Category: Dak Prescott

Cowboys $91 million position predicted to be addressed in both draft, free agency

A review of what the Cowboys have at QB, what they’ll do once the league year starts with free agency and the draft.

With the 2024 NFL season concluding Sunday, it’s now time for all 32 teams to turn their attention to the 2025 season.  There is approximately just one month’s time for teams to finalize their game plans of how they want to attack the offseason and for the Dallas Cowboys, there’s a lot of work to be done.

The team has configured the majority of their new coaching staff, led by new head coach Brian Schottenheimer and his new coordinators Klayton Adams and Matt Eberflus. Personnel director Will McClay has been extended for five more seasons and now the attention needs to turn to fixing the roster that resulted in a 7-10 regular season record. Everything starts at the top, and in the NFL that’s the quarterback position.

Rostered: $90.9 million in cap space

The Cowboys have two players under contract for 2025, starter Dak Prescott and backup Will Grier.

Prescott enters the first year of his four-year extension signed at the beginning of last season worth $240 million. Currently he is set to take up $89.9 million of cap space, with the salary cap expected to come in around $272.5 million in 2025. Clearly the Cowboys aren’t going to allow one player to eat up one-third of their cap space and the team will restructure the deal, as was intended when it was signed.

Restructuring Prescott’s base salary ($47.75 million) can be done all at once, or as cap space is needed. The minimum base salary for a player with Prescott’s experience (7+ years) is $1.255 million. Up to $46.5 million of salary can be spread evenly over five years (four contract years and the first of four void years already built in) meaning the club could shave up to $37.2 million off of Prescott’s 2025 cap hit.

Grier is a placeholder, signed well after Prescott was lost for the year, and is no guarantee to make the club, or even training camp for that matter. He’s currently on the books for the league minimum of $1.17 million and has a cap hit of $1.03 million.

Prediction: Restructure Prescott, Grier is a camp body with a shot.

Pending Free Agents

Prescott’s primary backups for the last two seasons, Cooper Rush and Trey Lance, are both pending free agents. Dallas traded for Lance, giving up a 2024 fourth-round pick in 2023, and gave him no opportunity to prove he could be a viable backup whatsoever, giving them little game evidence to decide on.

Rush was given plenty of opportunity and again proved to be a capable bus driver who is mistake prone but able to win some games. Rush has a career 9-5 record with a 2:1 TD:INT ratio, going 4-4 last year with a career worst 40.8 QBR.

There will likely be some team interested in bringing Lance in to give the young guy a shot and likely some team interested in having Rush around while they groom a young QB out of the draft. There’s arguments for either or neither to be back in Dallas, but not both.

Prediction: Both sign elsewhere.

External Free Agents

There’s a limited amount of intriguing QBs in free agency this year, and the Cowboys aren’t going to be looking to spend significant space on a backup with so many other needs. Failures elsewhere, such as Justin Fields, Mac Jones and Daniel Jones, will probably have a market that prices the Cowboys out.

Prediction: Sign Jameis Winston, two-year, $7.5 million (void years), $2 million cap hit

2025 NFL Draft

The Cowboys could have gone in multiple directions with their head coaching hire, but clearly were looking for stability with the staff that has worked with Prescott. Any idea the club would be looking to escape Prescott’s contract soon and draft an heir apparent to groom went out the window with Schotty’s hire.

That doesn’t mean the club will be out on QB in the draft though, as it makes sense to draft and develop a future backup.

Prediction: Use one of their four fifth-round picks to draft a QB, such as Louisville’s Tyler Shough.

Hopefully, NFL’s divisional playoff round taught Cowboys, Jerry Jones this important lesson

The most successful teams in the NFL aren’t asking their QB to do it all, says @ReidDHanson.

Failures provide great learning opportunities for NFL teams. Whether that’s applied to the 10 losses the Dallas Cowboys endured during the regular season, or used as an educational tool while the playoffs continue without them, it’s a good way to squeeze value out of an otherwise disappointing situation.

