With the way the roster was constructed, the Dallas Cowboys were hoping to do their best impression of the 2024 Cincinnati Bengals, while aiming to actually make the playoffs instead of falling just shy. But that meant that Dak Prescott had to produce at an MVP level.
Entering a Week 9 clash on Monday Night Football against the Arizona Cardinals, that had proved to be the case for the most part. However, with a 3-4-1 record, the team needed more from him. Unfortunately, the first half against the Cardinals may have been his worst performance of the season.
What Happened to Dak Prescott?
After starting Week 9 ranked seventh on PFSN’s QB Impact, the game against Arizona may cause Prescott to come back down to earth. A rough first half saw the highest-paid player in NFL history put up some pedestrian numbers.
Completing just half of his 16 passing attempts, he was able to add just 75 passing yards, while taking off on one scramble for nine yards. Unfortunately, things may have gotten worse for the superstar quarterback heading into the break.
What made the situation worse was a brutal sack on 4th and goal on the opening Dallas drive that led to the team walking away with no points for their effort. Then, near the end of the period, it looked like Prescott may have hurt his leg on a QB hit.
While he remained in the game afterwards and jogged back to the locker room, it seemed like the veteran quarterback was hobbled with an injury to his leg. As a result, it may have affected his numbers that had been electric before this game.
Through eight games, he had thrown for 2,069 passing yards with 16 touchdowns and five interceptions. As a result, he was the main engine behind the fourth-ranked team on PFSN’s Offense Impact, especially as they went three weeks without superstar wide receiver CeeDee Lamb.
The second half of the game was markedly better for Prescott, as he put in a far more efficient performance. Finishing the game with 24 completions on 39 passing attempts, he added 250 passing yards and a touchdown to the tally.
But a critical interception hurt the Cowboys in a big way, as did the five sacks that lost them 40 yards. Even though he ran for 34 yards on four carries, it ultimately proved to not be enough as the Cardinals walked away with a 27-17 victory to give Dallas its fifth loss of the year.