Dak Prescott hoping to 'gift' win to Mike McCarthy after health scare
The Dallas Cowboys continue preparation for their Sunday Night Football matchup against the 10-2 Philadelphia Eagles without head coach Mike McCarthy this week. After the head coach’s emergency appendectomy on Wednesday, he’s been able to participate somewhat with phone calls and watching film but the on-field prep has been left to coordinators Dan Quinn, Brian Schottenheimer and John Fassel. On Friday, he was finally able to return to the team facility.
On Thursday, Dak Prescott told reporters that the team doesn’t need McCarthy’s health situation to motivate them this week. The Cowboys are eager to show the head coach that they have the discipline to adequately prepare in the absence of his watchful eye.
“We’re just glad he’s healthy, at the end of the day, but this week has enough motivation and things entailed within — I guarantee you Mike would say the same thing,” Prescott said, via DallasCowboys.com. “That’s why I alluded to him being pissed off probably, but this team — the discipline that we have, the emotional intelligence that we have — we understand he’s gotta take care of that. That’s part of being a human.
“That’s a credit to the way he coaches us when he tells us to take care of the things away from here, so that when we come in we can all focus on the same goal. Everybody understands what this week means.”
Given everything McCarthy has been through this week, Prescott wants to “gift” the head coach a nice, big win on Sunday. A win against the Eagles would certainly be a nice consolation prize for McCarthy after the loss of his appendix this week.
“It’ll be a good gift to him,” Prescott said. “When we get this one like,’ You got that taken care of, and here’s your big dub.'”
Prescott focused on final stretch of regular season
Over the past six weeks, the Cowboys, the offense in particular, have looked much improved and more consistent. The momentum is kicking in at the perfect time with the Eagles rematch coming on Sunday, followed by games against the Bills, Dolphins and Lions.
The schedule doesn’t let up there either. They have to wrap things up with a divisional matchup against the Commanders in Week 18, too. It’s not going to be easy to keep the winning streak going but Prescott believes the team is ready for the challenge.
“We’re getting better and that’s the main and important goal, but what’s in front of us is everything that we want and want to accomplish, and it starts with this stretch in December leading into January — to take that momentum into the playoffs and go for what the real goal is,” Prescott said. “It’s just continuously about building and making sure these guys [are] focused, and the details and discipline matter more than ever.
“And the communication has to be at an all-time high. … From both sides of the ball and being complimentary of one another. … It’s about understanding that this is when we really have to count on our brotherhood and everything we’ve built, for these moments ahead of us.”