NFL owners discussing 'QB salary cap' amid growing contracts

Dak Prescott has the Dallas Cowboys in a tough spot as NFL owners are grasping for answers to rising salaries.

Dallas Cowboys, Dak Prescott, Jerry Jones / Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

The billionaires have had enough. They worked hard for their money and they don't want to just give it away to quarterbacks — even though they work hard to help those billionaires make more money.

Well, according to a recent rumor shared by Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, at least some of them feel this way. While speaking with Rich Eisen, he says a "quarterback cap" has been discussed by some owners.

That could drastically impact players such as Dak Prescott, who is looking for a new deal with the Dallas Cowboys, but Pelissero adds that the idea hasn't gained much traction.

MORE: Dak Prescott will be NFL's first $60 million per year player, per insider

"There has certainly been discussion within the league among certain owners about even the idea of a quarterback cap, that at some point you don't want quarterback numbers to go over a certain percentage of your salary cap," NFL Network's Tom Pelissero said on The Rich Eisen Show. "To my knowledge, that hasn't really gained traction, in part because so many teams have paid their quarterbacks."

While Pelissero doesn't name any of the owners pushing this agenda, it wouldn't be a stretch to assume Jerry Jones and his son, Stephen Jones, are involved — or at the very least, willing to give full support to this idea. Stephen has been vocal for years that paying a quarterback limits the team's options while Jerry blatantly blamed Prescott's salary for their lack of free-agency moves.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said it is difficult to give QB Dak Prescott the type of supporting cast he had early in his NFL career because he is on second contract. Prescott is currently scheduled to count $49.1M against the 2023 cap. pic.twitter.com/DHJPnEamBu

— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) March 4, 2023

Lack of traction in QB salary cap makes perfect sense

While it's easy to see the Joneses singing the praises of a QB cap, it's just as easy to see why there's no real traction — the Cowboys are the anomaly in their treatment of key players.

As they sit on their hands and use the media to try and lower their star player's market value, every other team is actually paying theirs. The Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars, Detroit Lions, Buffalo Bills, and even the notoriously cheap Cincinnati Bengals all paid their signal-callers without making a sound.

Sure, there are some awful contracts out there — looking at you Daniel Jones — but that's due to the Giants putting faith in a player that no one outside of their front office thought was the answer. But one bad move by a team known for bad moves doesn't necessitate a massive change.

Sorry Jerry, you're still going to have to find a way to pay Dak.