The Dallas Cowboys' problem isn't that they lack skill. The problem is paying that talent, which is especially urgent for a team that, despite losing a slew of free agents,
still has only around $4 million in effective cap space, according to OverTheCap.com. However, Dak Prescott, Micah Parsons, and CeeDee Lamb, who are officially contracted for next year, are all eligible for new contracts.
All will require high-dollar transactions. If the Cowboys do not make a move for Prescott, he will face a massive cap hit of $55 million for the season.
Parsons is signed for $3 million this year and has a fifth-year option in 2025 worth $21.4 million, but the Cowboys must offer him a new contract.
Lamb may be the most difficult to master. He has signed for $18 million in 2024, which is the value of his fifth-year option. But he doesn't want to play under that contract; he wants a big new deal right now.
The Athletic predicts a compromise in which Lamb plays out his option year in 2024 before signing a record-breaking new contract worth $125 million for four years.
Lamb's $31.25 million AAV puts him ahead of the highest-paid receiver in history, Tyreek Hill of the Dolphins, who earns $30 million per year.
The Athletic's Jacob Robinson and Diana Russini predict that the Cowboys will sign Lamb for the next four years, guaranteed.