Dallas Cowboys

Can Cooper Rush keep Cowboys afloat until Dak Prescott returns?

Updated Sep. 14, 2022 6:00 p.m. ET

By Ralph Vacchiano
FOX Sports NFC East Writer

There's probably a good reason why quarterback Cooper Rush has spent six years in the NFL but has made only one start.

But what a start it was.

Last Halloween, Rush stepped in for Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and threw for 325 yards in a win at Minnesota. Though it was a memorable performance, it's suddenly being remembered in Dallas like it was the greatest game a backup QB has ever played. And with Prescott injured again — and this time likely out for a month or more after surgery on his right thumb — that game is giving the Cowboys one reason to believe that their entire season isn't already sunk.

"I think he showed a number of different things that day when he played at Minnesota," said Cowboys offensive coordinator Kellen Moore. "When he's had his moment, he's taken advantage of it."

"When you have a chance to go through one experience with your quarterback," Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy added, "Cooper showed us a lot that day."

There is no doubt that he did, completing 24 of 40 passes for those 325 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. The big question, though, is: Can Rush do it again? And not just this Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals, but probably for the next three games, at least.

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And here's an even bigger question: Can the 28-year-old do it with a Cowboys team that looks remarkably worse than the one he took over last season? That team was 5-1 coming out of its bye week, on its way to 12-4. It had two legitimate No. 1 receivers in CeeDee Lamb and the now-departed Amari Cooper. Dallas had the best offense in the league.

This Cowboys team … is not that. They are the only NFL team without a touchdown, after their 19-3 loss at home against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last Sunday. Even with Prescott playing most of the game, they had only 244 offensive yards. Rush, in his unscheduled cameo, was 7-of-13 for 64 yards.

Betting on him to do more than that with this team feels awfully risky. The Cowboys don't need a quarterback to just maintain the status quo and keep them afloat until a healthy Prescott rides to their rescue. Right now, they need a quarterback who can carry them. And that's the big gamble Dallas is taking — expecting Rush to lead this flawed, struggling offense is an enormous leap of faith.

But that one game from last October — their very limited experience with Rush, even though he's been on their team since 2017 — sure does have everyone sounding eager to jump.

"He's really smart," Moore said. "He has a great ability to process defenses very quickly and get the ball out of his hands. … His demeanor is really, really good. He handles the ups and downs that you inevitably go through in a season, a game, all those things. I feel like we're fortunate to have a guy like that in this situation."

"We work every day with Cooper," McCarthy added. "He's coach-smart. He's got a great disposition for the No. 2. There's so much to love about Cooper."

Truth be told, the Cowboys don't really have much of a choice. They are in a pickle, stuck between the hope that Prescott will have to miss only three games after his surgery on Monday and any desire they might have to make a big, bold move to replace him. The timeline is tricky. The Cowboys decided against putting Prescott on injured reserve, which would have kept him out a minimum of four games — a strong indication they believe he can return before that.

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Even McCarthy wouldn't completely rule out the pursuit of a veteran quarterback eventually. He said first they want to give Prescott "seven to 10 days" to heal from the surgery. "Then we'll have a clear idea," he said.

But now or then, there just aren't many options. They could pursue a trade for 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, but the price wouldn't be worth it if Prescott's absence is really short-term. They could sign a veteran like Cam Newton or the retired Ryan Fitzpatrick, but anyone they sign would need time to learn the offense and might not be much of an upgrade over Rush or even third-stringer Will Grier.

"It's unlikely that you'd have a veteran quarterback that could get in here and be ready to play as well as those guys can play," Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said on Dallas radio on Tuesday, "even if you thought [the veteran] might have a talent advantage."

Which brings the Cowboys back to Rush, the former Central Michigan star who has that one wonderful start on his résumé, plus 10 other cameos in his six NFL seasons in which he's thrown 23 other NFL passes — 13 of which came on Sunday night. The Cowboys thought so highly of him that they cut him at the end of training camp and placed him on the practice squad.

Now, of course, they love him.

Because they have no choice.

"Let's not hit the panic [button] as if we just can't do anything on offense," Prescott said on Sunday night. "We have a great coaching staff. They'll get back in there, and they'll find the things that we did well. Our coaching staff will find the best position and best spot to put Cooper Rush in every game."

"It's very disappointing to lose your starting quarterback," McCarthy said. "It's extremely disappointing to lose Dak. But the reality is we need to go beat Cincinnati, and Cooper has the reins."

Ralph Vacchiano is the NFC East reporter for FOX Sports, covering the Washington Commanders, Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys. He spent the previous six years covering the Giants and the Jets for SNY TV in New York, and before that he spent 16 years covering the Giants and the NFL for the New York Daily News. He can be found on Twitter at @RalphVacchiano.