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This is certainly a better use of Dak Prescott’s real estate than a quarantine party.
The Dallas Cowboys quarterback, in a social media post, showed off the regulation-size football field he recently had erected in the backyard of his Prosper, Tx., home.
The field, surrounded by a fence mere feet from his swimming pool, includes pertinent details such as yard lines and hash marks. It’s the real deal.
It isn’t just for show, either.
With offseason practices scrubbed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and despite a highly-publicized contract impasse, Prescott literally housed his offensive teammates — wide receivers, tight ends, and running backs — for throwing sessions and playbook absorption.
“We’ve all been getting together pretty consistently for months now,” WR Amari Cooper told reporters earlier this week, via ESPN. “Working on route running, working on the offense and everything like that. We’ve been getting a lot of work in, getting that timing right as if we were in minicamp or OTAs.”
The proactive approach appears to have paid off for Prescott, who impressed new Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy with his commanding delivery during the infancy of training camp.
“He’s looked very good in the throwing segments of the strength and conditioning phase that we’re in right now,” McCarthy said Friday, via The Athletic. “We’re very pleased with where he is. Very impressive.”
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Dak Acing the Scheme
Dallas executed sweeping changes despite Prescott’s career season in 2019, swapping Jason Garrett for McCarthy and several offensive assistants with McCarthy’s hand-picked replacements. This is tough enough on any QB in a normal year. Especially young QBs.
But it’s infinitely tougher when there are no face-to-face meetings until late July, more than 200 days since the staff was overhauled. Chemistry isn’t limited to those on the field; it’s equally important for coaches to tangibly get hands on their players.
The coronavirus threw a massive wrench into this transitional process. As did Dak’s prolonged negotiations. But McCarthy wisely opted to retain incumbent coordinator Kellen Moore as a way to ease the learning curve from old verbiage to new language.
Which remains Prescott’s biggest obstacle — yet it really isn’t.
“With us being around each other for the first time, I’ve really enjoyed his personality,” McCarthy said Friday, via ESPN. “He’s very upbeat, very driven. I would say he’s kind of picked up where he left off from is what I’ve been told as far as how he’s operated. Very detailed in his preparation.”
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