Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Prescott aims for playoffs in Year 3
FRISCO, Texas — Dak Prescott barks at his teammates a little more now that he’s a couple of years removed from a sensational rookie year with the Dallas Cowboys.
At least that’s the way tight end Geoff Swaim put it, and he didn’t mean it in a negative way. The star quarterback sure hopes so.
“I may be a little bit more vocal,” Prescott said. “But when you say ‘barking,’ it’s almost like at a negative tone. Like, you’re going out at them hard. I’d say if anything, I’m trying to be more encouraging and bring more out of them.
“When you have a young team and different personalities, it’s hard just to be negative and be critical the whole time. For me, it’s a lot about coaching the guys up. And then the guys that I know I can be critical on, yeah, sure I am.”
The 2016 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, who opens the season Sunday at Carolina trying to get the Cowboys back to the playoffs after they missed during his less-than-stellar encore , just illustrated offensive coordinator Scott Linehan’s take on leadership from Prescott.
Sure, this 25-year-old with a master’s degree in workforce education leadership from Mississippi State is the unquestioned commander of the offense — and that includes over running back Ezekiel Elliott, his fellow first-year standout from 2016.
But it’s not necessarily because of the retirement of Tony Romo, the quarterback he replaced with one of the best debuts for a quarterback in NFL history.
Or because 15-year tight end Jason Witten joined Romo in the broadcast booth this year. Or because the Cowboys dumped boisterous receiver Dez Bryant, the franchise leader in touchdown catches, in a costcutting move.
Since Prescott showed up as the forgotten third-teamer on Romo’s team two years ago, he has shown the leadership qualities that suddenly became more pronounced. He was a natural to become the face of the franchise , and would be by himself if not for linebacker Sean Lee.
“He’s always been a guy that, even as a rookie, he was not afraid to speak up and give his two cents on the field and encourage guys,” Linehan said. “He’s a natural when it comes to that.”
Prescott led the Cowboys to 11 straight wins after Romo injured his back in the preseason in 2016, when Dallas had an NFC-best 13 victories before losing to Green Bay in a divisional playoff.
Elliott’s six-game suspension marred their second season together, and Prescott felt the burden of the absence.
The poor decisions he avoided as a rookie were more frequent, including an ill-advised throw that was intercepted
and returned for a touchdown in a late-season loss to Seattle that finished off Dallas’ playoff hopes in Elliott’s first game back.
The theme last season was whether Prescott could avoid a sophomore slump, a term he brushed off. Now it’s whether he can have a bounce-back season, if there is such a thing for a young quarterback.
“You can call it whatever you call it,” he said. “I’m excited for what we’re going to have and the year we’re going to have and I feel very, very confident in the players we have and the team we have and what we’re going to do this season.”
There are questions, starting with a revamped receiving corps that lacks the star power brought by Witten and Bryant.
The Cowboys say they’ll attack the passing game with versatility, hoping to take advantage of one-on-one matchups with opponents focusing first on stopping Elliott, the league rushing leader when Prescott was voted the top offensive rookie.