Burrow’s New $275 Million Contract; Dak Prescott 'Deserves' Cowboys Signing Next?

This doesn’t mean the Cowboys have to end up giving Dak Prescott $55 million APY to vault him up to Joe Burrow’s level … but …

NEW YORK CITY - The Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday night signed quarterback Joe Burrow on the richest contract in NFL history, a five-year, $275 million deal that includes over $219 million guaranteed. And one more thing …

Burrow is now at $55 million per year - suddenly the fourth QB to cross the $50 million threshold in this offseason alone - with Cowboys QB Dak Prescott on the logical next-in-line list. 

Prescott is at $40 million APY, and that’s about to change. Is he as good as new-money guys Burrow, Justin Herbert, Lamar Jackson and Jalen Hurts, or others? That’s a fair question but it’s not the point.

A contract extension has long been planned by the Cowboys in advance of next season, with Prescott’s cap number for 2024 looming at about $59 million.

Short of letting him walk (which is far from the plan), Dallas needs to re-do Prescott in order to do 2024 cap business.

That doesn’t mean the Cowboys have to end up giving him $55 million APY to vault him up to Burrow’s level … but the team had better get comfortable with that sort of number being brought up at the negotiating table.