Dallas Cowboys

Dak Prescott needs to deliver the Cowboys a win

Updated Dec. 2, 2021 6:05 p.m. ET

By Martin Rogers
FOX Sports Columnist

It used to feel different when Dak Prescott’s salary was, by NFL standards, a whole lot of next-to-nothing.

As the first four years of the Dallas Cowboys quarterback’s career played out, everything seemed and felt like a bit of a freeroll, each winning performance a welcome bonus and always, always profoundly great value.

That’s what happens when you stumble across a situation in which you can pay your QB an annual average of less than $700,000 and have him perform as well as or better than those making around 40 times that in the same position.

It all gets a little shifted — or a lot shifted — when the player joins the ranks of the hugely remunerated and shoulders the hopes and dreams of your franchise in an entirely new way.

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Prescott isn’t in bonus territory anymore. He’s paid like one of the very finest QBs in the sport and is expected to play that way. That’s why, at $40 million per year, his efforts in taking the Cowboys to six straight wins earlier in the season didn’t cause anything in the way of outrageous overreaction.

And it's why, after a listless November that brought the team back toward the mean in the NFC, the cold touch of pressure can now be said to be hovering over the 28-year-old’s shoulder.

Thursday Night Football (8:20 p.m. ET on FOX) brings a visit to the New Orleans Saints in what will be the first of three road games for Dallas. With the slate backloaded with divisional matchups, the once impregnable NFC East lead (and guaranteed home playoff spot that comes with it) is no longer so great. The Washington Football Team are on a bit of a hot streak, and we can't count out the Philadelphia Eagles.

It is time for Prescott to come to the party. Not that he has been playing poorly, but in four November games that spawned a 1-3 record, he hasn't exactly provided what you’d want from one of the best in the game.

"It's very urgent," Prescott told reporters this week. "It's about us looking in the mirror and checking us first and foremost, and that's what we've done. It's just about going out there and doing everything that we can to heighten our focus, our mindset and our execution come Thursday.

"This is a team that’s hungry and that’s pissed off … about the way we’ve executed and the way we’ve played."

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Last time out was one of the more frustrating showings of the Cowboys’ season, an ugly overtime loss to the Las Vegas Raiders. In the wake of that, head coach Mike McCarthy, who will be sidelined Thursday after contracting COVID-19, defended Prescott.

"You saw Dak’s numbers. It looked like he had good numbers," McCarthy said after Prescott threw for 375 yards and two touchdowns, figures boosted by the need to claw back into the game late. "If that’s struggling, hell, I’d like to play tomorrow."

It’s a fair point, but it also kind of misses the point. Dallas, having shelled out for Prescott and other big contracts including those for Ezekiel Elliott and Amari Cooper in recent years, isn’t looking for a solid season. Owner Jerry Jones wants it all.

To first get into strong playoff position and then make a splash once there, the Cowboys need outstanding QB play, even with roadblocks such as recent injuries to Cooper and second-year wide receiver CeeDee Lamb.

Dallas and the Los Angeles Rams have the eighth-best odds to win the Super Bowl, listed at +1200 with FOX Bet. The Cowboys are six-point favorites in the clash at Mercedes Benz Stadium, where Taysom Hill will start at QB for the Saints in place of the injured Jameis Winston.

It is easy to see how a morale-boosting win could put things firmly back on track, and Prescott has historically posted strong statistics in December. Yet it's not difficult to envision a scenario in which more disappointment Thursday could spark fear of yet another Cowboys season that promised much and ultimately didn’t deliver.

On FS1’s "First Things First," Chris Broussard pointed to the Cowboys’ struggling run game as a genuine cause for concern.

"It’s certainly not time to panic," Broussard said. "They’re going to win the division. They’re about to get healthy, and five of their last six games are against teams with losing records. If they get things going there with some momentum, maybe they can do something.

"[But] Dak, as good as he is, he’s not in that Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Patrick Mahomes group, where without the run game he can carry the team deep into the playoffs just on the strength of his arm. Not panicking, but that run game has got to improve, or they will not do anything."

Prescott is talked about differently these days, a scenario he was prepared for and one that is the price you pay for getting the hefty contract.

Dallas’ defensive wobbles, rushing deficiencies and injury problems are all part of the issue, and it’s fair to take that into account, but reality dictates that there is one place to which the team and its fan base are looking for a solution.

And Prescott knows one thing without any doubt: It’s on him.

Martin Rogers is a columnist for FOX Sports and the author of the FOX Sports Insider Newsletter. You can subscribe to the newsletter here.