The Dallas Cowboys were already having a rough night on Sonday, losing to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, losing 19-3. After the game was over, though, team owner Jerry Jones made an announcement about the health of quarterback Dak Prescott, who exited late in the fourth quarter with a hand injury. With that announcement, Dallas’ night went from bad to worse.
Minutes after the game, Jones said that Prescott will require surgery and will miss “several weeks.”
There’s no way to spin this as good news for the Cowboys. The NFL world didn’t even try. Almost unanimously, this was seen as a crushing blow for Dallas.
Prescott became Dallas’ starter in 2016. He’s been fairly durable, missing only 12 games in his career. In those 12 games without Prescott, though, the Cowboys have 5-7 record. That includes a 4-7 mark in 2020, when he played only five games. By contrast, Prescott is 53-32 in his career and aside from a 2-3 mark during his injury-shortened 2020 season, has never finished a year below .500.
It’s never good to lose in Week 1 — especially at home and by a wide margin. But remember, Week 1 of the 2021 season had a lot of results that appeared odd at the time and look even crazier in hindsight. In the era of the 17-game season, losing in Week 1 isn’t the end of the world. But losing the game and your starting quarterback? That may be another story.
The season may not be over for Dallas. But with a steady dose of Cooper Rush likely forthcoming, things could be looking a lot better.
[Jon Machota on Twitter]
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