FRISCO – Upon the Jones family’s takeover of the Dallas Cowboys, Jerry and oldest son Stephen immersed themselves as quickly as possible into the day-to-day operations of an NFL franchise.
Among the focus points for Stephen: Learning the art of contract negotiations from team exec Bob Ackles, a key aide to GM Tex Schramm.
And among the lessons stressed by the late Ackles to a then-25-year-old Stephen
The first guy to pick up the phone,” Ackles said, “just lost the negotiations.”
Some things about “The Art of the Deal” have changed in 30 years, thanks to free agency and the salary cap. Indeed, part of Ackles’ job back then was to save the owner’s cash; now it’s about cap allocation.
But ultimately, it’s still about “winning” – which brings us to “Dak Prescott vs. the Cowboys” … and negotiations we are told are about to get underway.
Sources tell us that the two sides are “ready” to visit, and the calendar tells us the same thing.
The quarterback is entering the final year of his four-year, $160 million deal he signed in 2021. Prescott currently has a $59.4 million cap hit in 2024, and while the Cowboys could leave that be, doing so would a) hinder their ability to spend elsewhere in roster-building and b) mean Dak will be free to leave Dallas in free agency after 2024.
