Tag: shoulder strain

Cowboys QB Dak Prescott set for another MRI; still hoping to play in preseason

The Cowboys QB will get a second MRI upon the team’s return to Dallas; his “plan” is to play the preseason game August 21st against Houston. | From @ToddBrock24f7

At Tuesday’s practice in Oxnard, Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott was dishing out passes to fresh-off-the-PUP-list wideout Amari Cooper. By Tuesday night, Prescott was featuring prominently in the season premiere of HBO’s Hard Knocks.

Watching him clown around with teammates and hearing him grouse to the coaching staff about coming out after feeling a twinge in his throwing shoulder back on July 28, all felt right in the world of Cowboys Nation.

Twenty-four hours later, though, Prescott revealed that he’s due to get another MRI on his right shoulder when the team returns to Dallas after Friday night’s preseason game in Arizona.

It’s not a surprise, and not a sign of some setback. It’s a smart follow-up for anyone who’s suffered a shoulder injury, and a no-brainer of a business decision for a guy who just signed a $160 million dollar contract to throw things for a living.

But until Prescott and the Cowboys get a doctor’s all-clear from that MRI, it’s just the latest thing for everyone to sweat over.

Not that Prescott is.

“Good,” said Prescott when asked Wednesday how his shoulder was feeling. “No residuals, no soreness past what we’d necessarily expect, I guess you could say. Just staying on this track, staying smart about it, looking forward to continuing to do that, keep stacking more days on top of each other, getting more reps as I go… continuing to progress.”

Viewers of Hard Knocks‘ first episode saw Prescott’s frustration with having his progress paused as the team learned of his shoulder strain.

“Obviously, when they tell you to stop, you don’t want to hear it, but you understand why,” Prescott explained.

“It’s tough. I’m a go-go-go guy. I always want to be in the action, getting better. I think more reps are better. Better for me, but obviously, something like this, you can’t stretch it too fast. Sitting out and being out all the time I was out last year, that’s what I think about. That’s what’s able to pull me back in. So it’s risk versus reward at this point, and I’ve got to know what I’m playing for, and that’s to be ready for the season.”

Prescott and the team are confident he’ll be a full go for the September 9th opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, even thought he admits he’d like to see some action when the Cowboys host the Texans in their third preseason game on August 21st.

“That’s the plan, obviously, if everything keeps progressing the way it’s been,” Prescott said. “I’m going to be optimistic about that. So [I’ll] keep doing the things that I need to do; I’m being very cautious with it. Making sure that, more importantly, I’m ready for the season opener.”

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