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[h=1][/h] Calvin Watkins Jan 6, 2019
ARLINGTON — The quarterback that many Cowboys fans love to hate has led Dallas to the NFC Divisional Round.
Dak Prescott is never going to play a perfect game, but he usually does enough to win. On Saturday night he did more than enough. With the Cowboys leaning on their best offensive weapon, Ezekiel Elliott, for a potential game-clinching drive in the fourth quarter against the Seahawks, it was Prescott who sealed the victory with two plays.
On a third-and-14 from the Seattle 17, offensive coordinator Scott Linehan called for a quarterback draw. Prescott took the shotgun snap and darted up the field, running through two defenders before getting flipped by free safety Tedric Thompson near the goal line.
On the first-and-goal from the 1, Prescott snuck between his backup center (Joe Looney) and All-Pro right guard (Zack Martin) for a one-yard touchdown with 2:08 left to seal the victory. Dallas defeated Seattle 24-22 inside a loud and frenzied AT&T Stadium on Wild Card weekend.
“It’s simple,” Elliott said of his quarterback. “He’s a grown-ass man. He led us to this win tonight.”
(Tim Heitman / USA TODAY Sports)
Prescott’s numbers are not going to wow you. He completed 22-of-33 passes for 226 yards. He threw one touchdown pass, a perfect throw on a fade route to Michael Gallup, and wiggled in for the other. He did throw an interception in the end zone on a pass toward Noah Brown (although a defensive pass interference could have been called on Seahawks linebacker K.J. Wright). The Cowboys had three three-and-outs within the game’s 12 drives and produced just nine yards in the third quarter.
But Prescott was good despite those things. And after the game, you could find him hugging the man he just beat, Russell Wilson.
Wilson is a Super Bowl winner and considered an elite quarterback. You could argue that he was outplayed on Saturday night. Wilson completed 18-of-27 passes for 233 yards, but the Cowboys kept him in the pocket and limited the number of big plays he’s famous for. He had one last bomb, a 53-yarder to Tyler Lockett late in the fourth quarter, but the Seahawks had little chance of winning at that stage, particularly without a kicker capable of executing an onside kick.
Prescott is often compared to the man he replaced: Tony Romo. It took Romo until his fourth season as the full-time starter to win a playoff game. Prescott got his in three seasons.
“He took it on his shoulders,” Jerry Jones said. “He made plays that put us in position to come out like we did. That’s what you want from your quarterback. Their quarterback lived up to his skill level of what he is. He really gave us all we could handle.
The Cowboys would have you believe that it does not matter who they face next.
If this team travels to New Orleans to play the Saints, they will do so confidently. In Week 12, the Cowboys upset the Saints at AT&T Stadium. Of course, knocking off this Saints team at the Superdome is a daunting task; but it’s one that doesn’t scare Prescott or his teammates.
The Cowboys could also wind up in Los Angeles facing the Rams in the next round, a possibility that does not appear to faze this team. Think about the myriad of Cowboys fans who populate the team’s training camp in Oxnard, Calif. and their enthusiasm for a West Coast playoff game. If you believe the Chargers have problems drawing fans in Carson, just wait for a Cowboys-Rams game. The crowd may be split down the middle.
Wherever the Cowboys end up next week, their confidence level in Prescott has never been higher.
“That’s the dog,” wide receiver Tavon Austin said. “I always call two generals in here, him and Sean Lee. Nothing don’t go by without them two. The boy is a soldier. He’s never going to stop, that’s what I like about him. He’s his own individual. I sensed that he had it in him (in training camp). It’s about you feeling yourself, that’s all it is. I like that about anybody who feels themselves. You’ve got to be some type of cocky regardless, you don’t have to be verbal, but you’ve got to be cocky. Look at boxers and basketball players and LeBron and them guys, you’ve got to, just don’t make it verbal. If it’s in you, it’s in you.”
That acceptance Prescott seeks inside his locker room is there. The players understand what he’s about and follow him.
“Dak is amazing,” linebacker Jaylon Smith said. “A guy you want in your foxhole.”
“Legendary,” Elliott said. “He came out there and made plays when we needed him, especially in the running game. I mean whenever you see a quarterback with a run like that, and break tackles, he’s done it a couple of times this year, it really is tough for that defense. So I mean, Dak came out there and he played his tail off today.”
“It just shows his toughness,” Looney said. “His competitiveness.”
