Dak Prescott is not getting enough appreciation for the stellar season he is having

Dak Prescott's stellar season is not appreciated enough

The Cowboys sit at 9-3 in the NFC and currently hold the conference's fifth seed. Many would shout that those nine wins are not as meaningful (same with Prescott's play) as Cowboy fans are making it but that can be argued. Prescott and company have beaten some of the lesser teams in the league yes. But, they have performed in those games how you should expect a team to, they dominated. They're also fresh off beating a then-6-5 Seahawks team that could make the playoffs.

The notion that beating lesser teams is not credible to a team is incorrect. If you dominant against such teams, that should be appreciated. You cannot blame Dallas for steam-rolling lesser teams. You cannot hate on Prescott's season thus far for that reason either because he has did exactly what he should have and a whole lot more and that is enough to give praise for Prescott and what he is doing this year.

The next four games for the Cowboys are looked at as being the "true test" to what this team can or cannot do and even Prescott himself for that matter. three of their next four opponents have a winning record with three of them having won at least eight games on the year. Dallas will have their hands full having to face teams with good quarterbacks and good offenses such as the Eagles, Dolphins and Lions. On the other hand, these team's defenses will also have their hands full with Prescott and the Cowboys offense in return.

From a football perspective, if Prescott can have solid performances in at least three of those five games, he should still be looked at as a top quarterback this year. It is a safe bet for that to happen as Prescott has performed well against respectable defenses this year. Lets' dive in.

If we were to highlight Prescott's best three games we would more than likely choose his showings in wins against the Jets and the Rams, along with his showing in a loss versus the Eagles. In each of those games he completed more than 70% of his throws (82% against the Jets), threw for over 300 yards and multiple touchdown passes including four against the Rams. The Jets and Rams both rank in the top 12 in the league in yards allowed and opposing quarterback QBR let-up. The Eagles pass defense is not as stout as it has been in recent years (due to the loss of ex-coordinator Jonathan Gannon and others), but they still rush the quarterback as much as anyone in the league so for Prescott to perform as well as he did against them that day while being under pressure all game, that is impressive. That game saw Dak nearly push the Cowboys to upset the Eagles in-front of their home crowd, imagine how crazy that would have been?

In the other contests that Dak has dominated in, four of those games, Prescott went against a top 18 defense in the similar categories mentioned before. In the games where Dak has struggled (not many), they came against very stout defensive units including his Sunday night dud against the San Francisco 49ers and their outstanding defense. For that performance you have to cut Dak some slack, he played against a defense mentioned in the same conversation as the 1985 Bears and the 1991 Eagles for crying out loud.

As the dog-days loom, it will get considerably harder for Prescott as we all know. He will face tough challenges. However, if he has dominant performances in at least three of the five games mentioned earlier, he should be given credit for one of the best seasons by a quarterback this year.

The Cowboys are 8-3 for a reason and that reason is not only because of their defense. Prescott has put together a great season for himself and if he continues, it will be his best season in his nine-year career. Prescott is the most scrutinized quarterback in recent history but he is also one of the most humble quarterbacks and he is just a good dude. Every football fan should appreciate Prescott as a football player. Whether you are a Cowboys fan or a Cowboys hater, either way you would be crazy to not think that Prescott is playing like one of the leagues' best quarterbacks in 2023.

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