Dak Prescott is a quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys, drafted in the fourth round (135 overall) of the 2016 NFL Draft. The former Mississippi State Bulldog is a native of Haughton, Louisiana and played high school football for the Haughton High School Buccaneers. During his senior season at Haughton, Prescott threw for 2,860 yards and 39 touchdowns, while also rushing for 90-951-17. He led the Buccaneers to a District 1-AAAA Championship in 2010. Prescott joined Mississippi State as a three-star quarterback from the 2011 recruiting class, but wasn’t named the team’s full-time starter until the 2014 season. During his time at Mississippi State, Prescott was twice named First-team All-SEC. He totaled 9,376 yards and 70 touchdowns to 23 interceptions, with a passer rating of 146.0 during his three-year college career.
Drafted as a project quarterback to play backup to Tony Romo, Prescott found himself quickly thrust into a full-time starter role. During Prescott’s rookie season, injuries took a toll on the Dallas quarterbacks in the preseason. The most notable injury was to Romo, who suffered a vertebral compression fracture expected to keep him out for an extended period of time. Prescott was named the Cowboys’ starter and started every game that season (2016). He performed admirably and when Romo retired in 2017, Prescott became the franchise QB in Dallas.
Prescott was off to a hot start in 2020, but suffered a season-ending ankle injury in Week 5 of that season. He returned to the team in 2021 and totaled 4,449 passing yards, 37 touchdowns and 10 interceptions while leading Dallas to an 11-5 record. Dallas’ 11-win season represents the Cowboys’ highest win total since Prescott’s rookie year when the team went 13-3. While ranking seventh in the league in passing yards and air yards (4,820), Prescott also proved to be one of the most accurate passers in the league. His True Completion Percentage of 74.0-percent ranked No. 4, while his 54.9 QBR was good for No. 9 in the league. Prescott finished the year with 76 deep balls and a 42.1-percent Deep Ball Completion Percentage. His receivers posted the fifth most drops in the league (34).
Prescott suffered a thumb fracture on his throwing hand in Week 1 of the 2022 season. He returned in Week 7 and posted middling numbers in most Advanced Metrics, including a 80.6 True Passer Rating (No. 22) and 88.6 EPA (No. 12), while playing less than 12 full games during the regular season. He continued to be an effective downfield passer with a 6.3 Deep Ball Accuracy Rating (No. 9), but also led the league with a 3.8-percent interception rate. Prescott had another proficient season as a passer in 2023, finishing No. 2 in True Passer Rating and compiling 4,516 yards passing and 36 touchdowns. He fueled one of the top passing offenses in the league, helping CeeDee Lamb to a WR1 overall finish in fantasy PPG.
