Dak Prescott talks throwing with George Pickens, expectations for offense in ‘26
While it has been an eventful offseason for the Dallas Cowboys on the defensive side of the ball, the offense has stayed mostly intact after a 2025 season that saw them finish second in yards per game and fifth in points per game.
Still, the expectation and necessity to keep the momentum going into 2026 is a storyline for quarterback Dak Prescott and the rest of his offensive teammates.
“It was great,” Prescott said about the 2025 offense. “There was a lot of goodness in it. We weren’t a good red zone team. We weren’t the worst, but we were damn near pretty much the worst. Nobody wants that, nobody is complacent, nobody wants average. We want to be great. We know the players we have, the culture we’re building.”
The biggest storyline this offseason has been the situation surrounding star wide receiver George Pickens. After leading the team in all major receiving categories in his first season with the team, the Cowboys elected to place the franchise tag on him instead of signing him to a long-term extension.
While Pickens hasn’t yet been present in the building for voluntary workouts, he has worked with Prescott outside of the facility.
“I’ve just showed George my support,” Prescott said. “The guy that I know George is, obviously he signed the tag and when he has to be there and play, he’ll be there. He’s a hell of a talent. We’ve thrown this offseason. I’m comfortable where he’s at, and I’m excited for when he can get in the building and get rolling.”
The offseason as a whole has been good to Prescott so far. As he builds on the offensive success from 2025, he’s also gotten to know the many new faces on the defensive side of the ball.
“I’m super excited about the first couple of weeks,” he said. “Just having some of the vets coming in. I’m really, really excited for them. The young guys we did bring in, they have great vets to look up to.”
In addition to veterans like Rashan Gary and Jalen Thompson, Prescott has also gotten to know first-round pick Caleb Downs since the draft a few weeks back.
“Being around those guys for two weeks, it looks like there’s a lot of high character guys,” he said. “Learning their stories, learning their why. And as we do some of these fundamental things in building our culture, just getting to know about them. I’ve spent a little bit of time already around Caleb, I love the way that he’s wired. He’s got some great vets.”
Entering his 11th season, Prescott has seen a lot in the NFL, but one thing that will be new to him this year is playing internationally when Dallas plays the Baltimore Ravens in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Sept. 27.
While it’s a unique and fun experience for Prescott and his teammates, it will be physically demanding given the context of the Cowboys’ 2026 schedule. When they return on the 11-hour flight from Brazil, they will go back on the road to play the Houston Texans the following week before a quick turnaround for a Thursday night home game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
“Honestly, I’m excited,” he said. “It’s my first time playing an international game. Going into my 11th season, I thought we would have had one by now, but it’s all good. The travel will be tough, but it’s part of growing this game. It’s something we’ll manage. We’ll take care of our bodies. We’ve been a part of three games in 11 days pretty much every year by being a part of our Thanksgiving game, so it’s nothing new.”
Prescott says that when the schedule releases, he really only pays attention to the first three games. This year, the opener against the New York Giants on the road caught his eye.
“It’s the best,” he said. “I anticipated it, opening the season in prime time. Just getting up there in New York will be fun. It’s always fun playing against those guys. It’s always fun playing on prime time. It’s something I’m used to and something I enjoy.”
This story was originally published May 18, 2026 at 12:40 PM.