Cowboys news: “Dak ain’t gonna be here after that” - Drew Pearson on Dak Prescott playing under the franchise tag

Drew Pearson Sends Warning to Jerry Jones About Dak Prescott - Matthew Lenix, Inside the Star

The Cowboys Hall of Fame wide receiver (man, that sounds good to say) has a little message for the Cowboys owner.

The Cowboys legend sent a warning to team owner Jerry Jones that a second franchise tag could be the end of Prescott’s time in Dallas.

“Where do you go if you don’t sign Dak?” Pearson said. “If you let him go, especially if you let him play under the franchise tag this season and you don’t sign him anywhere along the line to a long-term contract, Dak ain’t gonna be here after that. The man has a lot of pride and he sees what’s going on. He wants to be quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys. It is a big deal.”

Pearson went on to say that Jones could risk not only losing Prescott with a second tag but it could affect the entire team.

“If he has to play the full season under that franchise tag, Jerry’s really taking a risk in that case…not only with Dak as a quarterback of the Cowboys but within the rest of that football team because Dak has a tremendous influence in that locker room. He is the leader. He sets the pace.”

Until Cowboys and Dak Prescott reach a deal everything’s a message to the other side, even when it isn’t - David Moore, Dallas Morning News

Things will only get worse if they can’t get a deal done real soon.

March 9 is the date to circle. That’s when the Cowboys must use the tag for a second consecutive year to secure their starting quarterback in the absence of a contract. It’s in the best interests of both sides to reach an agreement — or be close enough to consider a deal inevitable — by that date.

Friends of Dak (FOD) will argue that’s not the case. They are adamant his leverage increases the closer he gets to that final, July date where he must play the 2021 season on the tag if he doesn’t have a long-term deal.

It does. But let’s be honest here. If Prescott plays on the franchise tag again, he’s gone next season. There will be nothing left to negotiate.

Yes, it’s in the club’s best interest to reach an agreement on or near March 9 so it has cost certainty and can maximize its remaining dollars in free agency. But if Prescott isn’t going to remain with the Cowboys beyond this season, it’s in his best interest to go ahead and engineer his landing spot.

Ranking every NFL team’s QB situation by need - Anthony Treash, Pro Football Focus

Despite the Dak situation in flux, the Cowboys rank low in terms of teams in need of a quarterback.

DALLAS COWBOYS

The ongoing question of “Should the Cowboys pay Dak?” is likely (and thankfully) going to come to an end in the coming weeks. Prescott deserves to receive a decent-sized long-term deal in Dallas, even if he is coming off a gruesome ankle injury.

Prescott shined with first-time play-caller Kellen Moore back in 2019, producing a top-10 PFF grade at the position while ranking as the third-most valuable quarterback in the NFL per PFF WAR. He followed that up with a fiery start in 2020 before going down with that season-ending injury in Week 5, ranking seventh among quarterbacks in PFF grade through the first five weeks of the season (85.2) and leading the league in deep passing yards with 507. He has proven to be more than capable of performing at a high level in any given year, and that’s not something a lot of NFL teams can say they have at quarterback.

Fixing the Dallas Cowboys in Five Moves: February Edition - Adithya Prabakaran, Fansided

How to fix the Cowboys in five easy moves, including doing some free agency shopping at DT.

Ndamukong Suh

The Cowboys seemingly have a thing for grabbing aging talent on the interior defensive line because they are relatively inexpensive compared to when they played in their prime. Suh has made a lot of money over the years and rightfully so. Now 34 years old, Suh is likely near the end of his career. He just won a Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on one of the best front sevens in all of football. I’m sure Tampa Bay would like to keep him, but they have a receiver by the name of Chris Godwin to pay. Dallas should take advantage of this opportunity and go grab the former Nebraska Cornhusker. At 34, he still recorded 44 tackles, 6 sacks, and 19 QB pressures. For years the Cowboys have been unable to generate pressure on the interior because of players’ athletic shortcomings or raw skill. Suh could solve this problem.

Cowboys pick 70 percent defense in our complete seven-round mock draft - Jon Machota, The Athletic

The Cowboys go defense heavy in Machota’s latest mock draft.

First round, No. 10 overall: Patrick Surtain II, CB,

Alabama No major surprises here. The Cowboys need help all over their defense, so they get one of the top two cornerbacks in this draft. Virginia Tech corner Caleb Farley went to Denver with the ninth overall pick, so Dallas ends up with Surtain. Either player would upgrade their secondary and one of the two should be there, considering most mock drafts don’t have a defender getting picked until Denver’s pick. Others who were considered here included Northwestern offensive tackle Rashawn Slater and Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons.

And Machota double-dips in the secondary with an early investment at safety.

Second round, No. 44 overall: Richie Grant, S, UCF

TCU safety Trevon Moehrig was selected 37th overall by the Eagles, so Grant ended up being the second safety picked in this mock draft. During my last mock, I had the Cowboys taking Farley at No. 10 and Moehrig at 44. Either way, Dallas ends up addressing two major needs with playmakers on the back end of their defense.

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