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Dallas Cowboys cost themselves millions waiting on extensions for Dak Prescott and other stars

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Dallas Cowboys cost themselves millions waiting on extensions for Dak Prescott and other stars


The Dallas Cowboys have developed this reputation of waiting to sign their top players to new contracts. For whatever reason, they are content to let negotiations keep going and going, but that ultimately pushes up the price. As NFL contracts work, the next top guy always wants to get paid more than the previous guy, so there is perpetual growth in the market. If you wait, you’re going to pay more, and that is exactly what has happened with the Dallas Cowboys.

When the 2024 offseason began, the top of the market for quarterbacks was the $55 million per season deal Joe Burrow signed with the Cincinnati Bengals last year. Then Jordan Love and Trevor Lawrence matched that number with Tua Tagovialoa and Jared Goff just behind them.

A normal incremental increase would put Prescott at $56 or $57 million per season, just ticking up a little. But this is where Dallas’ earlier contract games with Prescott have come back to bite them.

In 2020, the Cowboys franchise-tagged Prescott instead of signing him to a long-term deal. Then they were set to repeat the franchise tag in 2021 before ultimately agreeing to a record-breaking contract extension. They waited until the last possible minute and after Prescott’s reps saw the Cowboys were prone to (repeatedly) using the franchise tag, they negotiated a no-tag clause in his 2021 deal. When the deal expired following the 2024 season, the Cowboys would need to extend him with a full contract if they wanted to keep him.

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With that player-friendly leverage, it’s pretty likely that Prescott’s reps walked in and said $60 million right off the bat and held until he got it instead of the smaller incremental increase. So the negotiations in 2020 and 2021 potentially cost them $16 million from 2025 to 2028.


In 2023, the highest-paid wide receiver made $28 million per season (Davante Adams), but an explosion at the top of the market this offseason saw seven players eclipse that mark including CeeDee Lamb. Lamb signed his deal on August 26th, and by that time the market had climbed all the way to $35 million per season.

When the offseason opened in March, they theoretically could have agreed to a deal above the top of the market for around $30 million per season, but by the end of April, that was thrown out the window. Amon-Ra St. Brown and A.J. Brown moved the needle to $30 million and then $32 million within a couple days of each other prior to the NFL Draft. Then the big domino fell in early June when Justin Jefferson pushed the market to $35 million per season.

After Jefferson capped the market, Lamb and the Cowboys ultimately agreed to a deal worth $34 million per year as the second-highest contract in the wide receiver column. Over the course of the four years of the deal, it’s $16 million the Cowboys cost themselves by not doing the deal earlier at $30 million annually.


Looming now for the Cowboys is a deal for All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons. Parsons was eligible to sign a new deal this offseason, but instead the two sides will see him play on the final original year of his rookie contract. In 2025, he is under contract on the fifth-year option for $21 million. Surely he wants to make money money than that and make it sooner than those game checks more than a year from now.

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Nick Bosa completely reset the market at EDGE in 2023 when he signed a deal worth $34 million per season, easily demolishing the previous high of T.J. Watt at $28 million per season. But with two more pass rushers topping $28 million this offseason, the market is going to rise rapidly to pass Bosa.

Waiting on Parsons could let Myles Garrett, T.J. Watt, Maxx Crosby, Joey Bosa, Haason Reddick, and Aidan Hutchinson continue to push the market higher, and as we’ve seen, the Cowboys aren’t afraid to use the franchise tag to push a new long-term deal all the way to 2027.


Interestingly, there is one bigger-money deal recently that they didn’t wait on. After rookie Trevon Diggs finished his third NFL season, Dallas paid him heading into 2023. He was the fifth-highest-paid cornerback in the NFL at the time and signed the biggest CB deal of the 2023 offseason. So how did his deal get done when the others didn’t?

Diggs was way more motivated to get a contract signed than Prescott, Lamb, and Parsons. As a second-round pick, he did not have the cash these other players have. At the time of his signing, he had only made $5 million over three NFL season. His $21.2 million signing bonus looked pretty great and they got him into the upper echelon, not reseting the market.

Lamb and Parsons were first-rounders and Prescott is coming off a big-money second contract, so they could afford to wait to increase leverage. Diggs chose not to do that.

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Ultimately it takes two to tango, and the Cowboys haven’t wanted to dance with their star players until late at the ball, instead opting to wait it out on contract extensions. Despite the hand-wringing, they were able to get deals with these players and keep most of their core intact.

It’s hard not to think, though, about deals for other important players they franchise-tagged and let leave like RB Tony Pollard and TE Dalton Schultz, or a player they traded away instead of signing long-term like WR Amari Cooper.



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Dallas attorney Tony Box running for Texas attorney general

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Dallas attorney Tony Box running for Texas attorney general

Audio recording is automated for accessibility. Humans wrote and edited the story. See our AI policy, and give us feedback.

Dallas attorney Tony Box is running to be the Democratic nominee for Texas attorney general, he announced this week, becoming the third member of his party vying to replace outgoing incumbent Ken Paxton.

Box, a first-time candidate, is an Army veteran, former FBI agent and former federal prosecutor who now works in private practice in Dallas. He will face former Galveston Mayor Joe Jaworski and state Sen. Nathan Johnson of Dallas in the March 3 primary.

Paxton, who has led the office for a decade, is giving up his post to challenge U.S. Sen. John Cornyn.

In a press release, Box said he was seeking to “bring decades of public service and law enforcement experience to an office plagued by corruption and political theater.”

