[Mike Fisher] What If Cowboys Dak . Trade? Cut? Retire? Fish Report

[FVSTONE]

I don’t know how Dallas fans feel, but strictly as a content creator I enjoy this guy’s personality. But two points he didn’t mention, one bad, one good for the “dump Dak” crowd:

1. Dak has a 90m$ cap hit in 2025. There is something Jerry did EVERY YEAR on his previous deal to carry a heavy QB contract and still be competitive. He restructured the deal. Over and over and over again. What this means is it greatly improves today’s cap hit but adds more to the next 5 cap hits. Jerry is 100% going to do that in 2025, and he’s 100% going to do that in 2026. The only reason he wouldn’t is because he’s already planning to trade Dak EIGHT GAMES INTO SIGNING THE BIGGEST PER YEAR DEAL IN NFL HISTORY. Obviously that is not the case, so those restructures will happen, and a 90m$ 2025 cap hit will not. Why bring this up? Because those will make cutting/ trading him in 2027 (June 1st or not) unrealistic. Really surprised Fish didn’t bring this up. Earliest out then is probably 2028, but even that would come with a lump sum. You have to re-sign Micah, you have to re-sign Smith to a historic OG contract, you have to re-sign Ferguson, you have to pay high draft picks… Dak is getting restructured multiple times.

2. This is the good for trying to get rid of Dak: it has happened in small amounts, and is extraordinarily unlikely to come fruition, but…..

If Dak has a deal in place with the next team, you could try and convince him to give the signing bonus back.

I know it’s a ridiculous ask, but Dak could agree if it makes a trade feasible and that money goes right back into his account with the next team. Devin White gave money back to Philly to entice them to cut him and reduce the cap hit. He wanted to go somewhere he’d play more. So there is precedent. Definitely never occurred with a number this big, but it would greatly minimize the cap hit in a trade.

Prescott isn't going anywhere until he gets his full amount he signed for. This organization is screwed for years to come. One potser said it all about Prescott, he has been babysat by the talent he's had around him since 2016. Now he's on a team that is talent starved and it's proving what a lot of people have been saying about Dak and that's he's pretty much a over hyped, overpaid, less than mediocre QB who probably couldn't start on most of the TOP 25 college teams in this country.

 

[kskboys]

The way out is to draft a QB, let him sit behind Dak for a season, and then try to trade Dak. I think if Dak sees the keys being handed over to another QB, he might be ok accepting a trade.

We'd have to take on 30-60% of his contract.

 

[KingCorcoran]

Prescott isn't going anywhere until he gets his full amount he signed for. This organization is screwed for years to come. One potser said it all about Prescott, he has been babysat by the talent he's had around him since 2016. Now he's on a team that is talent starved and it's proving what a lot of people have been saying about Dak and that's he's pretty much a over hyped, overpaid, less than mediocre QB who probably couldn't start on most of the TOP 25 college teams in this country.

The organization is screwed because it’s owned by Jerry Jones. Dak is here because Jerry arranged to keep him here. Jerry, not Dak, not fans, just Jerry makes personnel decisions. Before any fan points a finger at Dak Prescott they must first point the finger at Jerry Jones. Dak is a symptom. Jerry Jones is the disease.

 

[75boyz]

I don’t know how Dallas fans feel, but strictly as a content creator I enjoy this guy’s personality. But two points he didn’t mention, one bad, one good for the “dump Dak” crowd:

1. Dak has a 90m$ cap hit in 2025. There is something Jerry did EVERY YEAR on his previous deal to carry a heavy QB contract and still be competitive. He restructured the deal. Over and over and over again. What this means is it greatly improves today’s cap hit but adds more to the next 5 cap hits. Jerry is 100% going to do that in 2025, and he’s 100% going to do that in 2026. The only reason he wouldn’t is because he’s already planning to trade Dak EIGHT GAMES INTO SIGNING THE BIGGEST PER YEAR DEAL IN NFL HISTORY. Obviously that is not the case, so those restructures will happen, and a 90m$ 2025 cap hit will not. Why bring this up? Because those will make cutting/ trading him in 2027 (June 1st or not) unrealistic. Really surprised Fish didn’t bring this up. Earliest out then is probably 2028, but even that would come with a lump sum. You have to re-sign Micah, you have to re-sign Smith to a historic OG contract, you have to re-sign Ferguson, you have to pay high draft picks… Dak is getting restructured multiple times.

2. This is the good for trying to get rid of Dak: it has happened in small amounts, and is extraordinarily unlikely to come fruition, but…..

If Dak has a deal in place with the next team, you could try and convince him to give the signing bonus back.

I know it’s a ridiculous ask, but Dak could agree if it makes a trade feasible and that money goes right back into his account with the next team. Devin White gave money back to Philly to entice them to cut him and reduce the cap hit. He wanted to go somewhere he’d play more. So there is precedent. Definitely never occurred with a number this big, but it would greatly minimize the cap hit in a trade.