The NFL’s divisional playoff round gave Dallas a view of what top teams looks like nowadays. For a franchise that’s been accused of being stuck in the past, that kind honest look could be useful as the Cowboys move forward into the offseason.

The Raven and Bills, Rams and Eagles, Commanders and Lions, and Chiefs and Texans all squared off over the weekend to show the world just how good the very best are. A constructive analysis would show the Cowboys how great teams are constructed and what conference championship-bound teams look like.

The Ravens and Bills matchup on Sunday is a beautiful illustration of what championship teams should look like. Both teams are coached by some of the best minds in the game. John Harbaugh has been at the helm in Baltimore since 2008. He’s consistently put the Ravens in contention year after year and is the second-longest tenured head coach for a reason. Sean McDermott has found similar success with the Bills in Buffalo. He’s been with his team the fourth longest in the NFL. McDermott’s top offensive mind, Joe Brady, is one of the hottest names on the head coaching candidate list for a reason. He’s innovative, accomplished, and adaptable.

Both teams are also loaded with talent. Not only are the offenses deep and multidimensional but their defenses rank in the top 12 in EPA/play allowed. It has created an environment that doesn’t require any one player to carry the team. Josh Allen won the day throwing for just 127 yards. It’s hard to imagine a game in which Dak Prescott could throw for 127 yards and win. That speaks to the roster around him and to balance of talent in Buffalo.

The Eagles beat the Rams with a quarterback throwing for just 128 yards. Like Allen and the Bills, Philadelphia’s All-Star team didn’t require their QB to do more. Similar to Allen, Eagles QB Jalen Hurts adds a running element that makes up for any deficiencies in passing. But even adding Hurts’ 70 yards on the ground, the winning QB still contributed less than 200 yards.

The Chiefs-vs-Texans was arguably the least balanced matchup of the weekend. Kansas City was clearly the better team on Saturday and it showed in the box score. All-Pro QB Patrick Mahomes threw for just 177 yards in his nine-point victory, and didn’t need hero ball to win because the team around him was good enough to do it as a unit.

The Commanders and Lions game was a certified shootout where both teams slung the ball around to the tune of 76 combined points. But just like all of the examples above, the QB with the most passing yards lost the game. Obviously, some of that is a natural byproduct of a trailing team needing to pass more to catch up, but with the exception of the Commanders, the teams that leaned on their QBs the most, lost, and the teams that asked their QBs to do the least, won.

Despite six of the eight divisional teams fielding QBs who are making top-of-the-market money, these franchises are constructed to win as a well-rounded team and does not rely on hero ball from their QB.

This isn’t a plea to build a team around a ground game. Nor is this a callback to “defense wins championships.” It’s about team building. Successful teams find good coaching staffs. They find high-end QBs and aren’t afraid to pay them. They draft well and they sign good players in free agency so they can make a deep and well-rounded roster. They don’t put the weight of the franchise on any one or two entities. They treat the team like a team. That’s something the Cowboys front office should take note of.

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There’s no hope for Cowboys offense if they don’t improve in this one area

Dak Prescott is just as responsible for his sacks in 2024 as the Cowboys linemen in front of him, finds @ReidDHanson

One of the Dallas Cowboys’ biggest struggles throughout the 2024 season was pass protection from the offensive tackle positions. Whether it was Dak Prescott, Cooper Rush, or even Trey Lance at the helm, Dallas’ signal callers were routinely facing trouble from the edge, and their play in the pocket reflected that.

The Cowboys’ two offensive tackles, Terence Steele and Tyler Guyton, were all-too-often turnstiles as pass protectors. Their inconsistent play on drop backs forced Dallas to alter the playbook in many ways. Shorter drop backs, quicker releases and abbreviated route combinations were apparent on Day 1 of the season. Less time in the pocket meant less time reading the field, less time for progressions, and fewer big plays.

It’s no mystery why Prescott’s Big Time Throws (BTT) per game dropped from 2.4 to 1.75 in 2024. And also explains why virtually all of Prescott’s other passing efficiency numbers dropped significantly across the board as well.

