After six sacks, Dallas Cowboys must consider sitting Dak Prescott for finale
Have we seen the last of Dak Prescott in 2025?
For a Dallas Cowboys team that has nothing left to play for other than finishing the season at .500 with a win in the season finale against the New York Giants next week, sitting the long-term investment on the bench in favor of backup Joe Milton III would be a wise decision.
But it won’t go down without a fight.
“Yeah, I’ll have some fight back,” Prescott said after the Cowboys’ 30-23 win over the Commanders on Christmas. “It depends on how it comes. What’s the purpose, and what’s the reason? I understand being approached about it. The conversations we’ve already had about it are for me to play. The season being where it is and trying to make sure we finish at 8-8-1, that’s important to me.”
In the holiday win Thursday, Prescott took six sacks — tied for the third-most in his career — after a three-week stretch that saw him get brought down eight times and pressured 52 times, according to Pro Football Focus.
While Prescott came out of the win healthy despite a handful of ugly hits, protecting him for 2026 will be a decision head coach Brian Schottenheimer will have to make.
“I’m going to enjoy Christmas,” Schottenheimer said. “I’m going to enjoy some eggnog, and I’ll deal with that when I get to looking back at the film.
“Of course, I don’t want to get him hit six times. We’ll look at it. I give them a lot of credit. We also ran 80-something plays. Some of it was coverage things, I thought he did a lot of great things with his legs. But yeah, I don’t want Dak hit like that. We know how to do it at a higher level than we did tonight.”
Despite the Cowboys being mathematically eliminated from the playoffs ahead of last week’s loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, Schottenheimer has been consistent about wanting to keep the starters playing until the very end.
“We play to win,” Schottenheimer. “[A record of] 8-8-1 sounds way better than the alternative. Right now, we’re 4-1 in the division. It’s a pretty good division. Historically, it’s been one of the best in football. You can see how physical the games are just by watching today’s game. ... You got one more championship opportunity left, and we want to go out with a win. I want to finish our season 5-1 in the division and 8-8-1.”
For Prescott, the decision is an easy one. At this time last year, he was rehabbing a torn hamstring and had to watch from the sideline as the Cowboys dropped the season finale to Washington on a touchdown in the final seconds. This year, he wants to finish what he started.
“I love this game. I love any opportunity that I get to play it,” Prescott said. “That being said, if I get to go out there, I’m going to give it my best. I’m going to prepare the same way and be the same player that you guys know. I understand the reasons of why maybe not. If I’m approached with that, I’ll handle that then.”
Dak Prescott chasing NFL passing yards title
A case for playing other than finishing without a losing record could be Prescott’s chase for the NFL passing yards title. Entering the weekend games of Week 17, Prescott has 4,482 yards. That’s good enough for a 302-yard lead over Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, who has two games remaining. Playing next week would give Prescott a solid chance at becoming the first quarterback in franchise history to lead the league in passing.
“Big difference,” Prescott said. “A lot of pride, and like to [that] point, I want to play. In a season of me being healthy, I’ve never had in my life and career a season under .500. It’s pride, honestly.”
“In my mind and the conversations I’ve had with [Schottenheimer] and anybody about it, it would be that I’m playing.”
This story was originally published December 25, 2025 at 6:21 PM.
