In terms of overall QB play this season the top 15 list would arguably look something along the lines of:
Lamar Jackson
Josh Allen
Jared Goff
Jayden Daniels
Joe Burrow
Jalen Hurts
Patrick Mahomes
Justin Herbert
C J Stroud
Kyler Murray
Sam Darnold
Baker Mayfield
Kirk Cousins
Jordan Love
Matthew Stafford
A few quarterbacks can be moved around here and there plus there's a case for the likes of Purdy and Williams to be in the top 15 but in general, it's not an outlandish list.
The point being Dak Prescott is no where to be seen within the top 15 quarterbacks in the league this season and for good reason.
Realistically going forwards with the likes of Caleb Williams and Bo Nix likely to improve a whole lot more and even accounting for say Darnold, Mayfield and Cousins struggling to back up their form into next season and the potential of Stafford and/or Rodgers retiring, do people really see Prescott getting himself into the top 10 ranked quarterbacks next season?
In terms of big name quarterback contracts on the horizon how many are there? Purdy at the end of this season, C J Stroud likely in 2026 and perhaps Josh Allen at some point during that period to restructure his contract given he's only in the low 40s at this time and to spread the cap hit of his next contract with the Bills.
Other than that there are not too many more before Prescott's contract will be up for renewal again - perhaps his will be a year after a bunch of the top 10 guys. The point being that when we look back at the highest earning quarterbacks over the 9 years prior to Prescott's current contract expiring, he will have likely been either the highest earner or at least a top 3 earning QB over those 9 years! Astounding really given the horrific ROI in terms of relevant performance to the team winning important games against good teams. It also completely blows out the water the ridiculous notion/assertion that, "his contract will be around the 15th highest paid quarterback in a year or two" - no it will not!
I am very interested to find out how much Purdy is offered by the 49ers. I do not think it will be $60+ million a year. I think he will take a commercial view and be pleased to take a bit less to stay and play for a good team rather than earning more on a bad team. In those circumstances, I wouldn't be surprised if he accepted around $50 million a year. But who knows, the 49ers might be the next team to massively overpay for a solid NFL starting quarterback. Again, it is noticeable that his overall use and performance is increased when he scrambles and moves to acquire first downs or extend plays which leads me to my next point...
My final observation is that of the above top 10 ranked NFL quarterbacks in the league this season, only Goff lacks mobility. The other 9 can all move at will to extend plays and rush for a much needed first down. Same rules apply to the young quarterbacks coming through like Love, Nix and Williams. If you are planning to pay top dollar to a quarterback then surely they require some mobility in the modern NFL? If not then pay them around the $45-$50 million range to compensate for that to facilitate the payment of two stud running backs like Montgomery and Gibbs or draft a stud RB in the first round like Robinson...
Whichever way people try to dress it up, the latest Dak Prescott contract looks to have been an awful progress stopping decision and one that will kneecap the team for several years to come.
Fair play to him though as he will have brought in $400+ million over 9 years - Jerry must be in a whole world of pain right now!