Yeah man,
your restructuring insight is a hard reality to swallow for the near future of this team.
It's a hopeless feeling actually.

 

[75boyz]

Remember, If Dallas trades him his new team only picks up his salary. His pro-rated bonus remains with Dallas. Would a team desperate for a QB sign Dak and pay his $47 million salary? Would you be happy if Dak took $47 million instead of $60 million?

His salary is only $40 million in 2026. I think a lot of team would take him for that amount.

But even if they trade him the problem is his pro-rated bonus numbers. There is around $103 million in bonus sitting on the books for 2025-2028 which would all hit in 2025.

Cutting him after 2024 is out of the question. He is already guaranteed his salary for 2025 and the $103 million in bonus would accelerate. They can reduce that by about $23 million if they make him a June 1 cut. But overall his CAP number would increase to over $120 million.

If he retires, the Cowboys are equally screwed.

The best they can do is trade him after the 2025 season, but his 2026 salary of $40 million would already be guaranteed. His contract is that bad.

And it's even worse. How Aerolithe Lion pointed out. Because there's a 99.9999% chance Jerry does not keep his cap hit at over 89 million next year and thus restructures to kick the credit card debt down the road and even further intensifying the negative impact of the contract for even more years.
I know it's bad brother.
It's far worse than bad.
Its a worst case scenario reality.

The nightmare just got worse.

 

[RonWashington]

Jayden Daniels Jalen Hurts in division get a coaching staff in Chicago for Caleb Williams Jordan Love Pat Mahomes heck Kyler Murray both Goff and Burrow younger then Dak although not as mobile as other QB’s mentioned still win .

The injury puts Dak at the 10 yr mark in Dallas next camp 2025 with a new staff and presumably an upgraded running attack and an OL gaining more experience every game .

I’m reluctant with a 4 spent on Mingo to keep drafting WR and the TE’s here how many more can you collect .

I am not optimistic with what Dallas has when you look at the league with younger better QB’s and offensive systems .

Jerry has blundered with the anchor on the boat # 4

 

[75boyz]

Imagine....just 3 months ago....we were free. FREE! all we had to do....was NOTHING.

And we INTENTIONALLY gave up our freedom. Walked right into the prison cell, with our own feet....nobody making us with a gun to our back.... we just walked right in and shut the door and threw the key out the barred window.

And now we have a self-imposed life sentence.

Imagine the posts in here if we HADNT had done this deed: "only 7 more weeks of Dak"!!! "Who do we want for our brand new QB and identity next year?" "I CANT WAIT FOR 2025 AND A NEW START!!!"

Now...those posts are years away. And not just 2 or 3 years....but YEARS AND YEARS away. We've serving life....and we did it ourselves.

AND SO MANY OF YOU ZANY ZONERS TOLD US TO WALK INTO THE PRISON CELL. I can still read the posts from 4 months ago....you Daksters, lobbying for people to walk into the prison cell, sign the contract, and throw away the key.

3 months ago we were free. That freedom seems like ages ago though. Thanks Daksters.

Absolutely true.
Great post.

 

[atlantacowboy]

We'd have to take on 30-60% of his contract.

His contract is nuts and only surpassed in stupidity by Desean Watsons contract. This is the cheap year! He is only 17% of the cap. Next year his cap hit balloons to 89M which is 33% of the salary cap. So, that means a restructure is a certainty. We will be paying out Dak for a looong time. Even if we agree to trade and eat 30%-40% of the remainder of his gauranteed money, unloading the remaining 60%- 70% would be well worth it. It all depends on how he plays next year. If we get 2024 Dak, we are screwed. But, if we get something close to 2023 Dak, there could be a market for him.

 

[blueblood70]

If Dak hit the trade market even with that contract a team will take him….

People underestimate the fact that teams will take a Proven QB and yes Dak has proven he can be top 5 multiple times

 

[FVSTONE]

The organization is screwed because it’s owned by Jerry Jones. Dak is here because Jerry arranged to keep him here. Jerry, not Dak, not fans, just Jerry makes personnel decisions. Before any fan points a finger at Dak Prescott they must first point the finger at Jerry Jones. Dak is a symptom. Jerry Jones is the disease.

Let's break this down in simpler terms. Prescott stated his reasoning for the dollar amount he was demanding and received from Jerry Jones had NOTHING to do with building a competitive team for the future. Once Prescott laid out his cards Jerry Jonest should have walked away from the table and should have never signed Prescott to a contract that is now going to cripple this organization for many, many, many years! Prescott stated that he wanted to drive up the salaries of today and future NFL QBs, in his statement he never once mentioned that he wanted to be a team guy and receive less to help build a competitive team that could possibly be good enough to get deep into the playoffs or even win a SB or two.

