Cowboys Restructure Dak Prescott’s Deal, Free Up $36.6 Million In Cap Space – But Don’t Expect A Free Agency Splash From Team

The highest 2025 salary cap figure in the NFL no longer belongs to Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott.

The Cowboys have restructured Prescott’s contract, freeing up $36.6 million in cap space. They converted $45.75 million of his base salary into a signing bonus, lowering his cap hit from $89.89 million to $53.29 million.

Dallas has cleared $56.6 million in cap space over the past two days by restructuring the contracts of Prescott and CeeDee Lamb. Still, that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re preparing for a big free-agency splash next week.

“I’m not looking at free agency as a place to fill voids,” Jerry Jones, the man at the helm as Cowboys owner and general manager, said.

That does not mean that Dallas has a complete roster.

“Not if you include what might work for us in the draft and what we’re doing with our own roster relative to who we want to sign,” Jones added.

The recent contract restructures won’t impact negotiations for pass rusher Micah Parsons, who is currently slated to play the 2025 season under his $22.06 million fifth-year option. A long-term extension would reduce that cap hit and open up more space.

Dallas has recently begun talks with Parsons’ agent regarding an extension.

Jones isn’t overly focused on when a deal gets finalized. The Cowboys took a similar approach last year, signing Lamb late in training camp and extending Prescott just before the season began.

“We get criticized because we wait until the end or what you would call the end, and that is lining up for the first game,” Jones said. “It just happens that way. I’ve been one of the earliest out there on several contracts in my 35 years.”

On Tuesday, the Cowboys signed defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa to a four-year, $80 million contract, guaranteeing him $52 million and setting his 2025 cap hit at $6.25 million.

Stephen Jones, the team’s executive vice president, said the Cowboys will take a “selectively aggressive” approach to free agency this year – unlike last offseason, when they parted ways with Tyron Smith, Tony Pollard, Tyler Biadasz, Dorance Armstrong, Dante Fowler and Johnathan Hankins, without making substantial additions.

“As opportunity would come up from [outside], not the draft, not from within, as the opportunity comes up, we’ll weigh it,” Jones said. “Last year, we would have waited, but we’ll look and see the opportunity to improve on the plan that basically both defense and offense is to complement what we’re wanting to do with a Dak-led team.”

With free agency approaching next week, the Cowboys have several pending free agents they hope to retain, including Jourdan Lewis, Bryan Anger, Rico Dowdle, Eric Kendricks and DeMarcus Lawrence.

If Lawrence departs and with Zack Martin retiring, Prescott – the Cowboys’ fourth-round pick in the 2016 NFL Draft – would become the longest-tenured player on the team.

Prescott’s reduced 2025 cap hit means his 2026 cap number will rise by $9.15 million to $76.8 million.

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Article by Avery Torff

Avery Torff is a uSports writer. Follow him Twitter & Instagram: @torffusports