Dak Prescott's preseason status for Dallas Cowboys up in the air, causing a stir
There is a growing possibility that Dak Prescott won't see the field for the Dallas Cowboys this preseason.
However, that isn't necessarily cause for alarm, according to the team. All went well with Prescott's second MRI on his strained shoulder over the weekend, with the injury reportedly showing progress.
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On Monday, Prescott continued throwing drills with his wideouts and reportedly didn't show any ill effects from his shoulder ailment.
Still, he was held out of team drills and 7-on-7s, according to NFL Network's Jane Slater, who said the Cowboys are erring heavily on the side of caution with their franchise quarterback.
"As we've been hearing all along with this shoulder strain, apparently they've just got to be very, very careful with the rest," Slater said. "Not pushing it early on. Again, this is typically a strain reserved for baseball players, but we've seen him out here sort of ramping up a little bit more. … So he doesn't seem all that limited. They just want to be careful."
Caution makes sense, considering that the 28-year-old QB is less than a year removed from a devastating right ankle injury and just signed a four-year, $160 million contract this offseason.
After injuring the shoulder July 28, Prescott has not featured in either of Dallas' first two preseason games. The upcoming game Saturday against the Houston Texas represents Prescott's final chance for in-game preseason action, per Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy.
"We'll see how the week goes, but there's no urgency from my perspective to see Dak play against Houston," McCarthy said Monday, via ESPN's Todd Archer. "This is more about we don't want to create a setback possibly. His volume of throwing leading up to that point, I mean, he was probably in midseason form from the amount of work he put in over the summer, coming out of the OTAs. Just trying to get that volume back to where it belongs."
McCarthy was steadfast in saying that while the Cowboys have two preseason games remaining, the final game will be for the "players that are competing for the final roster spots."
That would mean that if Prescott misses out Saturday, his first in-game action would come in Week 1 of the regular season in a Sept. 9 blockbuster matchup with the defending Super Bowl champions, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Trying to knock the rust off against the team that finished second in the 2020 regular season with 189 QB pressures isn't an ideal scenario, but it could be where Prescott and the Cowboys are headed.
That, combined with Prescott's injury, creates cause for concern for Skip Bayless of "Undisputed."
"I do not love anything about this situation," Bayless began. "… Something is really not right here. … I have never, ever heard of a quarterback straining or tearing a muscle in his arm in training camp."
Skip Bayless: Something is not right with Dak Prescott's shoulder injury I UNDISPUTED
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"… This is about as tough a test as you could get," Bayless continued, looking ahead to Week 1. "Let alone Tom Brady against your now very young defense that was historically bad last year. … How are you going to match fire for fire with Tom Brady?"
Peter Schrager of NFL Network echoed those thoughts Tuesday on "Good Morning Football."
"I would like to see Dak Prescott at least have some sort of actual game action or actually throwing the football with some people coming at him before [Bucs OLB Jason Pierre-Paul] is breathing down his neck."
For now, though, it seems that the first time Cowboys fans will see Prescott in a game since Week 5 of last season will be in the curtain-raiser on Thursday Night Football.
As of Tuesday, the oddsmakers at FOX Bet had the Cowboys at +6.5-point underdogs on the road in Tampa.
Assuming that number accounts for Prescott starting, the Cowboys certainly have their work cut out for them to kick off the season.
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