Dak Prescott fighting more than defenses; throwing mechanics
When Dallas Cowboys Dak Prescott sets his feet, he delivers accurate passes. Unfortunately, his mechanics often disappear when he’s under pressure.
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott is challenging more than the New York Giants in Week 2. Prescott’s biggest opponent is science. Somehow, Prescott has become an NFL quarterback without learning how to throw the football efficiently.
Dak has covered a lot of his deficiencies with his legs. Even with “mobile” quarterbacks, NFL offensive systems are and will continue to be designed for quarterbacks that can make accurate throws from the pocket.
It may seem odd for me to question Prescott’s accuracy when he has a 65% completion percentage. Unfortunately, numbers can be deceiving. The completion percentage should be high when he averaged less than 7 yards per pass attempt in 2017.
I don’t want to post Prescott’s bad numbers, I want to discuss science and an honest evaluation of Prescott. Throwing a football is an athletic event that’s powered by rotational force. Great quarterbacks understand how to use the ground in their throwing motion.
Look at this article from 2007 featuring former Cowboys quarterback Vinny Testaverde. Testaverde was reported to routinely squat more than 400 pounds. He explained that the strength in your arm doesn’t come from your arm. It comes from the legs and hips.
Prescott worked on utilizing his lower body to throw the football during the offseason when he went to work with former NFL quarterback John Beck in California. Here’s what Prescott told ESPN.com.
"“If you’re a quarterback and you study the position and you study the way the body moves, it’s putting force into the ground to get the ball the way you want to. It’s different for me than it is for [Jared] Goff. We work different parts of it. To the naked eye, not so much is different but guys that do study that, they can see it and I can see it.”"
I was encouraged by these comments and hearing that Prescott learned to use the ground in his throwing motion. Rotational force is used in lots of sports – football, figure skating, shot put and my personal favorite – golf.
Golf happens to be a sport that former quarterback Tony Romo and I play very well. The golf swing, like throwing a football, stresses the importance of proper footwork.
Both motions require setting your feet, then pushing off the ground through your instep to rotate your hips. The twisting motion or torque in your hips is used to rotate your shoulders. The speed of the shoulders creates a whip-like effect of the arm. It’s a beautiful thing to watch.
One of my favorite plays is Tony Romo avoiding Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt. Everyone knows that Romo evades the tackle with a spin move, but that’s not the moment I want you to focus on.
In order to throw the ball 52 yards through the air to wide receiver Terrance Williams in the end zone, Romo resets his feet – even under pressure. That enables him to push off of his back foot to rotate his hips which spins his shoulders and launches the ball downfield.
Romo rotates his hips so hard, that his back foot comes off the ground resulting in what is known as – stepping through the throw.
When Prescott sets his feet, he can deliver an accurate pass with proper mechanics. My problem with Dak is the disappearance of his mechanics under pressure. He resorts back to his old throwing style at times during games.
It doesn’t matter how good the pass rush is during practice because Prescott knows he isn’t going to get hit. Similarly, I don’t care how many free throws or 3-foot putts you can sink before the game starts. I need to see how you perform when the game is on the line or a small golf bet is involved. As the saying goes – Pressure busts pipes or makes diamonds.
The biggest example of poor footwork from the Carolina Panthers game is Prescott underthrowing tight end Blake Jarwin on third down. Look at the :41 second mark of the replay and notice that Prescott jumps for no reason to throw the ball downfield. This is a moment that makes me miss Romo because even on the run you have to set your feet. It’s simply science.
For the record – If someone can state that former tackle Chaz Green wasn’t playing good, that evaluation doesn’t mean they aren’t a “real” fan. I don’t enjoy watching Terrance Williams catching the ball against his chest like a five-year-old kid. I’m a “real” fan, that prefers receivers that catch the football with their hands.
Next. The top 10 Dallas Cowboys to never win a Super Bowl. dark
I believe Dak Prescott should have spent two years learning the system and developing under Romo. He still stares down receivers and can’t read defenses pre-snap. The front office has made everything Dak-Friendly, so I want and expect better play from every player, including the quarterback – All “real” fans should.
#GoCowboys