The NFC East Division was thrusted into the center of the football world after the Philadelphia Eagles further secured the services of their 26-year-old quarterback Carson Wentz. The former NFL MVP frontrunner inked a four-year contract extension worth $132 million and $66 million fully guaranteed on June 6.

With the departure of Super Bowl LII MVP Nick Foles, the Eagles made it clear who they wanted to be behind center for the near future. However, there’s another team within the Eagles’ division who has yet to extend their lead signal caller. The team in question would be the Dallas Cowboys.

Dak Prescott, 2016 AP Offensive Rookie of the Year, hasn’t received his new contract extension. Wentz’ new deal raised many questions about the future of their team and NFL quarterbacks, but the million dollar questions are, does Prescott deserve to get paid like Wentz? Does Prescott deserve to get paid at all? While those questions remain uncertain, here’s three reasons why the Dallas Cowboys should unleash the cash on their starting quarterback.

1. Individual Production/ Performance

Despite being a fourth round pick, the former Mississippi State Bulldog signal caller has exceeded expectations in one of sports most difficult and highly publicized markets.

Throughout his first three seasons as a Dallas Cowboy, Prescott compiled numbers no other quarterback in franchise history could match. In 48 games of work Prescott completed 975 of 1,475 pass attempts (66.1 %).

He threw for 10, 876 yards, 67 touchdowns and 25 interceptions. His longest pass completion was 90 yards, which came during a regular season game in 2016 against the Pittsburgh Steelers. He’s thrown 111 20-plus yard passes, 25 40-plus yard passes and he’s been sacked 113 times.

Additionally, Prescott averaged 30.7 pass attempts per game, threw for 7.4 yards per pass and averaged 226.6 passing yards per game. Prescott also led the Cowboys to eight comebacks and 14 game-winning drives.

Quarterbacks in today’s NFL have to be balanced and Prescott showed he could run the ball just as good as he could pass it. In three seasons he rushed for 944 yards on 189 carries and crossed the plain 18 times.

He averaged five yards per carry and 19.7 yards per game. Prescott’s unique strength and intelligence enabled him to bounce off defenders and run through defenders to gain first downs, touchdowns and potential field goal attempts during short and long yardage situations.

During the 2018 season, Prescott put up arguably some of his best numbers of his short career. He completed 67.7 percent of his passes while attempting roughly 33 passes per game. He threw for 3,885 yards (career high), 22 touchdowns, averaged 242.8 passing yards per game (career high) and threw eight interceptions.

In three seasons Prescott is already a two-time NFL Pro Bowler, has broken a plethora of NFL records and won numerous awards including AP Offensive Rookie of the Year and the ESPN Espy for Breakout Athlete.

2. Team Improvement/Leadership

It’s no question Prescott has had plenty of help during his three years as the starting quarterback for America’s Team. Ezekiel Elliott, Demarcus Lawrence, Amari Cooper and more have aided Prescott in bringing the Cowboys into contention for a Super Bowl run.

However, the fish rots from the head, meaning the team is as strong as their captain. Outside of Jason Witten, Cowboys legendary tight end, it’s no secret Prescott is the unsung leader of the young Cowboys. His leadership and poise during tight situations has been the main reason for the Cowboys’ improvement since his arrival in Dallas.

Throughout the 2013-15 NFL seasons, the Cowboys posted a 25-26 overall record. They won one NFC East title and won one of three playoff games during their three-year span. After the arrival of Prescott, the Cowboys posted an impressive 33-18 overall record through a three-year span including two runaway NFC East titles and one big-time playoff NFC Divisional win over the Seattle Seahawks.

In addition to putting up solid numbers, Prescott has proven he can lead a team through his first three seasons and with the ammo he had at his disposal, the future of the Cowboys’ offense looks bright.

3. Commitment

Jerry Jones and Stephen Jones have made it abundantly clear they want Prescott to be the Cowboys’ quarterback of the future. Jones (Jerry) has spoken highly of Prescott on numerous occasions and many people believed he was all in on Prescott after he swiftly became the starter over the damaged Tony Romo.

Prescott is respected by the upper brass of the Cowboys organization and based on his individual production, the teams glaring improvement and the blessing of Dallas’ front office, it’s obvious that Prescott is owed his money. He plays with passion, heart and determination on a weekly basis.

The Cowboys have benefited heavily with the addition of Prescott as the starting quarterback, and if they want to continue building their team for an eventual championship run, they’ll need Prescott at the helm and the only way to sustain him is to pay him.