Throughout the 2020 National Football League regular season, there were some questions within the Dallas Cowboys organization and the entire NFL if quarterback Dak Prescott of Sulphur, Louisiana, had played his final game for Dallas when he broke his right ankle against the New York Giants in a 37-34 Dallas win on October 11. Those questions were laid to rest on Monday, when Prescott signed a four-year deal worth $160 million according to Todd Archer of ESPN.
As part of the contract, there will be a $66 million signing bonus, the largest in NFL history. The previous highest signing bonus was Russell Wilson of the Seattle Seahawks, who had a $65 million signing bonus when he signed with Seattle on April 15, 2019.
Even though Prescott only had a record of two wins and three losses as the Cowboys quarterback this past year, one could argue he was the best quarterback in the NFL at the time of his injury. He completed 151 passes in 222 attempts with nine touchdowns and four interceptions. Prescott also led the NFL with the most net yards gained per pass attempt at 7.72. Net yards gained per pass attempt is calculated by taking the number of passing yards minus sack yards and dividing that total by the number of passes attempted plus the number of times sacked.
The NFC East has been the weakest division in recent seasons. By having Prescott locked up for the next four seasons improves Dallas’s chances of winning the division, but one must remember how awful Dallas was defensively last year. Dallas gave up 473 points, the fifth most points allowed in the NFL. No matter how great Prescott could be, the Cowboys need to be effective on both sides of the football.
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