Dallas Cowboys Problems + Dak Prescott and Mike McCarthy Relationship Narrative...

The biggest story surrounding the Dallas Cowboys this offseason is the negotiations between the team and quarterback Dak Prescott for a long-term deal. Prescott signed his one-year franchise tender this past week, but the two sides will continue to negotiate. Another notable story is that the Cowboys have a new head coach for the first time in nearly a decade as former Green Bay Packers head coach Mike McCarthy takes over for Jason Garrett. The relationship between a coach and a quarterback is arguably the most important one for a football team. With the COVID-19 pandemic and Prescott holding out of the team’s virtual offseason program, it’s obviously been hard to create one, but longtime NFL scout and current NFL Network analyst Bucky Brooks doesn’t think that will be an issue. “I think this is going to be an outstanding relationship,” Brooks said on Thursday on NFL Network’s “Move the Sticks” special. “They kept Kellen Moore, the offensive coordinator, in place. That relationship between Kellen Moore and Dak Prescott got off to a really nice start last season. We really saw him do more with that offense in terms of throwing the ball outside the numbers. He really got command of that offense. I think Mike McCarthy will use other pieces of this offense, meaning the running game, using to set up some deep shots on play action. But I expect Dak Prescott to play at a higher level because we saw what Mike McCarthy did with Aaron Rodgers. I think he will have a similar impact on Dak Prescott.” More than two months since he received his franchise tag from the Cowboys, Prescott had not signed the tender. After starting all 64 of the Cowboys' games the past four years with a 65.8-percent completion rate and averages of 3,944.3 yards and 24.3 touchdowns to 9.0 interceptions per season. ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter first reported Sunday that Prescott was expected to sign his franchise tag at some point Monday. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport delved deeper into the motivation behind why Prescott wanted to ink it now. "There's a couple reasons why (Prescott is signing the franchise tag)," Rapoport said Monday afternoon on NFL Network's NFL Now. "First of all, the Cowboys' virtual offseason is now over. And if Dak Prescott wanted to make sure that — for business reasons only — he stayed away from the virtual offseason, stayed off those Zoom (video call) meetings, then the timing does make sense, a pretty clear stance for the Cowboys that he wants a new contract. Obviously, he was given the franchise tag and status quo was simply something that was not going to work. So he stayed away from the virtual offseason program. And if he does sign it today or some point this week, timing is pretty clear he wanted to do it after this virtual offseason. "And of course, so many players are now wondering about their future, about their security — everything that we have heard is that the NFL is going to have a season in its entirety, but no one can say for hundred-percent certainty that it is going to happen, which is why you've seen a lot of players — a lot of franchise-tag players — locking their money by signing where, in previous years, they have not done so. Count Dak Prescott in that category by signing, whenever he does, whether it's today or some other time soon. He will lock in that $31 million. Not that he was going to hold out, not that the Cowboys were going to pull it, but either way, this guarantees he is going to get his money."