Cowboys considering not playing Dak Prescott during preseason

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dak prescott — Jason Parkhurst-USA TODAY Sports

Although the Cowboys are overhauling their offense for the season, Mike McCarthy may keep everything status quo in the preseason. The coach probably won’t send Dak Prescott for any snaps during the three exhibition games.

McCarthy said this Saturday as the Cowboys continued preseason camp in Oxnard, Calif. Now, Dallas diehards may not find this unusual. After all, Dak Prescott hasn’t played an exhibition game since 2019. And he’s getting older, too. Prescott turned 30 last Saturday. Why risk an errant hit possibly taking out the most important player on the team?

“We talked about it,” McCarthy told reporters. “I haven’t made a decision. I’m leaning towards not. If I had to bet, I’d bet on no. I always felt that decision goes deeper than just the quarterback and where you’re at on offense.”

Now, past decisions to keep Prescott out of the preseason were dictated by the quarterback’s injuries. Back in 2021, Prescott was coming off a severe leg injury he suffered from the season before. A year ago, he hurt his right (throwing) arm. You can’t risk that.

So McCarthy says he’s leaning no. McCarthy took over play-calling duties for the season after the Cowboys parted ways with offensive coordinator Kellen Moore. Dallas’ passing game is expected to use more elements of the vintage West Coast offense. So expect some ball control via shorter routes and a quicker tempo.

Cowboy fans could see a ton of Will Grier at quarterback during the preseason if Mike McCarthy opts to keep Dak Prescott on the sidelines. (Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)

Prescott already revealed that McCarthy will be an aggressive play caller.

“We’ve got so many playmakers. He wants to get those guys the ball,” Dak Prescott said a week ago during an interview with the NFL Network. “Get it to them fast, in open space. Get it out quick. I think all of that will allow more points to come and guys like Turp (Kavontae Turpin) and CeeDee (Lamb) and Brandin Cooks, Michael Gallup, Tony Pollard, for me to distribute the ball and let them do what they do best.”

So we’re guessing McCarthy doesn’t believe he needs to get the play-calling kinks out with his starting quarterback in preseason. Brian Schottenheimer, Dallas’ new OC, also raved about the head coach’s play-calling skills.

“Quite honestly, he’s a hell of a play-caller,” Schottenheimer said. “He’s aggressive, he’s confident. We want to play with an attacking scheme. You’re gonna see that.”

We’ll just have to wait until September to see how it works with Dak Prescott. The Cowboys open their preseason game schedule next Saturday at home against Jacksonville. Cowboys fans probably will see a ton of Will Grier and Cooper Rush rather than Dak Prescott.