Despite posting his shortest Time to Throw (TTT) since 2020, Prescott saw an increase of pressures per game with a significant portion of that coming from the edge. Prescott played like he was on a clock and that was likely by design. Dallas’ struggles at OT were rather predictable and Mike McCarthy’s gameplans generally reflected that.

McCarthy routinely used running backs and tight ends to assist his two OTs in pass protection, but that unavoidably removed an extra target downfield. With more defenders in coverage than receiving targets running routes, separation was hard to come by and windows were as narrow as they’ve ever been. It added up to a very stressful situation that not only impacted Prescott’s play in 2024 but may trickle into 2025 as well.

Sometimes traumatic situations on the football field can cause long-lasting or even permanent damage. Back in 2019 while playing for the Jets, Sam Darnold famously said, “I’m seeing ghosts” during a particularly traumatic game against the Patriots. Many analysts wondered if Darnold could come back from that.

Like Darnold in 2019, Prescott appeared to be seeing ghosts in 2024. The Cowboys QB was regularly seen bailing from an otherwise stable pocket. His internal clock seemed to be sending him the signal trouble was on the way, even when it wasn’t. On multiple occasions Prescott ran from a safe place and right into trouble. They were uncharacteristic actions from the typically stoic QB, and they made an already bad situation much, much worse.

They say sacks are a QB stat, and for the most part they’re right. Sack rates tend to follow QBs from team to team. Good pass protection or bad pass protection, QBs will adjust. Unfortunately, Prescott adjusted in the wrong way and actually added to his problem by running into sacks in 2024.

Not only was 2024 his highest sack rate in six seasons, but the combined percentage of 2023 and 2024 are the worst since his second and third seasons in the NFL. According to Patton Analytics, Prescott was one of eight QBs who was to blame for over 50 percent of the sacks against him last season.

It’s imperative the Cowboys fix their pass protection deficiencies on the edge before this bleeds into a third season and has permanent effects on Prescott’s pocket presence. When a QB can’t trust his offensive line, he starts to play like it, and that’s what fans saw from Prescott in 2024.

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Cowboys QB Dak Prescott opts for surgery, will he return in 2024?

The Dallas Cowboys will be without QB Dak Prescott for the remainder of 2024, according to reports by ESPN. | From @KDDrummondNFL

The Dallas Cowboys waited all week, choosing inaction to keep hope alive. The proper action was to read the writing on the wall, that quarterback Dak Prescott’s hamstring injury from Week 9 had played his last snaps for the foreseeable future. The club didn’t make a move though, choosing to not yet place Prescott on the Reserved/Injured list, holding out hope that a second opinion was going to give him a shot at an early return.

On Saturday, though, it appears the truth has eventually surfaced. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Prescott has opted to go the route of surgery, and it will knock him out for the rest of 2024.

Prescott’s year was a disappointing one, as he leaves the Cowboys with an overall record of 3-5 on the season, and in the midst of a three-game losing streak. The Cowboys nine-year starter was enduring one of (if not) the worst season of his career.

Completing under 65% of his passes this year, Prescott has already thrown eight interceptions on the season in just eight games, on pace to break his season high. His 3.8 touchdown throw percentage will end up as his worst of the year as the Dallas offense has struggled to find a compliment to WR CeeDee Lamb. Lamb himself got off to a slow start on the season, and when added to a rushing attack that wasn’t going anywhere and Prescott’s season-long decrease in mobility, the offense has plummeted from their normal spot near or at the top of NFL offensive rankings.

Now the team will be under the direction of their backup signal callers, Cooper Rush and/or Trey Lance.

Report: Dak Prescott’s injury tore tendon off bone

From @ToddBrock24f7: NFL Network’s Jane Slater says Prescott’s injury typically takes more than 4 weeks of recovery time, but the QB is seeking other opinions.

The details of Dak Prescott’s injury are in, and they’re not for the faint of heart.

Per NFL Network’s Jane Slater, the Cowboys quarterback appears to have suffered a partial avulsion of his hamstring tendon, partially tearing it right off the bone. ESPN’s Todd Archer later said his source confirmed that diagnosis.

