Getty Cowboys QB Dak Prescott
A little more than a year to the day after compound-fracturing and dislocating his right ankle, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott suffered a separate malady to the same leg.
Prescott strained his right calf amid Sunday’s 35-29 overtime conquest at New England, an injury that occurred on the game’s final play: a 35-yard touchdown strike to wide receiver CeeDee Lamb.
“It just came down funny and that’s what it was. It’s something we’ll get checked out and I’ll be fine,” Prescott told reporters after the win, per the official team website.
He added, via ESPN: “It was a little pain, but, no, for sure, I would’ve been able to keep going. I think the adrenaline would’ve been up and probably maybe not even felt it at that time. But I think the after the time you relax and it’s like, ‘Oh, well, there it is.'”
The NFL MVP contender — who completed 36 of 51 passes for 445 yards, three TDs and one interception against New England — confirmed a Monday MRI will determine the severity of the injury. He showed up to his postgame press conference in a jovial mood despite being dressed in a walking boot.
Dak in a walking boot: “Surprise.” @NBCDFW
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Sign up for the Heavy on Cowboys Newsletter!Dak Promises to be ‘Fine’
Obviously, any affliction to Prescott, the $160 million franchise bedrock, is cause for concern. Fortunately, though, it came at a fortuitous time, with 5-1 Dallas heading into its bye week — a point he made sure to underscore.
“I’ll be fine. I can promise you that,” Prescott said after the game, per Todd Archer of ESPN.com. “Great timing going into the bye week but as I said y’all can have fun with it this week.”
Archer further reported that Prescott’s ailment is dissimilar to the calf strain that has shelved WR Michael Gallup, who went down in the season opener and was given a three-to-five-week recovery timetable.
“Life keeps throwing punches, and I’m going to keep throwing them back,” Prescott said, via Archer. “It’s a part of it. It’s part of this game. It’s a physical game we play. I’ll be fine. I’ve got a lot of confidence in myself, the medical team. I feel good. Obviously, this [the boot] is a precaution. But, yeah, I mean, just more so thinking about the touchdown, it doesn’t hurt as bad obviously when you score and win the game.”
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Prescott Reacts to Defeating Belichick
The Cowboys entered Sunday a winless 0-6 against the Patriots since 1996 and had never beaten Bill Belichick since he took the head-coaching job in 2000. Their schneid ended quite authoritatively.
Not only did Prescott will his team to a wild victory, he also notched the most passing yards ever surrendered by Belichick-led New England defense, topping the likes of Hall-of-Famers Peyton Manning and Warren Moon, among others, Archer reported.
“Honestly, I didn’t know I threw for that much until [Ezekiel Elliott] told me in the locker room,” Prescott said, via ESPN. “It’s not about me. It’s about the whole team. It’s about the practice we put into it. It’s about the way we go about our practice, the way we built our team. I’m just a product, I guess, of the stats but at the same time it’s the unselfishness. It starts up front with the communication in how we’re protecting and those guys getting open. They make my job easy.”
Follow Zack Kelberman on Twitter: @KelbermanNFL