The Dallas Cowboys’ loss was so thorough and embarrassing that team owner Jerry Jones felt compelled to give his beleaguered quarterback a vote of confidence on Tuesday.
Dak Prescott, in the third year of a four-year, $160 million contract, completed 15 of 24 passes for 154 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions in the Cowboys’ humiliating 42-10 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.
Prescott led the NFL with 15 interceptions in 2022, though injuries limited him to only 12 games. He had thrown one interception in the first four games before throwing three in the second half against San Francisco. McCarthy benched Prescott for Cooper Rush with about 12 minutes left in the fourth quarter to protect him. Prescott is 0-3 with three touchdowns and six interceptions in his last three games against San Francisco.
“Dak Prescott is a quarterback that can get us to the Super Bowl,” Jones said on Tuesday during his weekly call on the team’s flagship station.
“That’s the way that’s gonna be. We have other quarterbacks on that roster and players that certainly (are capable) if something should happen to Dak. But I want to be real clear: Dak is very capable of taking this team where we want it to go.”
But is he?
History not on Dak Prescott’s side
The 30-year-old quarterback is in his eighth season as the Cowboys’ starter. History says if he hasn’t played in a Super Bowl by now, odds are he won’t do it in Dallas.
He has a $59 million salary-cap figure in 2024. Conventional wisdom would be for Dallas to extend him, but quarterbacks of his stature make about $50 million a year. Does Jones want to spend that on a player who has yet to show he can guide his team deep into the playoffs?
“Do we have the quarterback? Let me be very affirmative: I completely believe that we have the quarterback that can take us where we want to go,” Jones said. “Do we have the coaching staff on both sides of the ball? We certainly do. Did Sunday reflect that? No.”
Coach Mike McCarthy essentially fired offensive coordinator Kellen Moore in the off-season and took over the play-calling. He altered the offense to add elements of the West Coast offense. The results have been mixed.
The Cowboys have scored 108 points in their three wins, but they were so dominant defensively in those games the offense didn’t have to provide much.
In losses to Arizona and San Francisco, the offense seemed lost, totaling just 26 points. Dallas gained just 197 yards and eight first downs against San Francisco while committing four turnovers.
The Cowboys rank 17th in total offense (327.4 yards per game) and 21st in yards per play (4.95). They’re 28th in red zone offense (36.8 percent).
That’s why Jones felt compelled to give McCarthy and the offense a vote of confidence, too.
“I’m not panicked. But the gap is – when something tells you what it is, don’t try to dream it’s something else. Now, what I’m trying to say is we can do better than what we did out there Sunday night. That’s a given.”
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Changes Dallas Cowboys can make
No, Jones has not considered telling McCarthy to let Brian Schottenheimer call plays or make substantial changes to the playbook.
“Have we gotten this team, since Kellen Moore left, in a place that can do better than we did against the 49ers? You bet we did,” Jones said. “Should we change, at this juncture, back to where we were at this time last year? No, we should not.
“You couldn’t do it if you wanted to — reinvent your offense at this time.”
He’s right about that.
McCarthy must figure out how to unleash running back Tony Pollard, who has one 100-yard game this season, and receiver CeeDee Lamb, who said the offense lacked an identity after the loss.
McCarthy indicated Lamb is unhappy with his role in the offense. He’s had more than four receptions in one game — none in the last three games.
“We should recognize that we had a very bad outing and that San Francisco had a very good outing,” Jones said. “We should recognize that and call it what it is and not mislead ourselves. But as far as sitting here saying we should completely change the towels here, that’s not even in the cards. And it’s really ridiculous.”
Jean-Jacques Taylor is the NFL Insider for Sportsnaut. Follow him on Twitter. He’s the author of Coach Prime: Deion Sanders and the Making of Men.