Head coach Mike McCarthy had already ruled Prescott out for Sunday’s home matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles, but- despite owner Jerry Jones hinting that a subsequent move to injured reserve was imminent– the Cowboys have not made any official determination about a timeline for his return.

According to Slater’s sources, the injury typically “takes more than a four-week recovery,” but Prescott is said to be seeking secondary opinions. The team is therefore allowing that process to play out further before placing Prescott on IR, which would automatically mean a four-game absence.

“In some cases,” Slater posted on X, “they let it scar over, repair and then strengthen.” But, she said on-air Wednesday evening, the injury could require surgery, depending on its severity.

Prescott told reporters he “felt something” on a scramble late in the third quarter of Sunday’s 27-21 loss to Atlanta. After the sack by Falcons linebacker Kaden Elliss, Prescott went back to the huddle and ran the next play.

Upon trying to step into a cross-field throw, however, he pulled up noticeably.

“I felt a pull, felt something I’ve never felt,” Prescott explained.

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He lasted one more play to finish the offense’s drive and then did not return for the Cowboys’ next possession.

Backup Cooper Rush finished the Week 9 contest and has been tabbed as the starter this weekend, but third-string option Trey Lance may figure into the mix, too, even if only on a handful of gadget-type plays or run situations.

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Cowboys QB Dak Prescott is going to IR with leg injury

The Cowboys will be without quarterback Dak Prescott until December, at the earliest, after his hamstring injury. | From @KDDrummondNFL

The Dallas Cowboys have decided to open up a spot on the 53-man roster. After quarterback Dak Prescott exited the Week 9 contest against the Atlanta Falcons, his return was quickly ruled out. The team was losing, badly, but the third-quarter decision felt like an ominous foreshadowing that the injury was pretty severe.

Prescott’s words following the game lent credence to that and now, on his weekly radio show on 105.3 The Fan, owner and general manager Jerry Jones has confirmed. After NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero hinted that Prescott would be on the shelf for multiple weeks with the hamstring injury, the team is now confirming Prescott will be placed on the Reserved/Injured list.

Prescott was in the midst of one of his better games in the disappointing 2024 season as he had thrown for 133 yards on 75% completion rate with a touchdown and no turnovers. If one feels like that’s not all that impressive, they’d be correct.

Through eight games Prescott has thrown for just 11 touchdowns against eight interceptions, betraying his volume passing total of a respectable 1,978 yards.

With Prescott out for at least four games, head coach Mike McCarthy and company will have a decision to make. Cooper Rush has proven capable in the past of keeping a team afloat, with a 5-1 record despite very pedestrian performances and a bit of turnover luck. The team also has Trey Lance, whom they spent a 2024 fourth-round pick to acquire in a 2023 trade with San Francisco.

Not turning to Lance would only make the trade look much worse, as several mid-round running backs were selected after the slot the Cowboys would’ve been picking in had they just held onto it.

When the trade was completed, Prescott was heading towards unrestricted free agency in 2025, with a no-tag and a no-trade clause in hand. Dallas eventually caved after an offseason of posturing, rewarding the 2023 runner-up MVP with a record-setting four-year extension worth $240 million in new money.

Cowboys have an every 5-week jinx that just sidelined Dak Prescott

The Cowboys will be without their field general for the time being. In a lost season, things keep getting worse like there’s a curse on the club. | From @KDDrummondNFL

Things have gone from bad to worse for the Dallas Cowboys in 2024, and it all started way back in August. First, the recent news. Cowboys QB Dak Prescott was forced to leave Sunday’s loss to the Atlanta Falcons. Initially, fan and media concern centered around his throwing hand, which FOX cameras intially caught bleeding following what is now known as his final drive for a while.

Soonafter though, it was shown how on his last pass, Prescott was seen grimacing as he attempted the throw, and favoring one leg. It was quickly reported to be a hamstring injury and Prescott was ruled out for the game. The speed of the decision along with Prescott’s own words post-game led many to believe it would be a multiple week injury and now those thoughts are confirmed.

NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero is reporting he will indeed be out for weeks, and for Cowboys fans who believe in such things, it’s the latest entry in the 5-week jinx of the 2024 season.

Prescott was injured in the club’s eighth game of the season, but Week 9. And though it hasn’t yet been confirmed whether there will be long-term impact, WR CeeDee Lamb suffered a shoulder injury in the game as well.

Going back five weeks to Week 4 was when the Cowboys lost LB Micah Parsons, DE DeMarcus Lawrence and WR Brandin Cooks in the 20-15 win over the New York Giants. That game was on September 26.

Five weeks prior? DaRon Bland was suffering from foot discomfort on August 21 and ended up having surgery on August 26. He still has yet to return to the mix, though he was close to returning prior to the bye week before suffering a setback.

It’s an uncanny rhythm to a season that has been ridiculously dysfunctional since January’s blowout loss to the Green Bay Packers during the wild-card round.

For those counting at home, the Cowboys inducted Jimmy Johnson into the Ring of Honor 45 weeks ago… nine times five.

‘Something I’ve never felt’: Cowboys’ Prescott details Week 9 hamstring injury

From @ToddBrock24f7: The Cowboys QB missed the 4th quarter with a hamstring injury, but he also took a blow to his throwing hand in the 27-21 loss to Atlanta.

When the Cowboys lost Dak Prescott at the end of the third quarter of Sunday’s game versus Atlanta, a hamstring injury was the official reason given.

But it may not be the only costly hit the quarterback took in the 27-21 loss.

TV viewers saw the team’s training staff tending to Prescott’s throwing hand on the sideline as the fourth quarter got underway, with blood visible around the knuckle where the right pinkie meets the hand bones. Within minutes, Prescott was announced out of the game… but with a hamstring issue.

Prescott himself told reporters about a sensation he felt while trying to evade a sack by Falcons linebacker Kaden Elliss on the final drive of the third quarter.

“I felt it when I was getting it up from the run,” Prescott said in his postgame press conference. “I can’t even say that I felt it running. Maybe the tackle, maybe something on the tackle, I don’t know. But standing up from that, I felt something, but actually, I didn’t think it was much.”

Prescott seemed to realize otherwise, however, on the very next play. As he stepped through a throw to the far sideline- a 10-yard completion to Jalen Brooks- he pulled up noticeably. Replays show Prescott’s face contorted in pain.

“I felt a pull, felt something I’ve never felt,” he explained.

He dumped out of a pass on the next snap, a third-down play, and looked rather gimpy doing it.

“Tough to walk on it at that point,” Prescott would say later. “Saw the medical team and asked, ‘Could I make it worse?’ At that point, they said I wouldn’t be able to protect myself, and they made the call to hold me out.”

The quarterback had been under fire for weeks for not using his rushing and scrambling skills more often. Prior to the injury on Sunday, he was credited with three runs for 30 yards, his highest ground total since Week 6 of last season.

Prescott was scheduled for an MRI on Monday to determine the severity of the leg injury, but the apparent harm done to his throwing hand is worth following up on as well.

Prescott was not asked about his hand during his Sunday afternoon presser, nor did he bring it up. But the few images broadcast from the sideline seemed to show a very swollen right hand. The passer missed five games in 2022 after breaking the thumb on that same hand in a Week 1 game versus Tampa Bay.

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The bigger worry is that hamstring. Owner Jerry Jones told reporters, “I am concerned about that. It concerned me when I saw the play, or saw him have a reaction to any weakness there.”

Backup Cooper Rush came on in relief and went 13-for-25 passing, compiling 115 yards and a touchdown in a comeback effort that fell short and sent the Cowboys to 3-5.

Rush has a 5-1 career record as the Cowboys starter. His only loss came in his most recent start, 2022’s Week 6 visit to Philadelphia, the last game that Prescott’s thumb injury caused him to miss.

The Cowboys are set to host the Eagles next Sunday. No matter what Monday’s tests reveal about Prescott hamstring and hand, Rush will almost certainly be taking extra snaps as a precaution.

Prescott, for his part, hopes to be able to suit up without missing any time at all.

