How good is Dak Prescott? This is a serious question and I’m not sure that the Dallas Cowboys have the answer. On paper, Prescott looks strong. He just had a season with 4,902 passing yards, 30 touchdowns, and just 11 interceptions. The Cowboys missed the playoffs though and changed head coaches after a disappointing 8-8 year.
Prescott is having the same problem that Tony Romo had before him. After several seasons wearing the star on his helmet, he hasn’t gotten close to a Super Bowl.
The Cowboys are paying Prescott on the franchise tag. For a quarterback that is a serious chunk of money. Prescott is basically getting paid like he’s a top-five quarterback for this season. Prescott clearly isn’t bad and the Cowboys have never been all that terrible with him under the center. He’s a quarterback you can presumably win with, but is he the reason the Cowboys could win it all? Is he a game-changer?
It’s hard to put Dak Prescott in the elite class of NFL quarterbacks. He’s not a Patrick Mahomes or a Lamar Jackson that can simply make magic happen all by themselves. He’s not at Russell Wilson’s level either. We could go down the list, yet that’s rather unnecessary. The thing standing in his way of a long-term deal with the blue and silver is the fact that he hasn’t put himself in the “Oh my goodness, how did he do that” elite quarterback category. Not yet.
2020 is Prescott’s big chance. The amount of talent he has around him is insane to think about. He has Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb, and Michael Gallup at wide receiver. He’s got a true superstar in Ezekiel Elliott at running back, with Tony Pollard being a good number two option. Say what you want about Mike McCarthy, but he won a Super Bowl with Green Bay. If Jason Garrett was the biggest problem in Dallas, Prescott should start to flourish more.
The departure of Garrett puts the pressure on Prescott. The first person to get the blame isn’t going to be the new head coach, it’s going to be the player who still hasn’t gotten over the hump and has no excuses lined up for him.
Stats aren’t Prescott’s problem. He’s been fairly solid from a production standpoint and his numbers shot up in a big way last year. Prescott’s problem is the big moment. Remember that road game against the New England Patriots last year? The Cowboys lost a winnable game against a Patriots team that was seeing their dynasty start to crumble away. The Cowboys lost 13-9. They put up three field goals in a big game.
They lost a game to the New Orleans Saints where the Saints were without Drew Brees. It was a defensive struggle and the Cowboys only put up 10 points. Dallas hosted the Buffalo Bills on Thanksgiving and the Cowboys lost 26-15. In a battle they absolutely had to have, the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Cowboys 17-9.
The theme is that the offense seemed to vanish when the Cowboys were in a big spot.
Prescott has the epitome of a “Show me something season” right in front of him. He needs to step up in the big moments of the season. He doesn’t just need to win the biggest games; he needs to be the reason the Cowboys get the W. Prescott needs to prove he deserves the massive contract and get himself out of this franchise tag limbo.
The Cowboys are going to see how good Prescott is. If you look at their roster, it’s fairly loaded. Prescott should be able to get the job done. That being said it’s hard to see them as contenders.
The Cowboys have some proving it to do and it starts with their quarterback. 12 wins and a viable chance in the playoffs will get Dak Prescott the payday he desires.
