On Tuesday, former NFL player and current analyst Sam Acho essentially warned the Dallas Cowboys that they needed to do whatever possible to sign quarterback Dak Prescott to a contract extension sooner rather than later.
Former NFL head coach Herm Edwards went in somewhat of a different direction while speaking about the subject during Wednesday’s edition of the ESPN “First Take” program.
“You’re not going to play for a better team,” Edwards said about Prescott. “Who challenges him? The [Philadelphia Eagles]. The [Detroit Lions]…[Green Bay Packers], [San Francisco 49ers], that’s who they got to deal with. That’s who Dak has to deal with to get to the Super Bowl. And that’s what he understands. If you understand that and say, ‘Well, hey, I got the best team I can play on right now. I go somewhere else, I got to start over.'”
Edwards also mentioned how head coach Mike McCarthy and offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer have “built the offense around” Prescott to get the most out of the 30-year-old’s skill set.
Prescott and the 12-5 Cowboys suffered a 48-32 home wild-card playoff loss to the Packers this past January. While the Eagles may consider making a noteworthy change at quarterback next offseason, all of the teams mentioned by Edwards currently have QB1s cemented atop their depth charts.
As of early Wednesday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the Cowboys tied for third with the Eagles at +700 betting odds to represent the NFC in Super Bowl LIX.
Prescott remains in the final year of a contract that prevents the Cowboys from retaining his rights for 2025 via the franchise tag. There’s no indication the two sides are close to working out even a short-term extension ahead of training camp.
Some are wondering if certain individuals within the Cowboys are hoping 24-year-old signal-caller Trey Lance replaces Prescott in the lineup as early as this fall.
Perhaps the biggest criticism of Prescott’s Dallas tenure that began in 2016 is that he famously has accumulated a 2-5 career playoff record and hasn’t yet guided the club to a single conference championship game appearance.
“I’m a Dak Prescott fan,” Edwards said during the show segment. “But when you’ve only won two playoff games, when you’ve only won two in your whole career with a team that is stacked, offensively and defensively…he’s in the best situation he could be in.”
Whether or not Prescott agrees with Edwards’ takes enough to give Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones any type of discount on a contract extension before September shall be seen.