“I would say that I’ll be out there next week. I’ve got to see. Luckily, I can say I’ve healed fast, I’ve progressed fast on injuries and things, so I’m thankful for that,” Prescott said.

“It’ll take a lot for me not to be out there, I’ll tell you personally.”

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Sideline video catches Prescott’s blunt assessment of how bad things are for Cowboys

From @ToddBrock24f7: Prescott was seen sharing his NSFW thoughts on the team’s Week 9 performance after he was ruled out with a hamstring injury in Atlanta.

Dak Prescott was only repeating the conclusion most Cowboys fans had already come to themselves.

It was late in the fourth quarter of the team’s 27-21 loss in Atlanta, and the Dallas quarterback was watching from the sideline as backup Cooper Rush was embarking on his third series with the offense.

Down two touchdowns when he came in, Rush had started 8-of-15 for 54 yards in relief to that point. Upon tossing another incomplete pass to Jalen Brooks to bring up a third down, TV cameras caught Prescott- clad in a baseball cap and done for the day with a hamstring injury- sharing his observation of things with third-string emergency option Trey Lance.

“We [expletive] suck,” Prescott seemed to say with a shake of his head.

Yep, that pretty much sums it up.

The loss dropped the Cowboys to 3-5, looking way up at both the Commanders and Eagles in the NFC East.Team owner Jerry Jones made a rare away-game locker-room visit to address the team and called the Cowboys’ current situation “bleak.”

Already perilously thin due to injuries on both sides of the ball, the Cowboys now face the very real possibility of Prescott missing time, too.

Last year’s leader in completions and touchdown passes will undergo an MRI on Monday to determine the severity of his injury, which he apparently suffered on a five-yard scramble late in the third quarter.

He told reporters he felt something not during the run or even the tackle, but when he got up. On the next dropback, he said, he “felt something I’ve never felt.”

Though he wanted to return to the field, Prescott was told by trainers that he wouldn’t be able to protect himself and was pulled in favor of Rush to start the fourth quarter.

Over his three quarters of action, Prescott went 18-of-24 passing for 133 yards and a touchdown. Rush finished 13-of-25 for 115 and a score.

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As the leader of the team and face of the franchise, Prescott will no doubt face criticism for his NSFW assessment of the Cowboys’ outlook. He’ll likely own the moment and suggest that his teammates all feel the same way about how they’ve performed thus far this season. He’ll explain that it was an honest response to a disappointing day, but he’ll point out that his job- and the responsibility of every man in the Dallas locker room- is to now flush the loss, turn the page, leave that negativity in the past, and look ahead to preparing for Philadelphia’s visit to Arlington in Week 10.

It’s the right approach. But it doesn’t mean what Prescott said was wrong.

Cowboys fans have been saying it for months.

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Cowboys Dak Prescott out for remainder of Falcons game, will Trey Lance play?

Dak Prescott has left the game and will not return. Who is his backup?

Things have gone from bad to worse for the Dallas Cowboys in their game against the Atlanta Falcons. Down two scores, the Cowboys will now try to mount a comeback without their field general, Dak Prescott.

On a play in the third quarter, Prescott injured his hamstring on a throw to the sideline, unable to step through the motion. After being tended to on the sideline during the ensuing Atlanta drive (in which they scored a touchdown), Prescott was ruled out.

Cooper Rush will takeover for the remainder of the game.This also means that Trey Lance, the emergency third quarterback, has a chance to enter his first game as a Dallas Cowboy since being acquired last offseason.

Rush would have to leave because of injury in order for Lance to be allowed to play the game.

Prescott’s day finishes 18 of 24 for 133 yards and a touhdown toss to running back Rico Dowdle. Prescott had a 101.6 passer rating for the game, his highest since the Week 4 win over New York.

He also ran several times in this game, including a team season-high 22-yard jaunt in the first half.

If Rush can’t bring the Cowboys’ back, they will fall to 3-5 on the season with back-to-back division games against the Philadelphia Eagles and Houston Texans up next, with both contests at AT&T Stadium. The Cowboys are 0-3 at home this season.