A year ago, Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott used his status as a fourth-round pick as motivation. This year, repeated talk of a sophomore slump has become the fuel for his determination.
“It’s just allowing that chip on my shoulder to grow,” Prescott said of the chatter in a Thursday afternoon visit to PFT Live. “It doesn’t really affect me. If anything it’s just motivation to get out there to show and prove people the work I’ve put in and how this offense has been coming together.”
The offense will be different than it was a year ago. Two of the five starting spots on the offensive line are changing, and running back Ezekiel Elliott is facing a six-game suspension. Prescott can’t control the latter, and he won’t try to control the former.
“My job is to trust those guys,” he said of the new members of the offensive line. “I know they hold themselves accountable to their positions and those other three guys on the offensive line hold them accountable as a whole to an offense and this team as well. Those guys are just getting those reps . . . and they’re gonna be ready to go Week One.”
So how will Prescott prepare for Week One with uncertainty as to whether Elliott will be available?
“I leave that up to the coaches,” Prescott said. “For me it’s about going in there doing the best I can with whoever’s in there at running back. The offensive line, they’ll be ready to go open up holes for whoever it may be. . . . We’ll just leave that up to the coaches. We’ll see what happens with that and we’ll be ready to go.”
The full interview with Prescott will be ready to go during Friday’s PFT Live, which airs on NBC Sports Radio, SiriusXM 205, NBCSportsRadio.com, and the NBC Sports Radio app from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. ET.