This Dallas Cowboys is Dak Prescott’s team. They’ve always been, and the idea of a 29-year-old being replaced by backup Cooper Rush borders on absurd.
A 26-17 loss to the rival Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday made the point that should have been slammed. Rush is an excellent backup who is more than capable of keeping the team afloat and working within its offensive structure. However, when called upon to run the offense, the former undrafted free agent could hurt top-tier competition.
Rush completed just 47.4 percent of his pass attempts and threw three interceptions at Lincoln Financial Field. All things considered, these numbers aren’t as bad as you might think. The sixth-year veteran opened the game by completing five of 16 passing attempts in the first half with a 1.0 quarterback rating (on 100). In these two innings, the Eagles led 20-3. Slow down the Cowboys’ ground offense and put pressure on Rush as he drops the pass. As a result, Dallas initially barely even attempted to get the ball into the air. According to ESPN Stats & Information (h/t Todd Archer), the bench went 0-for-5 when trying to push the ball up front for 10 or more yards. He only ran for eight yards in his first three games.
Some people make the mistake of equating team success with quarterback play.
Last week’s results are a perfect testament to those who think wins are a personal statistic and those who realize that team effort is necessary disconnect between. The Cowboys beat the Los Angeles Rams 22-10 with their quarterback completing just 10 passes. Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard combined for 164 yards and Dallas’ defense forced three turnovers.
Dallas Cowboys Mika Parsons fired Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Rush is averaging 191.2 yards per game during the team’s current 4-1 record. By comparison, the other 27 quarterbacks had higher averages.
In American sports, Wally Pip lost his place in New York to the legendary Yankees in The lineup against Lou Gehrig 97 years ago is still an anecdote, every time a good player gets injured and someone else is good in his place. (Technically, Tom Brady should be used as a modern analogy after being the quarterback for the New England Patriots following Drew Bledsoe’s injury. But both Apply.)
Prescott experience and price tag ($20M this year, $160M total contract value ) was always a major factor in Rush’s lack of any chance to make a legitimate claim, even though he did a fine job as the team’s quarterback recovered from a broken thumb. Prescott is expected to start next week against the Detroit Lions.
“I think Duck took the next step. Had a great day on [Saturday], “Head coach Mike McCarthy told reporters when asked about Prescott’s pregame throwing practice. “…We’re going to get him out there to see where he is tomorrow and hopefully make a plan for him [for this week].”
Dallas Cowboys by four Guard Dak Prescott (Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
McCarthy added that Prescott hopes to get a medical on Monday, according to Patrick Walker of the Cowboys’ official website.
“I plan to go into the week and do a full week of practice,” the quarterback said.
Really, the Cowboys have no one to blame but themselves in the discussions over the past few weeks. Yes, Dallas exceeded expectations, with Rush trailing the center and a 4-2 record that puts it among the top four teams in the NFC. However, the Cowboys are third in their own division.
“Of course I want to. If [Rush] gets there and plays as well as Prescott…in these next few games, I’m going to walk to New York to get that….Of course, we want Dak to be here next week. That’s it, you do …but Dak and I want Rush to lead the team to victory here and another championship. In retrospect, it was game after game when Dak came on in place of Tony. …
“So I think it’s possible for Rush to come here and play a level and win the game like Prescott did when he took over from Romo? Yes, yes, I would. Yes I do. I certainly think it’s possible. ”
Jones suggested that Rush could take Prescott’s job. He also argued that the former could be the NFL’s “top” quarterback, while saying he did exactly what a backup quarterback does required.
) Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones (Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Rush could be a cog in the machine. Prescott acts as the engine, which is exactly what the Cowboys need when facing the still-undefeated Eagles and rival New York Giants.
Prescott’s toughness in the pocket, ability to create outside of the structure, and ability to dribble the ball on the court is outstanding. Not everything will be perfect Ground blocking. Not every pass attempt came from a clean pocket. Rush faltered when he had to stare at the Eagles’ offense on Sunday. Prescott is better at handling these situations and creating games Much more.
The Cowboys have offensive weapons to take advantage of the Eagles’ back-end defense if they signal The callers weren’t completely overwhelmed by what was going on at the line of scrimmage, or frustrated by the lack of an ongoing game. Dallas did beat the Giants in Week 3, but New York was overseen by Brian Dabore every week Both are improving. Prescott gives the Cowboys a significant advantage over Daniel Jones even as G-Men continues to exceed expectations.
Rush in admirable fashion. He should be commended for doing so. But the moment Prescott can hold the reins properly, the reins are handed back to him.
“So yeah, I mean, obviously just disappointed I can’t be with these guys for the past five weeks, I think, but I’m high Xingneng moved on and was very happy with where we were and, yes, we can move on,” Prescott said.
Brent Sobleski covers the NFL for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter, @brentsobleski.
