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With Dak Prescott still nursing the remnants of a right calf strain, backup quarterback Cooper Rush has taken some first-string practice reps with the Dallas Cowboys offense, head coach Mike McCarthy said Wednesday.
McCarthy detailed his Week 8 practice plan as the team, fresh off its bye, readies for its Sunday Night Football affair in Minnesota.
“I think it’s a matter of trying to make sure Cooper’s ready and make sure Dak is getting what he needs,” McCarthy told reporters, per the official team website. “Until Dak clears the threshold of the rehab component with (associate athletic trainer/director of rehabilitation) Britt (Brown), we won’t make that determination on going full go until we get to that point. With that, we’ve got to make sure we get Cooper ready.”
McCarthy added Thursday: “I think you take in the full week. Dak has a ton invested as far as his personal conditioning and we trust the relationship between him and Britt to get across that threshold. That’s frankly where we stand.”
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Rush Nets Support from Offensive Mates
If last season wasn’t proof, there exists a monumentally huge gap from Prescott to the next QB on the depth chart, whether 2020 backup Andy Dalton or 2021 understudy Rush. The latter earned the gig this past summer despite the acquisition of Will Grier, whom the Cowboys declare inactive on game days.
And, at the same time, Rush, a 2017 undrafted free agent, earned the trust of his teammates. Running back Ezekiel Elliott isn’t sure if Prescott will start Sunday, but he is confident in No. 10 if he winds up under center.
“Honestly I don’t know. I hope [Prescott] will be available. From what it sounds like he will be available,” Elliott said Wednesday, via beat reporter Brianna Dix. “Obviously we want Dak out there but I have a lot of confidence in Coop.”
Right guard Zack Martin, too, has confidence in Rush playing if need be. However, Martin acknowledged the reality of the aforementioned talent gap with Dak potentially out of the lineup.
“I think you’d be lying if you said, ‘Hey, if your starter doesn’t play, that means you just go out there and play like you have.’ … It definitely just tightens the screws across the board,” Martin said Tuesday, via ESPN’s Todd Archer.
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Jerry: Dallas ‘Can Do Everything’ with Rush
Vanquishing the likes of Ben DiNucci and Garrett Gilbert, the 27-year-old signal-caller completed 29 of 46 passes for 272 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions across four preseason appearances.
During which Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones hyperbolically praised Rush, who “understands the game” and “can do everything” that McCarthy and coordinator Kellen Moore ask of the offense — everything Dak does, apparently.
“We can do our complete portfolio as far as our offense is concerned with Cooper Rush,” Jones said in August, per the official team website. “He’s a little different, but still we can do everything. That’s good. I’ve seen the time when the backup quarterback didn’t allow you to do everything you wanted to do. That’s really good there.”
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