NFL
Dallas Cowboys' Prescott unaware of NFC East win before WFT mauling
Prescott says he didn't know the Dallas Cowboys had already been confirmed as NFC East champions before taking to the field against the Washington Football Team on Sunday.
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott says he did not know his team had already won the NFC East division title before thrashing the Washington Football Team 56-14 on Sunday.
Prescott starred by completing 28 of 39 attempted passes for 330 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions as Dallas registered 50 points for the first time since Super Bowl XXVII in the 1992 season.
Cowboys score most points in regular-season game for 41 years
The Dallas QB recorded his fourth career game with 300 yards, four passing touchdowns and no interceptions, which is the most by any player in franchise history, going past Tony Romo (three).
Dallas' 56-point haul was the third most in a game by franchise records and the most in a regular-season fixture since 1980 as Mike McCarthy's side scored more than 40 points for the fourth time this season.
"I don't know if many people knew we clinched before the game - I didn't"
The Las Vegas Raiders' victory over the Denver Broncos had already secured Prescott's third divisional title in six seasons as the Cowboys' starting quarterback, but the 28-year-old claimed he was unaware of the triumph before the game.
"I don't know if many people knew we clinched before the game," Prescott said. "I didn't. That's kind of what my message was talking to the guys in the circle up right there [before the game], going out winning this division.
"I don't know if we're in the world or business of trying to send messages more than we're just trying to get better, day in and day out, game after game and make sure that we're playing our best ball and peaking at the right time heading into this tournament."
Asked whether Dallas had arrested a slump after concerns over their offensive abilities on Prescott's return from a calf strain, he responded: "You tell me. I never said we were in a slump. Those were your words.
"So I think it would be hard for you to say that now, but, yeah, tonight was a great performance."
Lawrence pleased with Dallas' "complete game"
Dallas scored on offense, defense and special teams for the first time since 2012 as they became the first NFL outfit to do so this season, much to the delight of defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence who hailed an almost perfect showing.
"I feel like we showed ourselves that we can play a complete game but we still have a lot that we can build on," Lawrence said.
"Being able to go out there and dominate on all three phases of the game, shoot, we just got to keep building on that and get better from it."
The Cowboys extended to a four-game winning streak, though McCarthy's team need to win their final two games and require the Green Bay Packers to lose at least once to confirm home advantage for the playoffs.
The NFC East champions next face the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday before closing the regular season at the Philadelphia Eagles on 9 January.