Cowboys QB Dak Prescott Sets Record Straight on Return Date

Dak Prescott could be back under center for the Dallas Cowboys sooner than expected following thumb surgery, per the QB himself.

Prescott had the stitches removed from his injured thumb prior to Monday night’s victory against the New York Giants and told ESPN’s Lisa Salters he could be back for a Week 4 matchup against Washington.

“He said it feels great,” Salters reported during the Monday Night Football broadcast. “He was gonna go talk to the doctor right after and hopefully get the green light to start gripping and throwing the football again.

“When I asked him when he’s thinking he might be back, he said ‘a couple of weeks, and I’m counting this as one of them.'”

Salters asked for further clarity of what that exactly meant, mentioning the game against Washington on October 2. Prescott said he “isn’t ruling anything out.”

While Prescott told Salters one thing, Jane Slater of NFL Network said Week 5 is a more realistic target, with all sides wanting to be smart with the decision.

“Dak Prescott showed me his thumb post-stitch removal. No swelling. Healing,” Slater tweeted. “Tells me Cowboys/Rams Week 5 is a game that he could possibly start. Get the sense he would go Sunday vs. Washington if he could but this will be a team/Dak decision to be smart.”

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Cowboys Brass Expects Prescott Back Soon

Prescott injured the thumb in the opener against the Bucs. He had surgery on September 12 and the original timeline had him missing six to eight weeks. However, the Cowboys brass has been very vocal that they expect Prescott back sooner than expected.

“I don’t know that anybody knows [when he’ll be back],” Jones said during an appearance on 105.3 The Fan on September 20. “But when he [gets enough strength in his hand], then you’ll probably see some real advancement in his timeline. I don’t know when that is.

“It really could be a minimum of two weeks up here in my mind [Washington in Week 4]. Now, that’s very optimistic. But he’s got the kind of repair there that will allow him not to have a lot of fear of re-injuring it. It’s just a question of the grip. But it’s a big question.”

While the Cowboys have been bullish about an early return for their franchise QB, NFL insider Ian Rapoport circled October 16 as the date he’s hearing Prescott will be back.

“Jerry Jones said this week he could be back next week. No, that’s not my understanding. He’s still focusing on getting the swelling down and then he has to work on how well he can grip a football,” Rapoport said on NFL Game Day on September 25. “Simply, guys, the bone has to heal, and the Cowboys are not going to put their franchise quarterback in harm’s way just to get him out there for one game and then re-injure it.”

Jones wouldn’t set a firm return date when asked about Prescott after the game, per Clarence Hill of The Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He said that it’s contingent on Prescott being able to grip the ball.

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Cowboys Pick Up Another Win With Cooper Rush

The Cowboys moved to 2-1 with the win against the Giants on Monday and backup quarterback Cooper Rush improved to 3-0 as a starter in his career. Rush finished the game against New York with 21 of 31 for 215 yards and the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter.

The victory comes after Jones sprinked some controversy onto the situation, saying he’d welcome debate at the quarterback position.

“Of course I would. Of course. That means we’d have won,” Jones said on September 22. “If he comes in there and plays as well as Prescott played, Rush? Played that well over these next games ahead? I’d walk to New York to get that.”

Rush laughed off the sentiment from Jones and has been focused on helping the Cowboys win games — one week at a time.

“He just wants to win games and that’s what we all want to do,” Rush said of the comments from Jones. “I definitely don’t dream as big as Jerry. We just want to keep winning.”

Rush has done just that and could get another shot against the Commanders on Sunday.

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