Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones puts the ball in Dak Prescott's court as QB preps for potential $60,000,000 deal

Dak Prescott turned 31 years old on Monday, July 29 but the Dallas Cowboys quarterback did not receive the gift he would've hoped for to kick off the week. We're a week and change away from Cowboys preseason games but Prescott is still waiting to hammer out the details of a contract negotiation with the franchise.

Speaking on San Antonio's Sports Star show this week, Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones gave a minor update on negotiations with his star QB. Jones said:

"Right now, the ball is in Dak's court and we're waiting to hear from them. They understand the ball is in their court."

On CeeDee Lamb's pending contract, Jones added:

"We keep having multiple exchanges with CeeDee. He actually sent us something late (Sunday). We continue to grind away on it. I would characterize both negotiations as very cordial and upbeat."

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Dak Prescott says he's open to switching teams as contract negotiations stall

Last week, after Jerry Jones' paternity trial reached a conclusion, the Cowboys owner and his EVP attended the franchise's annual opening press conference. After they outlined the challenges they were facing, all eyes turned to Dak Prescott's media appearance where he explained that he could see himself following the likes of Tom Brady and Peyton Manning by playing on multiple teams.

On Tuesday, July 30, Stephen Jones addressed those comments saying:

"We think in terms of being real positive that we're gonna get this done. We don't picture Dak in another uniform at all. We do believe that the worm is gonna turn and he's gonna win a championship for us."

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Why Dak Prescott's next contract could breach $60 million a year

The ball may be in Prescott's court but the Cowboys appear to have backed themselves into a corner by waiting this long to get a deal done. All of Joe Burrow, Trevor Lawrence, Jared Goff, Jalen Hurts, Jordan Love and Tua Tagovailoa penned contract extensions with the title of the league's highest-paid QB switching hands and ultimately landing with Lawrence, Burrow and Jordan Love at $55 million a year.

It stands to reason, therefore, that the Cowboys will likely have to surpass the deal the Packers handed Jordan Love considering Dak Prescott was among the MVP contenders well into the season. Dallas also has little recourse if their Pro Bowl signal caller leaves in free agency considering the compensation will be minuscule in comparison. They could always start over at QB but that would mean committing to a rookie and wasting the prime years of CeeDee Lamb and Micah Parsons' youth.