Dak Prescott has gotten a lot of mixed reviews for his performance in the Dallas Cowboys 24-6 defeat of the Detroit Lions.
Prescott was 19/25 passing for 207 yards and a touchdown. Some fans wanted to see more out of QB1 considering the Lions have one of the NFL’s worst defenses. Others were pleased with what they saw considering how much time he missed dealing with a fractured thumb.
We went back and watched every throw Dak made in Week 7, thanks to the NFL’s All-22. Here’s what we learned:
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Game plan wasn’t to air it out
Prescott didn’t post gaudy numbers in the win, 207 passing yards isn’t a lot. If a QB averaged that many yards in each game this season, they’d rank 24th in the NFL.
The Cowboys ran a lot of quick-hitter passes to TEs and RBs. Those positional players caught 10 passes while the WRs caught nine passes.
Let’s not forget, Prescott missed five games after fracturing his thumb in Week 1. It will take time for Dak to get up to speed and throwing deep passes more often, like what we saw last season.
Considering OC Kellen Moore’s game plan was to get the ball out of Prescott’s hands quickly, it’s not surprising he only threw for 207 yards.
Dak threw an accurate deep ball
On the handful of occasions Prescott did air it out down field, he was mostly accurate. Impressive considering how much time he missed.
Here are all of QB1’s big plays from the game:
- Dalton Schultz 15 yard catch
- CeeDee Lamb 24 yard catch
- Lamb 21 yard completion
- Noah Brown 14 yard reception
- Lamb 15 yard catch
- Brown 15 yard reception
Prescott did miss a few deep shots, but most of his incompletions were throwaways as the pass rush closed in and no receivers were open. Dak completed 76% of his passes making for a very efficient game.
How many interceptions did the Lions drop?
Watching the game live, it seemed like Prescott should’ve thrown at least two or three interceptions that Detroit muffed. Upon review, Dak should’ve thrown only one pick.
That pass came in the second quarter on a deep shot to Lamb. Prescott threw into triple coverage in the middle of the field and the Lions defender inexplicably dropped an easy interception.
This was by far the worst throw of the day for Prescott. Had Detroit came down with the pick, QB Jared Goff and Co. would’ve gotten the ball on Dallas’ 47-yard line.
Prescott got help from his teammates
The Lions offensive line did a great job protecting Prescott. He was only sacked twice and operated in a clean pocket most of the game.
This made it easy for Prescott to go through his reads and hit open receivers.
The Cowboys RBs also played well which lessened the need for Dak to throw many passes.
Tony Pollard had 12 carries for 83 yards, averaging a whopping 6.9 yards per carry. Ezekiel Elliott rushed 15 times for 57 yards and two touchdowns.
It was definitely a team effort to get Prescott back on track after a lengthy absence.
