Cowboys’ Dak Prescott nearly flawless after early interception
LANDOVER, Md. — Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott entered Sunday’s game without an interception in 164 passes in six games against the Washington Redskins.
Chris Berman and Tom Jackson recap the weekend’s games with extended highlights and analysis. Watch on ESPN+
On Sunday, Prescott was intercepted on his sixth pass in the first quarter, but after that he was virtually flawless in the Cowboys’ 31-21 win against the Redskins.
After the turnover, Prescott completed all but two of his passes and threw touchdown passes to Devin Smith, Jason Witten and Amari Cooper. Prescott did not miss a pass in the second half of the game either, on his way to tying a personal best with 18 straight completions.
In case you’re wondering, Brandon Weeden holds the team record with 21 straight completions.
Clearly, Prescott is no Weeden.
Prescott finished with 26-of-30 for 269 yards with three touchdowns and also ran for 60 yards, including a career-long 42-yarder. Through two games, he has completed a ridiculous 82.2% of his passes.
Prescott’s seven touchdown passes through two games are tied for the most in Cowboys history. In 1966, Don Meredith opened the season with seven touchdown passes in two games. Prescott did not throw his seventh touchdown pass last season until the sixth game of the year.
The Cowboys have said they will be an Ezekiel Elliott-led offense, but through two games Prescott is changing perceptions about what not only the passing game can be, but what he can be as the quarterback.
Everything you need this week:
• Full schedule » | Standings »
• Depth charts for every team »
• Transactions and top news »
• Projected 2020 NFL draft order »
More NFL coverage »
Promising trend: Witten has touchdown catches in consecutive games for the second time in his past two seasons. He had three in 2017, his last season with the Cowboys before his one-year retirement to ESPN’s Monday Night Football booth. It is the fourth time he and Prescott have connected for scores in back-to-back games since 2016. Witten’s snaps might not be the same as they had been in his first 15 seasons, but he figures to be a big part of the red zone offense. He now has 70 career touchdowns, just three off Dez Bryant’s franchise record.
Pivotal play: Things were not going well for the Cowboys early in the second quarter and trailing by a touchdown. DeMarcus Lawrence was flagged for roughing the passer, negating a third-down chance. Antwaun Woods jumped offside and was hurt on the next play. On third-and-11 from the Dallas 48, Tyrone Crawford dropped Case Keenum for a 13-yard loss to force a Washington punt. The Cowboys offense finally woke up with scores on their next four possessions, but they started it off with a 97-yard drive after Crawford’s sack that ended in a 51-yard touchdown catch by Devin Smith to tie the score. Crawford, whose work goes largely unnoticed, was limited during the week of practice because of hip issues but he changed the momentum of the game with his first sack of the season.
Silver lining: It didn’t take Elliott long to get up to speed. Just six practices, two in pads, and a regular-season game. After being mindful of his work in the season opener because of his summer holdout, the Cowboys used Elliott in 28 of 30 first-half snaps. And after giving him a breather in the third quarter, they went back to Elliott in the fourth and he clinched the game with a 2-yard touchdown run with 5:07 to play. He finished with 111 yards rushing.