Former Mississippi State standout Dak Prescott continues to shine at Dallas Cowboys training camp.
It appears that Prescott is the front-runner for the No. 2 spot on the quarterback depth chart when Dallas opens the season Sept. 11 at home against the New York Giants.
According to an article on CBS Sportsline Tuesday, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said Prescott’s play in two preseason games means the squad is “unquestionably” ending a search for a veteran quarterback to add to the roster. Not adding to the roster opens the door for Prescott to take over the No. 2 spot behind Tony Romo.
A year ago, Romo was injured and the team limped to a 1-11 record in his absence.
The quarterback situation got more cloudy when projected backup starter Kellen Moore suffered a broken fibula on Aug. 2 in the first week of camp.
That has left the reserve role to be shared by Prescott and Jameill Showers during camp.
Strong showings in each of the Cowboys’ first two games has only bolstered the team’s confidence in Prescott.
“My mindset is I want to be a starter for this organization one day, and a starter in this league for a long time,” said Prescott after the Cowboys’ 41-14 win over the Miami Dolphins Friday night. “I’m going to continue to push myself and make myself the best as I can each and every day.”
In two preseason games, Prescott has completed 22 of 27 passes for 338 yards with four touchdowns. On the ground, he has run five times for 41 yards with two more touchdowns. His quarterback rating of 156.2 through two games is the best in the league.
Coach Jason Garrett told the Dallas Cowboys official blog site that Prescott had been a surprise during camp. He credits Prescott with “a calming presence in the huddle” and noted that he was “not rattled by several situations” he has faced in the preseason.
Being a dual threat is what made Prescott a Heisman trophy candidate and helped lead Mississippi State to No. 1 in the nation for five weeks during the 2014 season.
Prescott is still earning his stripes after being chosen in the fourth round in the April draft. First-year players do not dress in the main locker room area, so Prescott had to be made available to the media by special request on Monday.
Typically, preseason games are difficult to read in the NFL. Teams have different agendas and may play certain starters for longer periods of time than others. Some veteran players do not put forth maximum effort to prevent injury as well. Thus, most in the league are still taking a wait-and-see approach on Prescott.
Prescott has downplayed the notion that his success has come against “vanilla defenses.”
“That’s on them if they want to throw vanilla or rocky road or whatever they want to throw at me,” Prescott told the Dallas Morning News. “It really has no [bearing] on what I do. I just go out there and try to concentrate on our game plan and play my best.”
Prescott and the Cowboys will next be in action Thursday with a 9 p.m. start against the Seattle Seahawks. The game will be shown nationally on the NFL Network.
Follow Dispatch sports writer Scott Walters on Twitter @dispatchscott
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
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