After his first three starts, it’s fair to say Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott hasn’t lived up to his four-year, $240M contract extension. But is it all his fault?
Prescott has completed 60.7 percent of his passes for four touchdowns and two interceptions and has posted a career-worst 45.5 QBR. The Cowboys are 1-2 for the first time since 2020 (h/t ESPN’s Todd Archer).
ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky, a former NFL QB, claims his struggles are tied to a weak support system.
“I don’t think there’s an offense in football that sets their QB up to fail more than the Cowboys with Dak Prescott,” Orlovsky said Thursday on “Get Up.” “The fundamental way to get your QB to play better is, you run the football, the Cowboys can’t, you use play-action, the Cowboys don’t, you use motion, the Cowboys don’t, you use screens, the Cowboys don’t.”
Dallas ranks 30th in the NFL in rushing yards (73.7), which has limited its playbook. According to Pro Football Focus, the Cowboys have run play-action passes on 17.9 percent of Prescott’s dropbacks, a career low.
The lack of a balanced attack could make it harder for Dallas’ pass-catchers to get open. Citing NFL Next Gen Stats, ESPN’s Benjamin Solak shared that 35.3 percent of Prescott’s throws in a 28-25 Week 3 loss to the Baltimore Ravens (1-2) went into a tight window, the highest figure for him in a game in six years.
“[The Cowboys] are bottom three or four in many of [these categories],” Orlovsky said. “In many ways, they’re saying, ‘Dak Prescott, we want this to be as hard as possible on you.'”
The Cowboys should return to the drawing board to take pressure off Prescott and dig out of their early season hole.
Prescott and company could have a bounce-back performance in a road game against the New York Giants (1-2) on “Thursday Night Football.” According to Stathead, the 31-year-old QB has won 12 consecutive games vs. the Giants.
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