Dak Prescott is still seeking playoff success going into his 10th season with the Cowboys
Going into his 10th season as the Cowboys' quarterback, Prescott has been with the team for nearly one-third of its NFC-worst 29-season drought without a conference title game appearance. He is driven to end it this year, preferably culminating in a Super Bowl ring.
'If you don't want to win a Super Bowl, or don't think we can win a Super Bowl, then don't come to Oxnard. You're in the wrong place,' Prescott said Thursday. 'We know the standard when you wear the star. We know the expectations.'
Prescott is looking to bounce back from a chaotic 2024, which included becoming the highest-paid player in NFL history following protracted and public contract negotiations before sustaining a season-ending hamstring tear in early November.
Back at full health and approaching his 32nd birthday on Tuesday, Prescott finds himself overseeing a much different offense under new coach Brian Schottenheimer than what Mike McCarthy ran the previous five seasons. Prescott is lining up under center more after primarily working out of the shotgun under McCarthy. There is more pre-snap motion and increased variety of personnel groupings.
Prescott likes the changes he has seen so far during the first week of training camp.
'You don't know really when we're going to motion, when we're not, when we're doing to hit you with something fast, so it's just another great weapon,' Prescott said.
Even Prescott's trademark 'Here we go' cadence is being set aside at times, though Schottenheimer joked it is too ingrained in the public consciousness to be fully abandoned.
'I mean, why would we take it away when it's got TikTok memes and stuff like that,' Schottenheimer said. 'It's one of the best things that he does, man, and so we're going to let him do that. But like everything that we do, we're going to be multiple.'
Another key asset is the return of Prescott's mobility, which he has displayed by extending plays or scrambling.
'It's been a long road to it,' Prescott said of his recovery after partially tearing his hamstring off the bone against the Atlanta Falcons on Nov. 3, requiring surgery and a lengthy rehabilitation process. 'It's something that I think about every time I step on that field, being thankful for this moment. Not taking anything for granted, and understanding that I've got to continue to push. It's one thing to be healthy, but how much better can I get now that I'm healthy, and that's on the forefront of my mind, so feels good.'
That injury and Prescott's veteran status led Schottenheimer to say the quarterback's workload in camp will be carefully managed to ensure he will be healthy for the regular season. However, Schottenheimer conceded it might be difficult to get Prescott to dial things back.
'He wants to do as much as possible. Luckily, we have the trump card with him on that,' Schottenheimer said, 'But in all seriousness, there's a smart way to train.'
Even with the decrease in preseason snaps, Prescott's desire to compete has not diminished, physically or mentally.
'It's what I want from this game, and I know it's what everyone wants in this locker room,' Prescott said. 'Winning. Winning, winning, winning. And, obviously, if we give we everything we can, and you go at it, there's a lot of good things and patches and pats on the back, I guess you could say, on the way.
'But that's what's on my mind, 10 (years) in and ready to play another 10. But I want that first and foremost now, and that is the urgency that I carry with just the love and the passion of this game is not only wanting to win for myself, but wanting to win for this organization. It's been, well, damn long enough.'
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