Ahead of crucial season, Cowboys QB Dak Prescott is 'embracing' mounting criticism

OXNARD, Calif. – Dak Prescott dropped a rather pointed hint this week when assessing criticism that is part of the package with one of the most high-profile jobs in America.

"At the end of the day, when we win this thing, it’s only going to make it that much sweeter," the Dallas Cowboys quarterback told USA TODAY Sports following Tuesday’s practice.

Prescott, heading into Year 8, didn’t exactly guarantee that this will be the year the Cowboys – once "America's Team," now "America’s Biggest Tease" – break out with a Super Bowl triumph. I mean, this franchise hasn’t even advanced to the NFC title game in the last 27 seasons. Yet his reference to winning big was more than subtle when he was asked whether he is feeling the flood of criticism – especially on social media and with the sports talk shows – directed toward him after another disappointing finish last season.

Feel it?

"Not necessarily," said Prescott, whose career-high 15 interceptions tied for most in the NFL last season. "I can say I’ve heard it, for sure. But I’ve never allowed any people’s opinions, or expectations, dictate who I am. I believe I have the highest expectations for myself than anyone does. That holds me to a high standard.

"Obviously, me coming from a year last year, leading the league in interceptions and not performing the way I wanted … yeah, I’ve always been a fighter. I’ve got a chip on my shoulder and had it before."

He may not see himself as being driven by the doubts of others, but it certainly fits his purpose. Prescott insists that he encourages "fans and people to talk" as if it adds fuel.

"I never want anything easy, never want somebody to give me the shortcut to it," he said. "I’m embracing everything that’s coming my way – negativity, criticism, whatever it may be. I’m getting better."

Teammates lining up on the other side of the field seem willing to play to that theme of, well, resistance. During the first two padded practices of the summer, Prescott was generally smooth and sharp. He threw some highlight-reel lasers to his trio of talented wide receivers – CeeDee Lamb, Brandin Cooks and Michael Gallup – and moved well when deciding to throw on the run or bolt from the pocket.

Yet the Cowboys defense got the best of Prescott on occasion – and let him hear about it.

On Monday, safety Malik Hooker made an easy interception of a deep throw that was nowhere near Cooks, apparently the result of miscommunication. As Hooker ran back with the return, he chided, "C’mon, Dak."

On Tuesday, the trash talk came from cornerback Trevon Diggs. On a red-zone play, Prescott ran out of the pocket but was stopped short of the goal line by Diggs – who gave the quarterback a few choice words for emphasis. The moment went viral as Diggs uttered a disparaging expletive.

It was a stretch to describe the scene as tense. It seemed more like an iron-sharpens-iron moment, with some good-natured ribbing.

In any event, Prescott, who turned 30 last weekend, will take it. The challenge is obvious: Prescott, honored as the NFL’s Walter Payton Man of the Year after last season for his community work, needs to be the best version of himself as quarterback if the Cowboys are to have a legitimate shot of ending their championship drought.

Sure, that can be said for pretty much any quarterback and any team with championship visions. In the Cowboys’ case, though, they’ll have to prove that with a big-play defense and potentially explosive offense, they will have enough to hang with the defending NFC-champion Philadelphia Eagles and with the team that bounced them from the playoffs the past two seasons, the San Francisco 49ers.

"If he has a better year, then we’re going to be better than those teams we’re talking about," Cowboys owner Jerry Jones told USA TODAY Sports, munching on a ham sandwich in his camp office.

The Cowboys' strategy for getting the best of Prescott leans heavy into one of the dominant themes of training camp – the transition of coach Mike McCarthy taking over the play-calling duties previously held by since-departed coordinator Kellen Moore.

Jones said the idea is to make the offense “Dak-friendlier,” as he called it.

"We can give him less to do before the snap of the ball," Jones said. "In my mind, we can tighten up…we can have a little better protection. There’s room for improvement. That’s not pointing the finger at any player or anybody, but we can do better. We can create an offense that creates less risk and turnovers. And we can give him a quicker way to throw the ball.

"That’s what’s going on here. That’s the tweak, not the total replacement, because two-thirds of what we’re going to be doing, he’s done for the last seven years. That adjustment, in my mind, will address the balls that did result in us probably not being in the Super Bowl, and certainly his turnovers."

Not all of the INTs – Prescott missed five starts and still led the league – were on the quarterback. But in the bigger picture that included the drop-off of production from the previous season (when Dallas led the league in points and yards), Prescott drew heat for a reason.

The Cowboys offense, like the quarterback, was doomed by a lack of consistency. The regular season ended at Washington with Prescott posting his lowest passer rating of the season (45.8), and the playoff run stopped at San Francisco, when Prescott was intercepted twice as Dallas mustered just 12 points. In between, Prescott sparkled in shredding the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with four TD passes in an NFC wild-card game.

What now?

"The quarterback needs to own the system and grow with it," McCarthy told USA TODAY Sports.

Lamb, the emerging star, told reporters, "It’s all in Dak’s hands."

Prescott said that while he will have an obligation to change plays based on what he’s seeing from defenses, as has been the case for years, a key difference with McCarthy calling the plays could be reflected in the deep shots down the field.

"I’m excited for it," he said. "Mike’s aggressive. I’ve worked on my game in order to be aggressive. But as much as that, him, ‘Schotty’ (offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer) and the whole offense is super-detailed. Everybody understands why a play is being called and where they are supposed to be during the play. That’s defining our details and allowing not only me to play fast but all of us to play fast, and for him to feel comfortable calling whatever he wants to, or calling our best plays.

"So, obviously, people wonder if there’s a big change, are we throwing our old system away? What is it? It’s a great mix of things that are going to help us play fast, help us play more comfortable, but yet we are still doing the things that we did in the past that we’re great at. So, I’m excited for it. It’s been fun out here, especially these last two padded practices, and it’s just the beginning."

Prescott, who has been a starter since breaking in as a fourth-round rookie, should be used to the intense scrutiny that comes with his job. His predecessor, Tony Romo, had it. As did Troy Aikman, the last Cowboys quarterback to win a championship.

If the pressure unnerves Prescott, he doesn’t show it. That’s pretty much how he has rolled – with a cool demeanor – since his arrival as a fourth-round pick out of Mississippi State.

And with experience, including a range of adversity on and off the field, you’d think he has gained an even greater dose of wisdom.

"I really just think understanding is the best way to say it," Prescott said. "Understanding what’s ahead of me, understanding what this league has to offer. Understanding what the negativity can do if you allow it to get inside your head too much. But understanding if you drink the Kool-Aid of success, it has the same effect.

"Like you said, I’ve been through a lot, but going into my eighth year, I haven’t gotten what I want to get out of this league. That’s what pushes me every day when I wake up."

Which might someday provide him with the sweetest answer for the critics.

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