There’s a new (and probably more expensive) wrinkle in the Dak Prescott contract situation

It was about three months ago that the Dallas Cowboys defeated the Seattle Seahawks in the Wildcard Round of the playoffs.

It was the first taste of postseason success for the Cowboys in their new era with Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott, They made it to the NFL’s elite eight and were then ousted in the Divisional Round by the eventual NFC Champion Los Angeles Rams.

That game against the Seahawks is one many have clung to as a sign of hope for the 2019 Cowboys, though. Any time you can defeat a quarterback of Russell Wilson’s caliber it’s an enormous victory. He’s an MVP-level player.

Unfortunately for the Seattle Seahawks, specifically their pocket books, that is very true and recognized by people league-wide. It’s unfortunate because Russell wants to get paid and he wants it to happen by April 15th. That’s less than two weeks from now.

Russell getting paid is a big factor in the Dak Prescott situation

Wilson is an MVP-level player who plays the quarterback position. Signal-callers are inherently extremely valuable because of how important that position is in the game of football, but when you’re good at it like Russell is, you’re all the more likely to make enough cash for Scrooge McDuck to dive into.

It’s possible that Wilson could become the game’s highest-paid quarterback with his new deal (assuming he gets one). As The Seattle Times noted, that’s quite a large number.

Rodgers now leads all NFL players in average salary per year at $33.5 million, while Wilson is now just the 12th-highest-paid QB. It’s unclear exactly what Wilson is asking for, but he’s likely to want to at least match Rodgers’ average per year, if not exceed it.

Let’s assume something of our own, that Wilson gets a deal and that’s in the neighborhood of Aaron Rodgers. If you’re Dak Prescott’s agent, aren’t you going to expect a similar number? Especially considering the last game Russell played was a loss to your client?

Obviously Dak and Russell don’t literally play each other, and Prescott hardly has the statistical success that Wilson does. Or has he? From Pro Football Reference:

Dak Prescott has:

• More wins
• More completions
• A better completion percentage
• Less interceptions
• More rushing touchdowns

In fact considering total touchdowns, Prescott only trails Russell by nine. That’s not bad when you’re talking about someone like Russell Wilson, which is why Dak’s camp is likely rooting for the Seahawks QB to get a gigantic payday.

We’ve been over this, Dak Prescott has an insane résumé through three seasons. It’s so much of the reason that he too is likely going to cash in on a big payday. Some of it is also the inherent value of the position as mentioned, but the longer the Cowboys wait and the more that other quarterbacks sign for, the higher Dak Prescott’s value is going to rise.

April 15th is less than two weeks away. Unless the Cowboys find a way to lock down Prescott long-term between now and then (they’re not exactly having success with DeMarcus Lawrence in that department) they might as well accept that whatever figure they had in their mind is about to grow.

The quarterback effect is a real thing.