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The Sept. 10 season opener between the Dallas Cowboys and the New York Giants offered a look at Dak Prescott 2.0.
Not that there was much wrong with the Cowboys’ second-year quarterback who captured Offensive Rookie of the Year honors in 2016, but Dallas’ mission to take it right at its NFC East rival — using Prescott’s right arm — offered a change of pace, and perhaps a sign of growth for the Cowboys and their undisputed leader.
“We wanted to be aggressive — make them try to stop us,” said Prescott, who threw 28 passes in the first half. “It’s wasn’t about us adjusting to what they did on defense.”
The fearless mindset by Prescott’s crew, and a surprisingly stingy defense, helped Dallas author a dominating 19-3 victory against the Giants at AT&T Stadium.
Although the numbers for Prescott (24 of 39 for 268 yards and a TD) and the offense (one touchdown and four Dan Bailey field goals) weren’t extraordinary, Cowboys tight end Jason Witten said they revealed just a portion of the big picture.
“That’s a tough opponent. The stats don’t do justice for how (Prescott) played,” Witten said. “That’s a big step for him. To be able to handle the identification — they give you a lot of different looks, pressure in a lot of different ways.
“The No. 1 job for a quarterback is to take command and always lead us into the right looks and right plays. He made plays when we needed him to. It was a great game for him. He was in control against a good defense. The points might not say it — it’s much bigger than that and he understands. He should take a lot of pride in tonight’s performance.”
Dallas’ aggressiveness started with the coin flip. The Cowboys, who captured the NFC’s No. 1 seed last season but were bounced by Green Bay in the divisional round, won the toss and elected to receive instead of deferring the option to the second half.
Immediately, it was clear the home team wasn’t going to lean on last year’s top rusher in the NFL, running back Ezekiel Elliott, who has avoided — at least temporarily — a six-game suspension.
Prescott took control with a feverish tempo.
“We were on the ball early, there were a lot of pass plays called — some were good and some weren’t. You can put that on me,” he said.
The Cowboys did enough to mount four scoring drives, a 16-0 lead and a more than 2-to-1 (20:33 to 9:27) edge in time of possession during the first half.
“We thought we needed to play aggressive, with a little bit of a tempo and attack that way. It helped us,” Witten said. “We were able to run a lot of plays in the first half and wear them down a little.
“We’ll learn from this and improve. Dak did a great job taking command at the line of scrimmage, getting us in the right look.”
Witten hauled in a team-high seven catches for 59 yards and passed Michael Irvin for the franchise record for all-time receiving yards (11,947).
“It’s really special,” the 14-year veteran said. “Over the course of my career, there have been some special moments, but this record, and Michael — I just have so much respect for the great players who have played for this organization.”
In the end, Elliott still topped the 100-yard mark. With 104 yards on 24 carries and 36 yards on five catches, the former Ohio State star was able to set off-thefield distractions aside.
Elliott was suspended by the NFL for six games in August because of allegations of domestic abuse. That suspension, however, likely will remain on hold as the case is decided in the courts. Elliott maintains his innocence. “It’s definitely been a tough last 14 months,” Elliott said. “At times it’s gotten so hard, and you start to lose faith. Being able to be with these boys every day has kept me focused and made me not give up. ”
To Dallas owner Jerry Jones, the game reminded him how different the Cowboys are with No. 21 (Elliott) on the field.
“I saw a player when he was in there, it looked impressive,” Jones said. “When anybody else was in there, it didn’t look as impressive.”
Prescott accomplished many things in his freshman year. However, half of his four losses in his debut season came against the Giants.
Righting that wrong was another mission for Dak 2.0.
“Not to beat them last year, and to get that win and start this season 1-0 — it was a great night,” he said.
The Cowboys travel to Denver in Week 2 and will bring a lot of confidence.
“Every phase played well — allowing three points in the NFL is tough to do,” Jones said. “I’m really proud of what these guys did in training camp. This is the most enthusiastic group — they’re having more fun — than any team I’ve been associated with.”
Lang writes for The Times of Shreveport, La., part of the USA TODAY Network. uCowboys- Broncos preview, Page 23