Dak Prescott out indefinitely

“I’m in the best shape of my life.” Those were Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott’s words before the start of training camp, and he was right. The Dallas QB had not been fully healthy since the start of the 2019 season, with various injuries keeping him out or slow.

This was supposed to be his best year, and yet, to start off the 2022-23 season, the Cowboys suffered a huge blow in the 19-3 loss to the Buccaneers in their season opener. Prescott was throwing the ball late in the 4th quarter when Buccaneers linebacker Shaq Barrett’s hand came back on Prescott’s and bent it backward. Jerry Jones said after the game was over that Prescott will need surgery on his right thumb and is expected to be out several weeks.

Before the end of the game, Prescott was not having an amazing night as it was. He completed just 14 of 29 passes for 134 yards, threw one interception, and was sacked twice. The Cowboys had no touchdowns against the Buccaneers.

In 2020, Prescott suffered a compound fracture to his right ankle in Week 5 that kept him out for the rest of the season. In 2021, he suffered a shoulder sprain in the preseason, but came back to start the regular season after recovering. Although he was not fully healthy, he started 16 games in 2021, only missing one on the season due to a calf strain on the same side as the ankle injury. He set a single-season record of 37 touchdown passes.

Earlier this week, Prescott was limited in practice due to a sore ankle, which he said was due to a new pair of cleats. He insisted that he was “good to go” and that he was going right back to the old cleats. He went through full workouts on Friday and Saturday leading up to the game.

The Cowboys o-line and receiving core were already a big concern for the Dallas offense, but now losing Prescott for several weeks, things are looking quite grim for them to start the new season.