Dak Prescott has become big deal for the Cowboys
Dak Prescott shrugs his shoulders at his success, as if to say, “What’s the big deal?”
“He has an even-keeled personality,” Dallas Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said Monday. “He has great poise and composure as a person, and he is a very serious-minded guy in terms of his preparation, so he focuses on the right things.”
Prescott, 23, has become a big deal, along with Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz. The rookies are doing what rookies don’t do, going a combined 5-1 without an interception.
Prescott ranks 12th in passer rating at 93.3, completing 66.7 percent of his passes for 767 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions. The Cowboys ranked eighth in total offense and 10th in scoring in the NFL before the game Monday night.
Prescott has started better statistically than Andy Dalton, Cam Newton, Joe Flacco, Andrew Luck and Ben Roethlisberger among others.
We haven’t just put the handcuffs on him if you will. We just let him play, and he’s done a good job handling that work.
Cowboys coach Jason Garrett
on Dak Prescott“It’s challenging, because we haven’t just simply run the football,” Garrett said. “He’s done a lot of really good things throwing the football in each of the three games. He’s made a lot of big plays for us. He’s handled those situations well, and he’s been in some challenging situations.
“We haven’t just put the handcuffs on him if you will. We just let him play, and he’s done a good job handling that work. He’s seen a lot of different fronts, a lot of different covers, a lot of different pressures. The guys who can process that and see what they need to see and go through the progressions and make good decisions are the ones who play best regardless of how old you are and how many games you’ve played.”
Prescott has earned the Cowboys’ trust.
Dallas went 1-11 without Tony Romo last season. They are 2-1 this season, as Prescott, on Sunday, became the first Cowboys’ backup quarterback to win at AT&T Stadium since Jon Kitna in 2010.
Romo will miss at least three more games while the compression fracture in his back heals.
While Prescott and the Cowboys have made it clear that the job belongs to Romo once he returns to health, Prescott’s play allows the Cowboys to be patient with Romo’s rehab.
“Those wins will give you a little more conservative time frame if you looked at Tony’s condition,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said Sunday night after the 31-17 victory over the Chicago Bears. “Under no circumstances would he go out there if there was risk. Let’s get that real straight. But as far as the ability to give him more time, medicine wants more time, and they’ll tell you, well, he’ll be better off two months from now than he is today.
“But I think the fact that he’s playing well, and if playing well gives us a chance to have another win that we wouldn’t have had if he wouldn’t have played well, all of that would enter into the decision.”
The Cowboys, who are 12-24 without Romo since the start of the 2006 season, believe they are better able to handle injuries to their star players this season than they were last season. Receiver Dez Bryant missed seven games last season with injuries, and he played through a knee injury Sunday that puts his status for Sunday’s game at San Francisco in question.
The Cowboys played without left tackle Tyron Smith (back) Sunday, and left guard La’el Collins could miss 8-10 weeks. Collins will need surgery to repair torn ligaments in his right big toe, a source said.
“There are a lot of challenges that come week in and week out, and one of them is dealing with the injuries that are inevitable over the course of that time,” Garrett said. “The better you build your team, the better you’re able to handle and absorb the injuries that happen over the course of those 16 games. Everybody has a next-man-up philosophy, and hopefully the guy you put in there is capable of doing what you’re going to ask him to do and you create an environment for him to be successful.”
Charean Williams: 817-390-7760, @NFLCharean
This story was originally published September 26, 2016 at 9:19 PM with the headline "Dak Prescott has become big deal for the Cowboys."