Getty Dak Prescott
Tom Brady, after defeating the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, is heading to his 14th career conference championship game, his first in the NFC.
Which spawned this viral tweet comparing Brady’s postseason resume to the Dallas Cowboys‘ — or lack thereof:
NFC Championship Game appearances since 1997:
Tom Brady: 1
Dallas Cowboys: 0
Years in the NFC since 1997:
Tom Brady: 1
Dallas Cowboys: 24
Which prompted ESPN’s SportsCenter to share the tweet with their 20.7 million followers on Instagram:
Which led to a response from Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, who clapped back at the Worldwide Leader with the perfect mix of indignation and self-deprecation.
“Hold my crutches,” he commented on the post, tagging teammate Ezekiel Elliott.
sportscenter posted this on their IG & dak had something to say 😂
The Cowboys have experienced postseason football just seven times since Brady first rose to prominence in 2001. They’ve all of three wins over that span, the last such victory coming in the 2018 Wild Card round. Prescott himself holds a 1-2 record, though Dallas appeared destined for the playoffs in 2020 before the two-time Pro Bowler suffered a hideous ankle injury in Week 5.
Less than three months later, Prescott returned to observe practice. In a video posted to Twitter, he was seen using a crutch while approached by Elliott, his running back and close friend. Elliott proceeds to playfully mock Prescott’s impacted gait; the latter emphatically showed he can walk normally without assistance.
Name a better friendship, we’ll wait.
Which may have been the inspiration for Prescott’s retort.
ALL the latest Dallas Cowboys news straight to your inbox! Join the Heavy on Cowboys newsletter here!
Sign up for the Heavy on Cowboys Newsletter!
Cowboys Informed of Monster Update on Dak
Prescott is “coming along great” in his recovery from season-ending ankle surgery — so great, that he could be “better than ever” in 2021. Such is the latest on Prescott, provided Sunday in a sourced report by NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
“He’s walking right now — which is a big step — working the anti-gravity treadmill and the HydroWorx pool, which takes pressure off his ankle but allows him to get in shape,” Rapoport said. “He’s making great progress. And based on the work he’s put in, what [the Cowboys] think, he’s going to come back better than ever.”
Prescott suffered a right ankle compound fracture and dislocation on Oct. 11. He underwent surgery the same day and was given an estimated rehab timeline of 4-6 months. Subsequent reports and dispatches from team officials claimed Prescott had suffered no post-surgical setbacks and is ahead of schedule for his return.
“Dak’s doing very well,” Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy said on Dec. 23, via ESPN. “Frankly just saw him a little while ago in the training room and all of the guys on IR are down there. So it seems like they tend to be there the same time most days. They’re all in good spirits. They’re all making progress. Dak’s just like you’d think he would be – very positive, very upbeat and just attacking his rehab.”
The best-case scenario for Prescott is receiving full medical clearance by mid-to-late February, ahead of the NFL’s legal tampering period. Which would give the impending unrestricted free agent, if he’s not already locked down or franchised-tagged by that point, even more leverage in long-term contract talks — whether with Dallas or another franchise.
READ NEXT: Cowboys Rumored as Top Landing Spot for Former Pro Bowl QB
Follow Zack Kelberman on Twitter: @KelbermanNFL