Dak Prescott Snaps at Cowboys Reporters About Ankle Injury

Getty Dak Prescott

On May 5, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott mentally “buried” the gruesome injury that nearly derailed his superstar NFL career.

“I really just, yeah, just had a good Cinco de Mayo,” Prescott chuckled Wednesday, via Pro Football Talk. “Was a little active, and at that time, did some little dance moves and I felt like I was ready to go. That was when I said in my head the injury is gone.”

Thirty-five days later — almost eight months after suffering a compound fracture and dislocation of his right ankle — Prescott is still being grilled over his health. Despite no setbacks in his post-surgical rehab process. Despite participating in Organized Team Activities and minicamp practices. Despite looking like the same ol’ Dak who was on pace to shatter the league’s single-season passing record in 2020.

This isn’t a laughing matter.

Questions persist. And his patience has worn thin with those perpetuating doubt.

“When you go back and look on film on the first day [of offseason work] and the last day of me scrambling, you can visually tell that I’m running better,” Prescott told reporters Wednesday, via PFT. “That’s the good part of it. But rehab before this, I was doing all kinds of cuts, jumps, things like that that happen in a scramble drill. So never within the drill did I ever think about my leg or did I ever think that this was a part of the rehab rather that I’m pushing myself and I block that mentally.

“I’ve buried the injury honestly guys — you know me — from the point of practice, from the point of just moving forward and going about my life. I’ve buried it mentally, and I think you guys and a lot of people around have to help me in burying it as well as we move forward.”

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Dak Details Return to Field

Soon, Prescott won’t be bothered with queries related to his appendage. There are only so many times he can repeat the same thing, such as the fact that he never abided by his projected six-to-eight-month recovery timeline. The former Pro Bowl QB underwent emergency surgery on Oct. 11 and had a follow-up procedure in December.

“The first surgery I got out of my boot probably like a week, and then I was having another surgery,” Prescott said, per PFT. “Then, after that, I really like said, ‘Hell with the time,’ to be honest with you. Didn’t keep account of day by day or week by week and just started going more off how my body felt and just the things I was able to do from one day to another. I think that’s what got me through it honestly. I wasn’t counting months. I think it was just the other day that I had to count on my fingers the time since I’ve been hurt. I haven’t really kept up with that. That was one of my goals and missions when I first got hurt is I said, ‘I’m not going to try to beat anybody’s timeline. I’m just going to go out here and work day by day and just try to get myself better,’ because I knew the amount of time I had before I actually needed to be ready for the season.”

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Cleared for Camp

Prescott was a full participant in seven-on-seven drills and threw and ran without issue during Dallas’ offseason program, though the team held him out of 11-on-11 work as a precautionary measure.

Having emerged unscathed in the spring, Prescott is expected to ramp up to full-bore this summer. Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy greenlit his cornerstone signal-caller to “go every day” when training camp begins in late July.