Yes, Prescott committed during the bye week, but he also prepared to help the Cowboys turn things around.
FRISCO, Texas — What did quarterback <a href="https://www.archysport.com/2022/01/nfl-end-of-season-review-individual-honors/" title="NFL End-of-Season Review: Individual Honors”>Dak Prescott do during the Dallas Cowboys’ bye week?
He got engaged.
But he did much more than that. He was at The Star a couple of times and worked off campus with receivers, including CeeDee Lamb, to try to improve after a lackluster start to the season.
“I can’t be stagnant. It’s hard for me to be stagnant, so I have to work,” Prescott said. “If there are times where I have a couple of hours in the day where I can do it, especially if it’s the bye week or whatever, I’ll make sure I can do it. Obviously, just the self-explorer, wanting to figure out what I need to do best “Personally, individually, to make this team better, this whole unit, I wanted to get ahead of that.”
It wasn’t a surprise to the coaches that Prescott was there. “If there’s one thing you’re worried about with Dak, it’s that he works and trains too much,” offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer said.
As the Cowboys (3-3) open what head coach Mike McCarthy calls the “second quarter” of the season on Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC), all eyes will be on Prescott . They always are, but as the highest-paid player in NFL history, thanks to his four-year, $240 million extension signed hours before the start of the season, the scrutiny is increasing.
That’s hard to imagine for the “America’s Team” quarterback, who has been watched every move from being just a fourth-round pick and Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2016 to five playoff appearances without advancing to the Game. of NFC Championship.
But it’s true.
If the Cowboys are going to make the playoffs for a fourth consecutive season (something they haven’t done since the Super Bowl runs of the 1990s), it will be with Prescott at the helm.
“I’d say I’ve played average, and it’s not good enough right now by any means,” Prescott admitted. “It’s never been good enough for me. I can’t say I’ve been happy or excited after any of these games I’ve played. But I understand there are more plays out there for me to make, whether they’re in the design or No. (I’m) capable of doing it.”
So far this season, Prescott has thrown for 1,602 yards, but in three of six games, he has completed fewer than 60% of his passes. He only had one game like that last season. He has never had more than four games in a season with a completion rate of less than 60%.
Prescott has six interceptions, putting him on pace for a career-high 17. He twice had six in his first six starts (2019, 2022). In 2019, he finished with 11 INTs in 16 games, but in 2022, his 15 INTs in 12 games (he missed five with a broken thumb) tied for the most in the NFL.
“Obviously, those stats don’t help the overall performance,” coach Mike McCarthy said.
There has been a lot of talk about the route running of the Cowboys’ wide receivers since Troy Aikman’s public criticism. According to ESPN Research, Cowboys pass catchers are averaging 2.9 yards of separation. Only the 49ers have been worse (2.8 yards).
Last season, when Prescott led the NFL in touchdown passes (36) and had its best completion percentage (69.5%), the Cowboys’ pass catchers created 3.1 yards of separation, which ranked them in the 31st place in the league.
This season, the Cowboys have the highest closed window passing percentage at 23.4%. In 2023, it was 18.8%, which ranked third in the NFL.
“There’s more to those statistics,” McCarthy said. “Situational participation is also very high in those evaluations. It’s six games. That’s something else.”
Whatever the reason, no one attributes it to the weight of the contract.
“Sometimes games go the way they are, and we’ve played in some lopsided games this year, things happen, but no, I don’t think so,” Schottenheimer said. “I think every play is different. Interceptions happen for different reasons. Turnovers happen for different reasons. But I don’t think he’s pressuring. I think he knows who we are. I think, in our case, we haven’t been able to play good football.” that is very complementary”.
The Cowboys have trailed by three touchdowns in each of their losses (New Orleans Saints, Baltimore Ravens, Detroit Lions), which has affected the way the Cowboys have executed their offense. He’s made it easier to defend Lamb and harder to defend Prescott.
The bye week allowed Prescott to take a breather (after his proposal) and review his performance. The picture is clearer for him, even if he does not convey what he shows.
“As I’ve said before, I feel like I was looking at it right and I wouldn’t regret it, but there are some things that I can obviously do better. And some of them, some things that I haven’t done and that I’ve done in the past,” Prescott said. “I’m looking forward to getting activated, opening up some things in this offense, getting ahead of the chains and, yeah, getting it going.”
The Cowboys need him. More than ever.
“I’m very excited,” McCarthy concluded, “and I’m glad he’s our quarterback.”
