Getty Cowboys QB Dak Prescott.
Dak Prescott is entering a “make or break season” with the Dallas Cowboys, per ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky.
The Cowboys have said a lot publicly this offseason backing Prescott as their quarterback of the future. However, Orlovsky believes Prescott needs to deliver in a big way this season if he wants to stick around long-term.
“It’s a make-or-break year for Dak Prescott,” Orlovsky said on ESPN’s Get Up. “Absolutely because of what’s really gone over the past couple of years, one injury and two performance.”
Prescott has missed 17 games over the last three seasons, including five last year with a thumb injury. But even with the missed time, Prescott led the league in interceptions (15).
Dak Prescott Called Out Over Postseason Failures With Cowboys
.@TedyBruschi throws shade at Dak Prescott’s Super Bowl chances 🤯
“Dak Prescott doesn’t belong on that list [of QBs on the hot seat to reach the Super Bowl]. He belongs on a list that says ‘to look competent in the playoffs.'”
Orlovsky put Prescott into a second-tier of quarterbacks who need good players around them and the right play-calling to perform at a top-10 level.
He then brought up Prescott’s stats when the games are the most meaningful in the postseason. Orlovsky focused on Prescott’s third-down efficiency, which wasn’t great. He converted just three of 13 passing third downs and had a QBR of five. Orlovsky also honed in on Prescott’s numbers against the San Francisco 49ers, who have eliminated the Cowboys from the postseason the past two seasons.
“He’s had 21 drives, three touchdowns, three giveaways [against the 49ers],” Orlovsky said. “He’s got to play better versus the best teams when it matters the most. That’s why it’s make or break.”
Orlovsky isn’t the only ESPN analyst to take aim at Prescott in recent days. Three-time Super Bowl winner Tedy Bruschi threw some shade at the Cowboys QB for his postseason failures.
“Dak Prescott doesn’t belong on that list [of QBs on the hot seat to reach the Super Bowl],” Bruschi said. “He belongs on a list that says ‘to look competent in the playoffs.'”
No Extension Talk Yet for Dak Prescott With Cowboys
Prescott has two years left on the four-year, $160 million deal he signed in 2021. Prescott’s reps and the Cowboys have yet to get to the negotiating table — per the Dallas Morning News — although Jerry Jones has been very complimentary of his quarterback publicly.
“I’m very strong on Dak. We have, in my mind, a unique person, a unique football player, a unique quarterback,” Jerry Jones said from the Senior Bowl in February. “We have at times in these past three years, where we hadn’t had him, I like the way we have adjusted when we had to go without him. This whole thing reflects the upside that I feel in Dak. The fact that we’re doing this, [coach] Mike [McCarthy] calling the plays, this has everything to do with the positives around Dak. It’s building around Dak.”
Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones is equally bullish on Prescott. He envisions Prescott under center for the franchise for the next decade.
“Dak is going to be our guy for, hopefully, the next 10 years,” Stephen Jones said. “You say that’s a long time because he’s already played six or seven, but I think Dak will play that long because he takes care of himself, and he’s driven to be great. And we fully expect him to be here for 10 years.”
The most likely outcome is that the sides eventually come to an agreement on an extension, which would give Prescott some job security and also lower his monstrous cap hit on the horizon. However, if he goes into next season without a new deal and doesn’t perform up to standard, things could get interesting regarding his future.