 

[calicowboy54]

realistically i think the earliest you can cut him and NOT kill yourself financially is 2027. if you plan on that due to injuries you draft a QB this year in round 1 and let him sit for 3 years. you have him on a 5 year deal you start him in years 4/5, if he’s got it extend him or rinse and repeat. no way we cut or trade him. he’s not retiring he needs the money.

 

[KingCorcoran]

Let's break this down in simpler terms. Prescott stated his reasoning for the dollar amount he was demanding and received from Jerry Jones had NOTHING to do with building a competitive team for the future. Once Prescott laid out his cards Jerry Jonest should have walked away from the table and should have never signed Prescott to a contract that is now going to cripple this organization for many, many, many years! Prescott stated that he wanted to drive up the salaries of today and future NFL QBs, in his statement he never once mentioned that he wanted to be a team guy and receive less to help build a competitive team that could possibly be good enough to get deep into the playoffs or even win a SB or two.

If I’m understanding you, you’re claiming Dak Prescott was honest about what he wanted to be paid and why he wanted to be paid that amount. Knowing what Dak wanted and why, Jerry Jones had the opportunity to consider meeting his salary demand. When Jerry considered it long enough he decided to sign Dak to an agreement acceptable to both.

Under the circumstances, how is Dak Prescott the bad guy in the deal? At any point in negotiations Jerry Jones could have indicated he was not comfortable meeting Dak’s demands and said “no”. Dak and his representative did what they’re supposed to do. Jerry Jones, didn’t.

 

[FVSTONE]

If I’m understanding you, you’re claiming Dak Prescott was honest about what he wanted to be paid and why he wanted to be paid that amount. Knowing what Dak wanted and why, Jerry Jones had the opportunity to consider meeting his salary demand. When Jerry considered it long enough he decided to sign Dak to an agreement acceptable to both.

Under the circumstances, how is Dak Prescott the bad guy in the deal? At any point in negotiations Jerry Jones could have indicated he was not comfortable meeting Dak’s demands and said “no”. Dak and his representative did what they’re supposed to do. Jerry Jones, didn’t.

From the get go Prescott has proved that he is not a team player like the great Brady was. Prescott is single-handedly destroying this organization with his outrageous contract demands that for some insane reason was met by Jerry Jones. Prescott will go down as one of the worse investments that any Cowboy owner has ever made.

 

[FVSTONE]

What????????The only thing that Prescott has PROVED is that he is the worse investment that any Cowboy owner has ever made! Prescott has been well paid and has crapped down his legs in the BIG games his entire career! When the team needed Prescott to step up, he has struggled mightily. This organization is in deep do-do as long as Prescott is on this team. Dak Prescott is a proven commodity……. What a JOKE!!!!!!

 

[triplets_93]

The Cowboys are dead with Jerry Jones at the helm.

Enjoy the Circus!

 

[KingCorcoran]

From the get go Prescott has proved that he is not a team player like the great Brady was. Prescott is single-handedly destroying this organization with his outrageous contract demands that for some insane reason was met by Jerry Jones. Prescott will go down as one of the worse investments that any Cowboy owner has ever made.

From the “get go” Jerry Jones has proved he is not qualified to be the acting General Manager of an NFL franchise. At least Dak Prescott has proved he is qualified to be an NFL quarterback.

If it’s a bad contract it is 100% the fault of Jerry Jones. 100%. It is his job to build a competitive NFL team. And Jones is the owner of the team. No player’s contract can happen without Jones’ expressed consent. Dak’s entire career is 15 years, maybe a few more. That’s it and it’s over. Jones owns the team for the rest of his life and leaves it to his heirs when he passes. As a professional football player Dak knows his career is of limited duration. His representation has a fiduciary duty to Dak. Dak and Todd France have no authority to build a roster that can compete in the NFL.

Suffice to say if Jerry Jones was as good at what he does as Dak Prescott and Todd France are at what they do the Cowboys would not be dealing with the circumstances they are now. Dak Prescott is one of the few great players the Cowboys have. Jerry Jones is “trash”.

 

[Chasing6]

The way out is to draft a QB, let him sit behind Dak for a season, and then try to trade Dak. I think if Dak sees the keys being handed over to another QB, he might be ok accepting a trade.

Or Dak sees how bad the QB is that you drafted. Kind of like the trade for Trance.

 

[Chasing6]

No! What a capital N..........fans have to understand that how they feel about Dak is the total opposite of how Jerry feels. Like it or not, Jerry trusts Dak as the starting quarterback for the next 3-4 years 100%. As mentioned earlier, they structured Dak's contract the same as his previous one, which is to restructure several times.
For me........I would use the next two years to build the strongest defense and OLine possible and year 3 draft his replacement.

Fix the OLine and draft a RB. Dak will be fine.

 

[Gangsta Spanksta]

Tell that to Rocky …. if you can find him

He probably doesn't care since he probably took his own advice and followed another team.

 

[Gangsta Spanksta]

Fix the OLine and draft a RB. Dak will be fine.

Yeah, really easy drafting that many guys that will turn out good enough to keep.