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Prescott injury sours Cowboys win
Adam Schultz
Roar Rookie
12th October, 2020
2
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Adam Schultz
Roar Rookie
12th October, 2020
2

So, the Dallas Cowboys game against the New York Giants ended several hours ago but it has taken until now for me to be able to write my thoughts on the game, simply so I could digest what we had witnessed.

Now going into this game there was literally nothing to gain for Dallas, but everything to lose – and boy did they lose.

If they won everyone would say “well, you only played the Giants” but if they lost then the world would cave in around them and certainly some decisions would have to be made in regards to personnel and coaching.

There was the customary offensive turnover and the poor displays from the Dallas defence, but it was the injury to Dak Prescott that has sucked all the positive air out of the stadium and left a real sour taste long after the game had finished.

The Cowboys were leading 24-23 in the third quarter and the offence was humming along nicely. Zeke Elliott and Tony Pollard were running the ball effectively and then Dak hit Ceedee Lamb deep down the middle for a 22-yard gain.

Then came first and 10 at the Giants 27 and this play will be remembered for all the wrong reasons. It was a designed quarterback run that Dak had done numerous times before. However, this time when he was tackled, his foot got caught under the defender and his ankle was left basically pointing in the wrong direction.

Dak Prescott runs with the ball

(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

Watching the game and listening to the CBS commentary from Jim Nantz and Tony Romo, it was eerie. The crowd was hyped up as the Cowboys were on the move and in the space of a couple seconds, it was pandemonium and then utter despair at what had happened.

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In a stadium that had over 20,000 people, you could hear a pin drop. It felt like the energy and air got sucked out of the entire stadium as well as my living room.

To see ex-Dallas coach Jason Garrett run over to Mike McCarthy and Prescott to see how the quarterback was, is a testament of the type of person Garrett is. Now say what you want about his coaching ability, but he is considered the nicest guy in footballing circles and you can see why.

Prescott was seen crying on the cart on his was to the locker room and that was an image that made not only me but every football fan numb.

When the camera stayed on him and he raised his arm in support of the crowd, the cheer was unbelievable. That is this team’s franchise quarterback. Everything that happened after Dak’s injury was in my mind irrelevant now, whether they won or lost it did not matter.

Now somewhat distastefully some media personnel made light of the fact that this is the exact reason why Dak should have taken the money that Dallas was offering, but make no mistake, both Jerry Jones and Stephen Jones have blood on their hands here. Prescott’s contract should have been sorted out years ago.

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In the end Dallas won the game 37-34 thanks to a Greg Zuerlein field goal as time expired as back up Andy Dalton lead the final drive and thanks to a Michael Gallup catch set them up in great field position.

The score line says that Dallas won, but they lost heavily. Losing without doubt their spiritual leader, the franchise quarterback, and the guy who everyone in that locker room looks up too and would follow into battle anywhere is a crushing blow.

Add to that, it very well could be the last time we see Dak Prescott in a Cowboys jersey and if that is in fact true then the Jones family will have a lot to answer to in everyone’s books.

Then there is the silver lining if you want to call it that, Dallas are in first place in the NFC East with a 2-3 record and have a very capable back up in Andy Dalton to now lead them for the rest of the year.

He has shown that he can lead a team to the playoffs as he did numerous times with the Bengals and he will at least have some firepower around him this time out.

Now this is clearly Zeke’s team now, running the football should be paramount to the Cowboys success and their season is not over by a long shot, but it sure has that feel to it now.

For all the Dak haters saying that Andy Dalton should have been starting over Dak after the teams failures this season, well you have got your wish and as they say be careful what you wish for because as the saying goes “you do not know what you have until it is gone” and that could very well win true in this case.

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At the time of writing Dak has undergone surgery on his injured ankle and is out for the year. With many pieces missing on the Cowboys roster, adding their franchise quarterback to the list is a devastating blow, but if there is any player that has the resilience, mental toughness and the dedication to come back from this it is Dak Prescott.

When you see the reaction from the whole Cowboys roster as he was getting carted off the field, you can tell they love him as the leader of the team and locker room.

Jerry Jones should give Dak a new contract but I have been saying that for two years now, while it might not be the salary cap busting one that he was on track for, but with what he has done since he came into the league and what he has done this year, he at least deserves a chance to come back to Dallas and finish what he started.

As the much-maligned Terrell Owens once said, “that’s my quarterback” and let me tell you, as the majority of Cowboy fans on social media throughout the day have said, me included, Dak Prescott is and always will be our Dallas Cowboys quarterback.

Jerry take your pride out of it and give the man the contract he deserves.

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