Prescott became the first NFL player with 20 or more passing touchdowns and five or more rushing touchdowns in each of his first three seasons. He’s won two NFC East titles in his young career and among the 15 quarterbacks in the 2016 draft class, Prescott has the most regular seasons wins (32) and playoff wins (1).
Is that enough to gain the acceptance of Cowboys Nation? Maybe Prescott doesn’t really care. In reality, as long as the respect is in the locker room, he has what matters. In private moments, Prescott believes that you’re not a Cowboys fan if you don’t support all the players. When the Cowboys offense entered the field on Saturday, you heard some boos, especially when Prescott’s mug was shown on the Jumbotron.
Based on what he’s done this season, it seems unfair. The offense stalled numerous times this season; Prescott’s offensive line is patched up and currently has an undersized rookie left guard, (Connor Williams), a left tackle declining in health and effectiveness (Tyron Smith), an average right tackle (La’el Collins), an All-Pro (Martin) and a backup (Looney). Yet Prescott is able to survive this and push this group to the next round of the postseason.
Prescott is what Cowboys fans have right now, and nobody is coming to replace him. His intangibles and his skill-set help the team a great deal.
“I’m in a young career,” he said. “I’m three years in.”
He will miss throws; they all do. But when he runs the ball, he becomes an extremely valuable player. His pocket presence should improve over time. When Romo got the job, Terrell Owens used to complain he struggled to read defenses. Prescott waits too long in the pocket for receivers to get open, but the alternative of forcing the ball into coverage is a scarier proposition. After what these Cowboys have seen, who among them wouldn’t want Prescott leading them into the next round of the postseason?
When asked about Prescott’s third-down run, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said, “It was a big-time run. I think it was a quarterback draw. Well-executed by them. He had two really good plays running the football that made a difference in the game.”
The Cowboys’ defense kept them in this game Saturday. But when it was time for the offense to close out the game, they went on a 5:12 fourth-quarter drive capped by Prescott’s long run and his sneak into the end zone.
Do the fans need more proof?
“It says he’s an elite quarterback,” Cole Beasley said. “He’s been doing it for us all year, and the bigger the moment the bigger he plays, and that’s what you want from your leader. He’s as vocal as any guy that I’ve ever seen and he’s an easy guy to follow.”
ARLINGTON — The quarterback that many Cowboys fans love to hate has led Dallas to the NFC Divisional Round.
Dak Prescott is never going to play a perfect game, but he usually does enough to win. On Saturday night he did more than enough. With the Cowboys leaning on their best offensive weapon, Ezekiel Elliott, for a potential game-clinching drive in the fourth quarter against the Seahawks, it was Prescott who sealed the victory with two plays.
On a third-and-14 from the Seattle 17, offensive coordinator Scott Linehan called for a quarterback draw. Prescott took the shotgun snap and darted up the field, running through two defenders before getting flipped by free safety Tedric Thompson near the goal line.
On the first-and-goal from the 1, Prescott snuck between his backup center (Joe Looney) and All-Pro right guard (Zack Martin) for a one-yard touchdown with 2:08 left to seal the victory. Dallas defeated Seattle 24-22 inside a loud and frenzied AT&T Stadium on Wild Card weekend.
“It’s simple,” Elliott said of his quarterback. “He’s a grown-ass man. He led us to this win tonight.”
(Tim Heitman / USA TODAY Sports)
Prescott’s numbers are not going to wow you. He completed 22-of-33 passes for 226 yards. He threw one touchdown pass, a perfect throw on a fade route to Michael Gallup, and wiggled in for the other. He did throw an interception in the end zone on a pass toward Noah Brown (although a defensive pass interference could have been called on Seahawks linebacker K.J. Wright). The Cowboys had three three-and-outs within the game’s 12 drives and produced just nine yards in the third quarter.
But Prescott was good despite those things. And after the game, you could find him hugging the man he just beat, Russell Wilson.
Wilson is a Super Bowl winner and considered an elite quarterback. You could argue that he was outplayed on Saturday night. Wilson completed 18-of-27 passes for 233 yards, but the Cowboys kept him in the pocket and limited the number of big plays he’s famous for. He had one last bomb, a 53-yarder to Tyler Lockett late in the fourth quarter, but the Seahawks had little chance of winning at that stage, particularly without a kicker capable of executing an onside kick.
Prescott is often compared to the man he replaced: Tony Romo. It took Romo until his fourth season as the full-time starter to win a playoff game. Prescott got his in three seasons.
