What does Tua Tagovailoa’s deal mean for Dak Prescott?

Another big-name quarterback landed an extension on Friday as the Miami Dolphins and Tua Tagovailoa agreed to a four-year extension worth $212.4 million — with $167 million guaranteed. That’s an average of $53.1 million putting Tua slightly ahead of Jared Goff ($53 million annually) but behind Trevor Lawrence ($55 million per season).

Meanwhile, Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys are still at an impasse.

With each quarterback signing, the pressure on the front office increases but this one doesn’t hurt them as much as the Lawrence deal. That one was a problem for Jerry Jones since Prescott has put together a far more impressive career. It was also just under four percent higher than the deal Goff signed.

Adding a similar raise for Prescott would have put the deal at $57 million annually but considering his resume, there were reports the Cowboys would be on the hook for $60 million. That number could have gone even higher if someone signed for more than Lawrence.

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Jerry and Stephen Jones would argue that Tagovailoa agreeing to a deal closer to Goff’s should slow down the market slightly but the truth is that this deal should have no impact on Prescott whatsoever.

Not only is Prescott a superior quarterback — Chris Simms even argued the Dolphins should let Tua walk and chase Dak in 2025 — but he’s also far more durable. Prescott missed time in 2020 with a broken ankle and then in 2022 with a thumb injury.

Outside of those two freak injuries, he’s been on the field nearly every week.

Tagovailoa, on the other hand, has played a full slate of games just once. He was fortunate that took place in 2023 just before his agency began to negotiate a new deal but he played just 13 games in the prior two seasons and 10 as a rookie.

This isn’t a new development either as he suffered ankle injuries during his collegiate career at Alabama and entered the NFL with a hip injury. There were even concerns that concussions could lead to his retirement.

In the end, it’s honestly surprising he received as much guaranteed money as he did. Even so, this isn’t a contract the Joneses can point to and attempt to lower Dak’s demands.

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