Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones took responsibility for the delay in signing long-term extensions for key players Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, and Micah Parsons.
“If you’ve got trouble with when the timing is around here,” Jones stated, “it’s because I’m not ready to go.”
Prescott’s contract expires after the 2024 season, with negotiations yet to commence. Lamb is currently on the fifth-year option, set to earn $17.99 million this year, while Parsons is under contractual control until 2025.
“You may be working on [contracts] and not moving anything but your eyebrows,” Jones explained. “Who in the world would think that we’re not working on it? I work on it.
Jerry Jones (Via realjerryjones/Twitter)
It pops up at 2 in the morning sometimes. What you’re actually questioning is why don’t you have something done and negotiated and put in the drawer?
Well, we’d like to see some more leaves fall. We’d like to see some more action.”
Regarding Lamb, negotiations are affected by a waiting game between him and other top receivers like Justin Jefferson, potentially aiming for substantial deals similar to Tyreek Hill’s $30 million per year.
“You don’t think the representatives of Jefferson and CeeDee and [Ja’Marr Chase] aren’t talking? You don’t think they got their eye on something really big? Please,” said executive vice president Stephen Jones.
Jerry Jones (Via realjerryjones/Twitter)
Prescott’s extension might hinge on playoff success, with the Cowboys yet to progress beyond the divisional round during his tenure. However, he remains open to negotiations and understands his value in the free-agent market.
“Dak has enjoyed, in his career that we’re proud of, some of the best supporting casts that you could put around him,” Jerry Jones noted. “To move forward, we will have to diminish that. That’s a fact. That’s the rules.”
While there’s less urgency with Parsons, waiting could inflate players’ prices, yet Jones expressed confidence in predicting future salary cap trends.
“Timing is obviously as important as the principal amount,” Jerry Jones concluded, “and sometimes timing keeps you from making a mistake.”
