Cowboys studs and duds: Dak Prescott chokes in the spotlight, again
By Randy Gurzi
Stud: KaVontae Turpin, KR
KaVontae Turpin made the Pro Bowl for his ability to flip the field and he did so a couple of times for Dallas — which was huge considering how hard-fought every yard was in this game.
Turpin was huge for the Cowboys as he responded to the 49ers’ long touchdown drive with his best return of the game, ripping off 44 yards. He might have been able to take it to the house if not for Robbie Gould as the kicker got in front of him and was able to stop him.
Dud: Dak Prescott, QB
Leading into this game, the discussion was centered on Dak Prescott. This was a game where he was supposed to be able to show he belonged among the elite, but he did the exact opposite. Instead, he left way too many plays on the field and gave more fuel to the narrative that he chokes in big moments.
Prescott kept on turning the ball over — an issue he had all year as he led the league in picks despite missing five games. And while his defenders point to all the times a receiver let the ball go through his hands, there’s no way to defend his two interceptions in this one.
The first was a terrible read in their own territory as he never saw Deommodore Lenoir who had the easiest pick of his career. The defense held but the 49ers still got three points due to the field position. Then, Prescott took points off the board as he threw the ball into double-coverage at the San Francisco 12, and Fred Warner gladly took the ball away.
Had a guy open in the flat to the right. Take that and hope for YAC that was likely to come with only one man in coverage.
— Patrik [No C] Walker (@VoiceOfTheStar) January 23, 2023
Do not force that throw with your offense moving the ball like this against a defense like that.
Not only did that prevent Dallas from taking the lead going into the half but the 49ers then scored on a 50-yard field goal to head into the intermission with a 9-6 lead.
Prescott continued to leave plays on the field, including when he missed CeeDee Lamb on a third-and-eight which meant they again had to kick a field goal. It also meant they were unable to tie the game despite the long return from KaVontae Turpin.
Once the Niners went back up by seven, Prescott had a three-and-out that highlighted every one of his issues in one series. He threw a pass right to Dre Greenlaw but was bailed out as the linebacker dropped it. The next play saw Michael Gallup get wide open deep, but Prescott simply missed him. On third and 10, he held onto the ball and was sacked.
Dallas played well on defense and the wideouts found openings against the defense. Unfortunately, they were all let down by Prescott who single-handily gave this one away with his mistakes.
