Can Dak Prescott rebound from his sophomore slump?
Dak Prescott fell into the dreaded slump in year two. Can the young Dallas Cowboys quarterback rebound from a lackluster season in 2018?
At the beginning of the Dallas Cowboys 2017 season, the biggest question outside of will running back Ezekiel Elliott play a full 16-games was: Would quarterback Dak Prescott be able to avoid a sophomore slump? That question was quickly answered as Prescott’s numbers fell drastically from his rookie season.
According to Pro Football Reference, 2017 was a statistical rollercoaster for the Cowboys second-year quarterback.
Prescott’s QBR fell from 104.9 to 86.6, total passing yards fell from 3,667 to 3,324, yards per pass attempt (YPA) fell from 8.0 to 6.8 and yards per game (YPG) fell from 229 to 207. While those numbers went down, Prescott’s interceptions went up from four picks to 13. His times sacked also increased from 25 to 32, as did his rushing yards from 282 to 357.
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Looking at the numbers, and based on the play of the offensive line last season, most would agree that the Cowboys need to improve the depth of their O-Line. Yes, that was a part of the problem in 2017, but not the entire problem. Opposing defenses knew that without Elliott in the backfield, they could focus on Prescott and Dallas’ passing game.
Instead of seeing more consistent eight in the box fronts, Prescott was now seeing more elaborate coverages. By doing this, teams were able to force Dak to hold the ball longer and get pressure on him.
When Prescott was able to have a clean pocket, at times, he seemed to miss blown coverages with open receivers. Deciding instead to throw into coverage or to receivers and running back in the flats.
Simply put, Prescott would either under throw or overthrow receivers more often due to the added pressure. This leads back to one of the main concerns about the third-year quarterback, his accuracy. And Prescott knows that is the one thing he must work on.
"Tough to just say one thing... Accuracy is one of things I'm making sure I focus on." — @dak on his preparation for next season pic.twitter.com/VTXhwUcZtT
— Herd w/Colin Cowherd (@TheHerd) February 2, 2018
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Hopefully, Dak Prescott and new Dallas Cowboys quarterback coach Kellen Moore can build on their already strong bond. If Prescott truly wants to lead a team that he has cheered for his entire life to a super bowl championship his accuracy is the biggest hurdle he will need to overcome.
What other parts of his game do you think Dak needs to work on? Follow me on Twitter at Watson703 – Send me a message. I’m always up for conversations about America’s Team!