The Dallas Cowboys’ 2022 season got turned upside down last Sunday when quarterback Dak Prescott left the game with a thumb injury that would require surgery. As he’ll miss at least four weeks, but possibly as much as eight weeks, backup Cooper Rush is getting the call and head coach Mike McCarthy tried to put some positive spin on the situation during Wednesday’s press conference.
“It’s very disappointing to lose your starting quarterback,” McCarthy said, via USA Today’s Jori Epstein. “It’s extremely disappointing to lose Dak. But the reality is we need to go beat the Cincinnati Bengals, and Cooper (Rush) has the reins.”
As far as how much he trusts Rush, McCarthy said the quarterback is “coach smart” and “has a great disposition for a No. 2.” But he added that there’s a need to be aggressive on offense.
Meanwhile, Prescott will not be moved to injured reserve despite his injury and it sounds like his surgery went well enough that everyone in the franchise is happy with where the timeline goes from here.
“Everyone feels good about the surgery that Dak went through from the medical perspective,” McCarthy said, via ESPN’s Todd Archer. “From my perspective, he had surgery. These next 7-10 days he’s in a healing stage. Let’s get over that hurdle first.”
We’ll see how well Rush can fill that starter role when the Cowboys host the Bengals on Sunday.
[NFL.com, ESPN’s Todd Archer, USA Today’s Jori Epstein]