This week’s edition of “Sunday Night Football” will feature a classic cross-division NFC rivalry, that between the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers. Both teams are led by big-name quarterbacks, Dak Prescott and Brock Purdy respectively, but there’s a huge pay disparity between these two passers.
Prescott cashed in on a historic deal this offseason while Purdy is still on a very modest contract, so let’s take a look at the quarterbacks’ respective financial situations.
Dak Prescott’s Contract Makes Him the Highest-Paid NFL Player
This offseason, after much deliberation, Prescott signed a highly anticipated extension with Dallas, and the quarterback’s patience truly paid off. The four-year, $280 million deal will keep Prescott a Cowboy through the 2028 season, his age-35 campaign, and makes him the highest-paid player in football history on a per-season basis.
Prescott earned the raise due in large part to a phenomenal performance in 2023, as he trimmed down his interception total to nine after throwing 15 the year before and set a career-high with a passer rating of 105.9. He was also one of the most prolific passers in the sport with 4,516 passing yards and a league-best 36 touchdowns through the air.
This year, he hasn’t done as good of a job when it comes to proving that he was worth the money. The Cowboys are off to a lackluster 3-3 start to the campaign, and Prescott has earned a passer rating of 85.5 through eight touchdown passes and six interceptions.
This team came into the season with high hopes of contending for a division title and more, so he and the rest of the team will need to turn things around going forward if they are to come close to achieving those goals.
Brock Purdy Nearing the End of His Rookie Contract
On the other side of the ball is one of the lowest-paid starting quarterbacks in the league. San Francisco’s Purdy was quite famously Mr. Irrelevant, the final pick of the 2022 NFL Draft, setting him up to sign just about as small of a contract as any drafted quarterback can get. His four-year deal pays about $3.74 million, including a base salary of $985,000 this year.
To say that Purdy has outperformed his draft slot would be a drastic understatement. He’s earned a Pro Bowl nod and MVP votes, as well as leading the Niners to Super Bowl 58. He won all five of his starts as a rookie, earning a 107.3 passer rating along the way before leading the league with a mark of 113.0 last season.
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This year, Purdy was off to another efficient start but had an ugly three-interception performance against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 7, bringing his season totals to nine touchdowns and seven interceptions through seven games.
He’s long been expected to haul in a significant pay raise this offseason, a year ahead of the expiration of his rookie contract, and he likely still will. However, the question is just how big the number will be if he keeps struggling.