market constantly being reset.

The Dallas Cowboys are getting a painful lesson in that after Jared Goff signed a four-year, $212 million contract extension with the Detroit Lions, per Adam Schefter.

Simply put, the price tag to keep Dak Prescott just got much higher.

Goff's new deal puts his average annual salary at $53 million, just $2 million shy of Joe Burrow's league-best AAV. He'll make more per year than Justin Herbert, Lamar Jackson and Jalen Hurts.

The Cowboys have been slow playing an extension for Prescott for reasons that haven't made any sense all along. Every quarterback who has gotten an extension done has raised the price tag for all the rest.

And it's hard to argue Prescott should get less than Goff.

Cowboys will have to pay Dak Prescott at least as much as Jared Goff

Prescott is one year older than Goff but his career numbers in wins, completion percentage, yards per attempt, touchdowns, interceptions, QB rating and rushing touchdowns all outpace Goff's.

Last year's numbers are no different. Prescott completed more passes, had six more touchdowns and three fewer interceptions. He gained 242 yards on the ground compared to Goff's 21. His quarterback rating was 105.9 to Goff's 97.9.

Negotiating with Prescott against the contracts of Herbert, Jackson and Hurts would have given the Cowboys a certain amount of leverage. All of those quarterbacks are in their mid-20s. Matching them wouldn't have been a requirement.

Now Prescott has an almost 1-for-1 comparison with the deal signed by Goff. He won't just be looking to match that deal. He'll be looking to exceed it and he'll have good reason to.

The Lions were desperate to sign Goff. The fans in Detroit love him. They were chanting his name at the NFL Draft. The likelihood of them playing hardball with him was low. He was always going to get a slightly inflated deal.

The Cowboys, who clearly aren't as sold on Prescott, letting the Lions set that market will hurt Jerry Jones' wallet.