QB’s Struggles Becoming All Too Familiar
What a night for the Cowboys franchise quarterback.
Dak Prescott committed three turnovers and, overall, didn’t play well.
He made poor decisions, poor throws and too many mistakes to overcome.
Prescott had the worst game of his season, which included a 51.6 quarterback rating, on Sunday night. But it’s not something out of the ordinary for Cowboys fans, being the third time in his career that Prescott has tossed a trio of interceptions.
The franchise QB was inaccurate on the deep balls, on some short throws and finished with those three picks.
“I don't foresee a whole lot of winning grades coming out of this performance,” Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy said. “I think the most important thing for all of us is to just be accountable. Be accountable for what you did (Sunday) and how you played. We have to clean our own house up. … You have to take care of the football. We've been doing a good job taking care of the ball. Didn't do that (Sunday). Those are the basics that I'm talking about.”
It was a lot like what he provided last season down the stretch, when he threw 11 interceptions in the final seven games of the regular season. The Cowboys went 5-2 in those games, so the price wasn’t as high as it could have been.
This season, Dallas has lost both games in which Prescott has turned the ball over.
“Is anybody pleased with how we performed? No. Am I pleased with how I coached? No,” Cowboys offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer said. “Is he pleased with how he played? No. Do we know we can’t turn the ball over? … But it was a solid performance. Can he play better? Will he play better? Yes.”
Prescott has been shaky at times since coming back from a horrific ankle injury that cost him most of the 2020 season.
Since returning in 2021, his rushing numbers are down, and his interceptions are way up. Not a very good combination for winning football.
Before the ankle injury, he rushed for 1,314 yards, 24 touchdowns and threw 40 interceptions in 69 games. Since the injury he has 29 picks, 373 yards rushing and 2 touchdowns in 33 games.
Prescott repeatedly told the media and fans over the final six weeks last season that his turnover struggles were going to get fixed. However, they haven’t to this point and there might not be much more he can do to get it turned around.
The Prescott you have seen through five weeks this season might just be the quarterback you should expect the rest of the season. He is outstanding with the lead.
“When you’re winning it’s easy,” Schottenheimer said.
However, he struggles when his team trails and he’s counted on to carry them in a comeback situation.
Even more granular, when the play breaks down, he no longer has the feet to get himself and the team out of trouble. Instead, he is trying to throw his way out of it and that leads to bad decisions, bad passes and ultimately interceptions.
Which is one of the main things McCarthy’s newly installed short-play offense was supposed to help cure this season.
“We have to take care of the ball, continue to go the long way when we have to,” McCarthy said. “But more importantly, I think we can do more as far as creating opportunities for big plays and getting the ball specifically where you want it to go.”
After one turnover in the first four games, Prescott’s night in San Francisco proved that since his ankle injury he’s just a game manager or there’s still a learning curve and another level of success yet achieved for the 8-year veteran.
If it’s the latter, the 2023 Cowboys need him to get it figured out sooner rather than later.
Because, in the NFL you can’t earn a spot in the playoffs early in the season, but you can sure lose it.