Dak Prescott Rumors: Cowboys QB Plans to Sign $31.4M Franchise Tender by Monday

Dak Prescott will sign his one-year franchise tender with the Dallas Cowboys by Monday, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. 

The deal guarantees Prescott $31.4 million for the 2020 season. He and the Cowboys have until July 15 to iron out a long-term extension.

Both sides have a strong incentive to get a deal completed this summer.

Quarterback salaries have continued to climb in recent years, and the going rate for elite passers is bound to reach record levels soon with Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson due to hit free agency in 2022.

But Prescott's leverage may never be higher than it is now. He's coming off a career year after setting personal bests for passing yards (4,902) and touchdowns (30).

As former agent and CBS Sports analyst Joel Corry told Jon Machota of The Athletic, the Cowboys' offseason business dealings are an indication of how much they value Prescott:

"I think Dallas will cave and give him the four (years). Here's how you know. As much as some people will say (the Cowboys) don't really want Dak, if there was ever a year for you to roll the dice on a quarterback, it was this year because you had several quarterbacks available in free agency. If Dallas was lukewarm on Dak they could have stuck a transition tag on him where they had the right to match, let the market dictate what that deal would have been and then gone yay or nay."

Dallas waited until the seventh round to select a quarterback (James Madison's Ben DiNucci) and signed Andy Dalton rather than going after Cam Newton or Jameis Winston. Prescott is clearly the unquestioned No. 1 quarterback.

NBC Sports' Chris Simms (h/t Mike Fisher of CowboyMaven) reported in May the Cowboys put a five-year, $175 million offer on the table for Prescott. To sign on for a fifth year, Prescott was looking to get $45-plus million in the final year of the contract.

In terms of average salary, that would tie Prescott with Russell Wilson for the highest in the league.

However, Schefter and NFL Network's Ian Rapoport refuted Simms' report:

As much as giving Prescott a massive extension would limit the Cowboys' financial flexibility, the situation wouldn't get any easier a year from now.

The Washington Redskins painted themselves into a corner by playing hardball with Kirk Cousins. Washington used the franchise tag on Cousins in back-to-back seasons, only to watch him sign a three-year, $84 million fully guaranteed deal with the Minnesota Vikings in 2018 when the franchise tag became too expensive.

Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio noted the franchise tender for Prescott would be around $37.7 million in 2021 if Dallas wants to take that route again. The number would climb to $54.2 million in 2022, a price so exorbitant he'd be all but guaranteed to hit the free-agent market.

While getting Prescott in camp is a step in the right direction for the Cowboys, the front office is still working against a ticking clock.