“He took it on his shoulders,” Jerry Jones said. “He made plays that put us in position to come out like we did. That’s what you want from your quarterback. Their quarterback lived up to his skill level of what he is. He really gave us all we could handle.
The Cowboys would have you believe that it does not matter who they face next.
If this team travels to New Orleans to play the Saints, they will do so confidently. In Week 12, the Cowboys upset the Saints at AT&T Stadium. Of course, knocking off this Saints team at the Superdome is a daunting task; but it’s one that doesn’t scare Prescott or his teammates.
The Cowboys could also wind up in Los Angeles facing the Rams in the next round, a possibility that does not appear to faze this team. Think about the myriad of Cowboys fans who populate the team’s training camp in Oxnard, Calif. and their enthusiasm for a West Coast playoff game. If you believe the Chargers have problems drawing fans in Carson, just wait for a Cowboys-Rams game. The crowd may be split down the middle.
Wherever the Cowboys end up next week, their confidence level in Prescott has never been higher.
“That’s the dog,” wide receiver Tavon Austin said. “I always call two generals in here, him and Sean Lee. Nothing don’t go by without them two. The boy is a soldier. He’s never going to stop, that’s what I like about him. He’s his own individual. I sensed that he had it in him (in training camp). It’s about you feeling yourself, that’s all it is. I like that about anybody who feels themselves. You’ve got to be some type of cocky regardless, you don’t have to be verbal, but you’ve got to be cocky. Look at boxers and basketball players and LeBron and them guys, you’ve got to, just don’t make it verbal. If it’s in you, it’s in you.”
That acceptance Prescott seeks inside his locker room is there. The players understand what he’s about and follow him.
“Dak is amazing,” linebacker Jaylon Smith said. “A guy you want in your foxhole.”
“Legendary,” Elliott said. “He came out there and made plays when we needed him, especially in the running game. I mean whenever you see a quarterback with a run like that, and break tackles, he’s done it a couple of times this year, it really is tough for that defense. So I mean, Dak came out there and he played his tail off today.”
“It just shows his toughness,” Looney said. “His competitiveness.”
Prescott became the first NFL player with 20 or more passing touchdowns and five or more rushing touchdowns in each of his first three seasons. He’s won two NFC East titles in his young career and among the 15 quarterbacks in the 2016 draft class, Prescott has the most regular seasons wins (32) and playoff wins (1).
Is that enough to gain the acceptance of Cowboys Nation? Maybe Prescott doesn’t really care. In reality, as long as the respect is in the locker room, he has what matters. In private moments, Prescott believes that you’re not a Cowboys fan if you don’t support all the players. When the Cowboys offense entered the field on Saturday, you heard some boos, especially when Prescott’s mug was shown on the Jumbotron.
Based on what he’s done this season, it seems unfair. The offense stalled numerous times this season; Prescott’s offensive line is patched up and currently has an undersized rookie left guard, (Connor Williams), a left tackle declining in health and effectiveness (Tyron Smith), an average right tackle (La’el Collins), an All-Pro (Martin) and a backup (Looney). Yet Prescott is able to survive this and push this group to the next round of the postseason.
Prescott is what Cowboys fans have right now, and nobody is coming to replace him. His intangibles and his skill-set help the team a great deal.
“I’m in a young career,” he said. “I’m three years in.”
He will miss throws; they all do. But when he runs the ball, he becomes an extremely valuable player. His pocket presence should improve over time. When Romo got the job, Terrell Owens used to complain he struggled to read defenses. Prescott waits too long in the pocket for receivers to get open, but the alternative of forcing the ball into coverage is a scarier proposition. After what these Cowboys have seen, who among them wouldn’t want Prescott leading them into the next round of the postseason?
When asked about Prescott’s third-down run, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said, “It was a big-time run. I think it was a quarterback draw. Well-executed by them. He had two really good plays running the football that made a difference in the game.”
The Cowboys’ defense kept them in this game Saturday. But when it was time for the offense to close out the game, they went on a 5:12 fourth-quarter drive capped by Prescott’s long run and his sneak into the end zone.
Do the fans need more proof?
“It says he’s an elite quarterback,” Cole Beasley said. “He’s been doing it for us all year, and the bigger the moment the bigger he plays, and that’s what you want from your leader. He’s as vocal as any guy that I’ve ever seen and he’s an easy guy to follow.”