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“The AG should be protecting consumers, cracking down on fraud and partnering with law enforcement, but Ken Paxton has turned this office into a laughingstock,” Box said in a statement. “I’ve spent my entire career fighting corruption, prosecuting criminals and standing up to powerful people who abuse their positions. Texans deserve better.”

Box’s journey to running for attorney general began when he was 16 years old and got shot in the stomach while protecting a coworker from a robbery. The episode prompted him to “dedicate his life to the service of others,” he said in a press release.

After graduating from Morehouse College in Atlanta, Box entered the Army. He was deployed to Iraq as a judge advocate general, the military’s version of a lawyer, and served as an investigator for the Congressional Commission on Wartime Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan, where he helped uncover $30 billion of waste and fraud, according to his campaign press release.

Box spent a decade as an FBI special agent, serving on the SWAT team and deploying as part of the agency’s September 11th response, he said. In the meantime, he went to law school at night.

In 2018, Box joined the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri handling tax investigations and prosecutions, according to his LinkedIn. In 2022, he joined the law firm Gray Reed in Dallas, where he represents businesses and “high net-worth individuals” in civil and criminal tax cases, white-collar defense and regulatory investigations.

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“The Attorney General is the chief law enforcement officer of the state of Texas and the people of this state deserve a leader who is looking out for them, not corrupt politicians and their cronies,” Box said in a statement.

Across the aisle, four Republicans are competing to succeed Paxton as the GOP nominee: state Sens. Joan Huffman of Houston and Mayes Middleton of Galveston, former Paxton deputy Aaron Reitz and U.S. Rep. Chip Roy of Austin.



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Mailbag: Why waste offensive talent?

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Mailbag: Why waste offensive talent?


(Editor’s Note: Time to check the mail! The DallasCowboys.com staff writers answer your questions here in ‘Mailbag’ presented by Miller Lite.)

Is it more valuable for the Cowboys to hold their draft capital rather than use it to trade for a difference maker to create pressure and sacks? Why waist the offensive talent you have this year and hold on to the draft picks when it’s clear that Dallas has half a super bowl contending team? – Will Epler/Colorado Springs, CO

Patrik: I’ve made it no secret about where I stand on this topic: trade for one or two players to not waste this window of elite offensive play. You simply don’t know if Dak Prescott will equal or better this form in the years to come and, oh by the way, he’s already in his early 30s, and not in his mid-20s. Additionally, you can’t predict if George Pickens sticks around to keep the same level of weaponry surrounding Prescott, so forth and so on. Having shiny extra draft picks to use is fun, because of imagination. You get to imagine what might be and who they might select and, maybe, just maybe, that the pick turns out to be a Hall of Famer every … single … time. In reality, though, even for a team that drafts well, like the Cowboys, it’s still a crapshoot every … single … time. More picks are great fuel for draft show talks and mock drafts, but ask Dak Prescott if he gives an iota of a crap about any of that. Win now, while you have the quarterback and offense to do it, and stop pretending you have time to waste.



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Cowboys-Cardinals announcer assignment draws Dallas legend in Week 9

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Cowboys-Cardinals announcer assignment draws Dallas legend in Week 9


The Dallas Cowboys will be aiming to get back into the win column in Week 9 of the NFL season when the team welcomes the Arizona Cardinals to AT&T Stadium for a primetime showdown on Monday Night Football.

Dallas hopes to regain momentum entering its bye week and ahead of the NFL trade deadline, where the team is expected to be active players.

For Week 9, Dallas fans will be hearing a familiar voice on the broadcast with Cowboys legend and Pro Football Hall of Famer Troy Aikman on the call, along with Joe Buck.

MORE: Dallas Cowboys vs Arizona Cardinals, Week 9 betting odds & preview

Lisa Salters and Laura Rutledge will provide updates from the sideline throughout the game.

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Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones talks with former quarterback Troy Aikman before a game against the Los Angeles Chargers

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones talks with former quarterback Troy Aikman before a game against the Los Angeles Chargers / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

If Aikman and Buck aren’t your cup of tea, the football gods are looking out for you because there will be a Manningcast simulcast for the game with Peyton Manning, Eli Manning, and some high-profile guests sharing their thoughts throughout the night.

Entering Week 9, the Cowboys are slight 2.5-point favorites at home over the visiting Cardinals, while the over/under is set for a whopping 54.5 total points.

Let’s take a look at all of the information you need for Week 9 against Arizona can be seen below.

MORE: Cowboys warned against NFL trade deadline move on ‘already sinking ship’

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott reacts after losing to the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium.

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott reacts after losing to the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. / Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images

Date: Monday, November 3, 2025
Start Time: 8:15 p.m. ET
Location: Arlington, Texas
Venue: AT&T Stadium
TV Channel: ABC/ESPN

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Betting Odds: Cowboys -2.5 | O/U: 54.5

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.

Your best bet for watching the game via streaming is through Fubo TV. Fubo has a full slate of games every Sunday afternoon on FOX & CBS and has all the big primetime matchups for Sunday Night Football via NBC and Monday Night Football via ESPN.

Fubo includes the NFL Network in every plan, which offers access to exclusive coverage of the NFL all year round, plus select games from the NFL International Series. Fubo users can add NFL RedZone from NFL Network for an additional cost to go around the league every Sunday afternoon to catch every touchdown. Fubo also includes a lineup of the top sports networks like ESPN, FS1, CBS Sports Network & more to get big headlines and expert analysis from TV’s most popular sports talk shows.

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