Dallas Cowboys have holes to fill but QB isn’t one of them

The fans of all 32 NFL teams are more excited than a toddler in a candy store right now as their favorite teams prepare for the 2023 NFL draft tonight, and the Dallas Cowboys fan base is just as excited as they continue to make mock drafts up till the last minute.

The teams most excited about tonight’s draft are the teams in need of a franchise quarterback, hoping they will draft the next Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, or Patrick Mahomes.

It is a good position to be in if the team has the #1 overall pick like the Carolina Panthers do in this year’s draft, but on the flip side, it is a bad position to be in because teams are pinning their future on a quarterback that could be really good or a complete bust. The latter situation being the main reason why teams secure their quarterbacks to a long-term deal once they have found one.

The Dallas Cowboys fan base have a franchise quarterback in Dak Prescott, but depending on who you talk to, some fans are ready to trade Dak for an unknown signal caller that only exists in their make believe minds. They blame Dak for all of team’s failures and it appears as if they blame him for the Dallas Cowboys 28-year Super Bowl drought, too.

The Dallas Cowboys has plenty of positions to fulfill in the NFL draft but the need to draft a franchise quarterback is not one of them, at least not for several seasons.

To the surprise of many (myself included), the Dallas Cowboys achieved something all teams desire with their franchise quarterback. Once the Grinch from Green Bay (Aaron Rodgers) was traded away to the New York Jets, Dak Prescott instantly became the longest tenured starting quarterback in the NFL with one team (2023 will be eight seasons). Last season, Rodgers and Derek Carr were the only other quarterbacks that had been starting with the same team for at least six seasons.

Dak is a top-10 qb

Entering his eighth season as the quarterback of “America’s Team”, the media has put Dak under the most pressure ever to at least make an appearance in the NFCCG (National Football Conference Championship Game) because of the parity in the NFC and because pressure comes with being the franchise quarterback of “America’s Team”.

Even with the enormous scrutiny put on Dak to succeed this upcoming season, the Dallas Cowboys front office has taken solace in knowing they have a really good quarterback for the foreseeable future and there is no need to draft his successor, despite Dak having a career high in interceptions (17) last season.

Dak being the longest tenured starting quarterback in the league with one team says more about Dak’s success as a winning quarterback because he’s outlasted two quarterbacks that were drafted #1 and #2 overall in his 2016 draft class: Jared Goff #1 (traded to the Detroit Lions) and Carson Wentz #2 (who was released by the Washington Commanders, his third team).

In other words, Dak proved to be better than his contemporaries and clearly the best quarterback in the entire 2016 draft class.

In seven seasons, Dak has thrown for 24,943 yards, 166 touchdowns, 65 interceptions, averaged 7.6 yards pass, and has a pass completion rate of 66.6 percent. In addition, Dak owns a 61-36 record in 97 games, won three NFC East division titles, and Dak reigns supreme against the other quarterbacks in his division because he boosts a stunning 27-7 record in the NFC East.

Basically, Dak owns that division. He’s their “Daddy”

To give you an example of Dak’s superiority in those 34 divisional games, Dak has thrown 60 touchdowns against 18 interceptions with a passer rating of 101.4. Constantly whipping your divisional opponents is the number one priority for any team because it allows your team to win the division and enter the tournament.

Dak is 2-4 in the playoffs but that blame is not solely on him because Dak has balled out in most of his playoff losses except the recent San Francisco game where we saw Dak threw two interceptions.

Speaking of those uncharacteristically interceptions by Dak, fans and critics alike would be wise to look at this video by former Los Angeles Rams head coach, Mike Martz. The offensive guru breaks down each of Dak’s 2022 interception. You will walk away with why Dak’s interceptions were so high and walk away with a better appreciation for Dak being the Dallas Cowboys quarterback.

Martz is unbiased in his critique because the Super Bowl-winning coach (won Super Bowl XXXIV as Rams offensive coordinator) has absolutely no ties to Dallas. And for the naysayers that are screaming loudly about Dak having the most interceptions from week 7 to the end of last season, I can scream louder and say that Dak also threw the most touchdowns in that span, too (23).

That means Dak threw more than touchdowns than 2x Super Bowl-winning, NFL MVP Mahomes! Opps!

sidenote: Throughout Dallas Cowboys history, this proud franchise has always had a premier quarterback playing under center. In the 60’s it was Don Meredith,  the 70’s it was Roger Staubauch (he beat out a really good qb in Craig Morton), the 80’s it was Danny White, the 90’s it was Troy Aikman, from 06-15 it was Romo, and from 2016 to now, it is Dak. This organization has never dealt with long periods of a quarterback drought. Plus, Dak set the franchise passing record with 37 td’s.

I am not absolving Dak from his interceptions but all of them were not his fault, and that is another reason why the front office traded for Brandin Cooks because they knew Dak needed another weapon to pair with CeeDee Lamb.

Since the critics use Dak’s interceptions as his ceiling, I have to point out the positive element in this scenario. Outside of CeeDee, Dak was throwing to a group of wideouts who were ranked last in the league in separation and ranked high in dropped/ passes.

However, Dak still threw 23 touchdown passes and went 8-3 after recovering from a hand injury. Also, Dak threw four touchdown passes and beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31-14-finally sending Tom Brady in retirement for good.

The fact Dak could still supersede with all of those interceptions and take the blame shows leadership and a quarterback that is driven to make amends in 2023. Dallas’ front office understands this more than anyone else.

So, instead of being negative and listening to those annoying critics on ESPN and other platforms, just be thankful to have a franchise quarterback because you could be a fan of the Houston Texans and praying for a quarterback to be half as good as Dak!

Count your blessings. Leave your comments below.