OXNARD, Calif. 鈥 Nearly nine years ago, a 23-year-old Dak Prescott took the field for his first NFL action in Week 1 of the preseason against the Los Angeles Rams.
Now 32 and heading into his 10th season as the Cowboys' offensive leader, Prescott looks back on that opportunity as one that set the table for the beginning of his career.
"For me, it was just a moment of hard work, preparation and a lot of things just paying off," Prescott said. "It was me just trying to take advantage of my opportunity. Right there at that point, Kellen [Moore] had already been hurt so I knew how important it was for me to go out there and show that one, I can be the backup if they need me to be, but I can play and I can play in this offense."
Prescott showed that he could lead the Cowboys offense that day, going 10 for 12 in the air for 139 yards and two touchdowns. He took it a step further in that rookie season and won Offensive Rookie of the Year and Pro Bowl honors.
On Tuesday, Prescott faced the same organization he started his career against in a joint practice. It wasn't as exciting as his NFL debut back in August of 2016, but there were still positives to take away from it.
"I thought it was a good scrimmage," Prescott said. "It was one of those ones where I left not feeling great about it, but you look on film, there's a lot more good than I thought. It was one of those things if we had actually schemed them, if we actually had a chance to game plan, I would have felt fantastic with the results."
More than anything, it's always good to go up against another team after weeks of battling your own teammates.
"Things are clicking, that was fun to just compete against somebody else鈥" Prescott said. "Seeing a new secondary, new set of DBs, and we did some good things out there. Still left a pass or two out there鈥 it felt somewhat like, I guess you could say a game鈥"
"We're definitely heading in the right direction. The connection between me and those guys, I don't think it's something to even worry about and it's something that's just going to continue to grow."
Speaking of growth, Prescott has seen that from his new teammate and second-year quarterback Joe Milton. After coming to Dallas in the offseason via trade with a lot to learn, slowly but surely Prescott is seeing Milton connect the dots.
"The biggest thing that I've seen him take steps from and something I push him is just the time clock of playing every play and snaps like a real game," Prescott said. "Whether it's throwing it away or getting to the next play, get into your next read."
As Milton heads into his second preseason and is likely going to get a majority of the reps at quarterback, Prescott's advice to him and all young players heading into their first NFL action is the same.
"Prepare, prepare, prepare," Prescott said. "The main reason I say that is because you've got to go play free. If you go out there and you're thinking too much or 'Man, this is the NFL. I've got to make this, I've got to do that,' you've got to do that regardless of what level it's in. That's your job, that's what you've been asked to do鈥 don't put more pressure on it because it's the NFL now or a job is on the line."
Prescott hasn't played in the preseason since 2019. Although he doesn't know if this year will be different given how long he's been out with an injury, he'll be ready if he's called upon in the next couple of weeks.
"I don't think I'm playing in this game, I'm not sure though," Prescott said. "But I can tell you that I'd be ready to, if it was this one, the next one, at any point. It's not necessarily my call, especially not having played since last October. I'm all for playing."
