Dak Prescott‘s struggles were among the most glaring aspects of a blowout loss to the 49ers on Sunday night, but Jerry Jones is reiterating his faith in the Cowboys’ star quarterback.
“Dak Prescott is a quarterback that can get us to the Super Bowl,” Jones said on Tuesday during his weekly call to 105.3 The Fan. “That’s the way that’s gonna be. We have other quarterbacks on that roster, and players that certainly (are capable) if something should happen to Dak. But I want to be real clear: Dak is very capable of taking this team where we want it to go.”
Prescott had a challenging game against the Niners, completing 14 out of 24 passes for 153 yards, with one touchdown and a season-high three interceptions. His struggle to consistently connect with receivers downfield resulted in a predictable offense that managed only a season-low 197 yards. This lackluster offensive performance had a significant impact on Dallas’ typically strong defense which allowed a season-high 42 points and 421 yards, more points than they had allowed in their first four games combined (41).
It was the largest margin of defeat for Dallas since Week 10, 2013 at New Orleans (lost 49-17), according to NFL Research, and Prescott called it “the most humbling game” he’s ever been a part of in the immediate aftermath.
Considering Sunday night’s showdown with San Francisco was considered to be a measuring-stick game against one of the NFC’s perennial contenders, the lopsided defeat was especially disappointing. Couple in Dallas’ recent woes against its bitter rival — the 49ers have taken the Cowboys out of the playoffs in each of the past two seasons — and you have a frustrating trend that would make any fan base discouraged.
Jones isn’t worried about the condition of his franchise following a Week 5 outcome.
Jones stated, “I’m not in a state of panic, but let’s face reality when it presents itself to us. Don’t delude ourselves into thinking it’s something different. What I am trying to convey is that our performance on Sunday night was not up to the mark. We are capable of doing better, that’s a certainty. We have the potential and the preparation to enhance our performance. But to put it bluntly, we didn’t do any of that on Sunday night.”
Do we possess the capable quarterback? I want to confidently affirm that I am entirely convinced we have the quarterback who can lead us to our desired destination. Do we have a competent coaching staff for both offense and defense? Without a doubt, we do. But was this reflected in Sunday’s performance? Unfortunately, it wasn’t.
Mike McCarthy, the Cowboys head coach, has delivered uneven results since assuming offensive play-calling responsibilities this season. This is due in part to the team’s persistent issues in the red zone and the absence of dynamic plays in the first five games. Despite this, since McCarthy took over in 2020, the Cowboys have consistently maintained a competent offense under Prescott’s leadership. They have also contended with a host of injuries to their offensive line in 2023.
With injuries on the defensive side beginning to pile up as well, the Cowboys’ offense portends to be a focal point in the coming weeks and it will once again find itself under the spotlight this Monday night against the Los Angeles Chargers. Should those worries continue, the mounting frustrations in Dallas will continue for a franchise that hasn’t produced the desired results for the past 25-plus years.
Jones said, “It’s clear from the results – we haven’t won a Super Bowl. Over the years, we’ve had both good and bad games, just like any other team. However, I must admit that we haven’t had our high-achieving seasons when we should have. We’ve come close a few times but haven’t reached our peak. This isn’t an excuse or anything of that sort. But it’s not as if there’s a specific issue that I could point out and say we need to change. It’s a combination of factors.”
