NFL Exec: Dak Prescott 'Kind of Lost' Amid Russell Wilson, Deshaun Watson Rumors

With all the attention on star quarterbacks around the league putting pressure on their teams to potentially move them in a trade, one NFL executive said Dak Prescott has gotten "lost" in the shuffle.

"Everyone else is complaining," the executive told Mike Sando of The Athletic. "Dak is kind of lost in this."

Prescott can become a free agent March 17, but it's far more likely he reaches a long-term extension with the Cowboys or receives the franchise tag for the second straight season. The tag would pay Prescott $37.1 million and potentially set him up to become a free agent in 2022.

Prescott's contract situation is complicated in part because he's coming off a severe ankle injury that will likely take him out of the Cowboys' offseason program. It's also a difficult situation because the Cowboys and Prescott have been at an impasse for two years regarding an extension, with Dak outplaying expectations in 2019 and then the two sides blowing past the franchise player deadline last July.

Presuming he comes back at full health, Prescott could position himself to sign one of the richest contracts in sports history if he hits free agency next offseason. The Cowboys are at risk of playing themselves into a situation similar to the one of Washington and Kirk Cousins from 2017 if they're not careful.

Jerry Jones told 105.3 The Fan in January that Prescott has all the leverage in negotiations: 

"I don't know how you could have any more leverage," Jones said on 105.3 The Fan. "... His evolving into an NFL quarterback has been nothing short of a perfect picture. He has great ability, in my mind, to win games. He's talented. He certainly has the experiences and he has all the things, which has been substantiated by what we've offered Dak. You wouldn't offer Dak what we offered in the past if you'd not thought he was very special. The issue is, how do you come together? And that's no stranger to me. I've been doing it all my life, putting things together. We've got to get it together."

The only way Prescott isn't playing for the Cowboys next season is if the team works out a blockbuster trade to send him elsewhere. With Deshaun Watson and Russell Wilson both making headlines about their unhappiness in their current homes, there's some easy fantasy trades that could be made, though they remain highly unlikely.