Dallas, TX
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.
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.
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.
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.
Kurt: Signed just two days after the draft, the Valdes-Scantling deal did slide in a bit under the radar, but this seems a wise move to add a veteran to the wide receiver room and perhaps even build in a little security in the event the George Pickens situation goes haywire.
Now entering his ninth season, the 6-foot-4, 206-pound Valdes-Scantling certainly brings size and experience. And you’re right, he’s topped 30 catches and 500 receiving yards three times in his career, which includes finishing third on the Chiefs with 687 yards during their 2022 championship season. He also had a touchdown grab in Kansas City’s 2023 Super Bowl victory.
Of course, the last two years have been more nomadic for Valdes-Scantling as he split 2024 between Buffalo and New Orleans and then spent time with both San Francisco and Pittsburgh in 2025. Last season in particular wasn’t exactly pretty, as he battled a calf injury on his way to just 120 receiving yards combined off 14 catches.
Meanwhile, Ryan Flournoy, who is five years younger, enjoyed a breakout effort in his sophomore campaign for the Cowboys, finishing with 40 catches for 475 yards and four touchdowns a season ago. At this point, the team clearly sees him as the first option for that third wideout spot.
So Valdes-Scantling will be in a battle for playing time (and perhaps even a roster spot), but taking a flier on a two-time Lombardi Trophy winner with a contract for less than $1.5 million, and only $187,500 of that guaranteed, made perfect sense. It’s a small investment that could potentially pay big dividends.
The Dallas Mayor’s Summer of Safety initiative is back for a fifth year.
The program aims at keeping Dallas residents ages 13-17 safe and out of trouble during the summer months by offering free or low-cost access to programs and attractions that might otherwise be out of reach for them and their families.
Several city departments partner for Summer of Safety, including Dallas ISD, the Dallas Police Department, the Dallas Public Library and Dallas Park and Recreation.
John Jenkins, who leads the city’s park and recreation department, named off some of the more popular destinations featured in the popular ‘All Access Pass: “Arboretum, Trinity River Audubon Center, Holocaust Museum, Southern Skates Roller Rink, Perot Museum. New venues this year are Dave and Buster’s, Dallas Love Field and the State Fair of Texas.”
The website detailing each program is now up and running, but keep in mind the estimated all access passes distributed across the city’s rec centers will not be available for pick up until June 30, according to the website.
Dallas ISD is also taking on the responsibility of providing students a place to go during the day, according to Dr. Pamela Lear, Dallas ISD Deputy Superintendent.
“In June and July, Dallas ISD is offering fun and engaging summer opportunities, learning opportunities, offering everything from camps focused on cheer, mariachi and robotics,” she said during Monday’s photo opportunity.
Curbing summer crime is also top of mind as Dallas prepares for the FIFA World Cup.
The host city is set to welcome thousands of visitors from across the world to downtown Dallas and Fair Park.
Dallas Police Chief Daniel Comeaux was asked how DPD plans to increase visibility to keep youth and fans safe during the busy summer months.
“We’re really looking at some of the extras, like the mounting unit, we have more horses that’s going to be available this year,” said Comeaux. “We just purchased eight new horses. They’re in training right now, and hopefully you’ll see them walking the streets a little bit more. We added some additional motor units. So we’re going to have more officers on motorcycles out there”.
For more information about the Mayor’s Summer of Safety program, click here.
Aiming for a modern-yet-retro look, Whataburger is reviving its iconic A-frame. Sort of.
The Texas burger chain is introducing two new prototype store designs, each of which is “grounded in the brand’s heritage but built for how [customers] experience Whataburger today,” the company says. The designs will be incorporated into newly built locations.
One of the prototypes, called The Legacy, reintroduces the classic A-frame shape, but with a modern twist, on the exterior of a 3,000-square-foot store and enlarges the dining room, the company says. The new A-frame treatment maintains “the unmistakable Whataburger look with bold architectural updates,” says the burger chain, but it takes up far less space than the original version.
The other prototype, called The Essential, leans into the iconic orange-and-white striped scheme on the exterior of a 2,000-square-foot restaurant.
The Essential design features the iconic orange-and-white striped scheme.Rendering courtesy of Whataburger
In 2020, Whataburger debuted its first refreshed store in South San Antonio, de-emphasizing the familiar A-frame, adding more glass around the front of the building, updating the décor, and retooling the kitchen. In the six years since, most of Whataburger’s original A-frame-adorned “flying W” stores have switched to new formats, and all newly built locations have incorporated modern designs.
Among other changes coming to new Whataburger restaurants are:
- Warmer spaces featuring natural wood tones, more glass, and modern materials to “create a more open, welcoming environment.”
- Updated layouts with flexible seating and dedicated areas for mobile orders and third-party order pickups.
“The result is a space that feels like Whataburger from the moment you pull in, with a few thoughtful updates to make every visit even better. It’s all about honoring the brand’s roots while making room for what’s next,” the company says.
The new prototypes will debut in Texas and then be rolled out in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. Construction is set to start later this year, and store openings are expected in early 2027.
Whataburger, founded in 1950 in Corpus Christi, operates more than 1,100 restaurants in 17 states, with the bulk of them in Texas.
-
Iowa3 minutes agoGov. Kim Reynolds signs Iowa law restricting mail-order abortion pills
-
Kansas9 minutes agoSheriff: Colorado couple jailed in Kansas for transporting drugs
-
Kentucky15 minutes agoTrump-endorsed Ed Gallrein unseats Rep. Thomas Massie in Kentucky GOP primary
-
Louisiana21 minutes agoLouisiana run-rules Marshall, advances to Coastal rematch
-
Maine27 minutes agoSouth Portland discusses use of Flock cameras in city
-
Maryland33 minutes agoNew York man sentenced to 40 years for injuring Maryland deputy during pursuit
-
Michigan39 minutes agoAnti-Semitism increasingly targeting Southeast Michigan communities
-
Massachusetts45 minutes agoMissing Holyoke man identified after body found in Connecticut River
