Cowboys tagging Dak Prescott won’t be simple

The Dallas Cowboys are reportedly set to tag quarterback Dak Prescott, but that won’t be an easy maneuver for the franchise.

Dak Prescott will be back with the Dallas Cowboys in 2021. After that? It remains to be seen.

According to NFL Network and insider Ian Rapoport, the Cowboys are prepared to slap the franchise tag on Prescott for a second time, provided the two sides don’t work out a long-term deal beforehand. Should Dallas be forced to use the tag, it will cost $37.7 million in guaranteed money (and cap space) to retain him.

The 27-year-old suffered a gruesome broken ankle in October, derailing what was quickly becoming a career year for Prescott. Unfortunately, he now is working his way back from injury, making negotiations all the more complicated. This all points to the tag as Rapoport mentioned, and a major cap crunch for the Cowboys.

If the salary cap indeed drops to $176 million, Dallas only has roughly $14 million in available money. Obviously, tagging Prescott — even if he doesn’t sign the tag — means the Cowboys would be about $23 million over the threshold, something they must be under for the new league year which begins on March 16.

Looking at their cap sheet, there are no easy cuts to save a ton of money. Dallas could part ways with kicker Greg Zuerlein, punter Chris Jones and safety Darian Thompson to save approximately $5.5 million, putting a small dent in a big problem. More likely, tagging Prescott would mean shoving a bunch of money down the road by restructuring deals. It’s a great-sounding plan in the moment, but it causes headaches later.

In this scenario, the Cowboys do have the hope of being bailed out by exploding salary cap numbers in the future as the league likely goes to a 17-game schedule (perhaps even in 2021) and then sees a massive influx from television money, as those deals are being renegotiated.

Ultimately, Dallas has put itself in a tough position. The Cowboys signs running back Ezekiel Elliott to a record-setting deal when there was no reason to do so, and it’s easting up valuable space. Largely due to that blunder, Prescott’s contract has to be shoe-horned in by making a bunch of other concessions into the future.

Still, Dallas must keep Prescott around. He’s a top-10 quarterback in the prime of his career, and the only real ticket the Cowboys have to ascend quickly in the NFC pecking order.