“That’s hard to do, to have those kind of games,” Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones told reporters after a historically dominant win over the New York Giants. “I think I’m pushing close to 700 games in the NFL, this is hard to accomplish.” Jones’ reaction to the Cowboys’ 49-17 win over the Giants is relatable. Everyone who tuned into the game witnessed an absolute beatdown between what seemed a clash between teams belonging to different leagues.
Just consider this: The Cowboys outgained the Giants by 468 yards today, the largest total yardage difference in the NFL in 44 years, per Andrew Siciliano. That’s before the 80s! The game also led Jerry Jones to inadvertently hand head coach Mike McCarthy the biggest compliment he could receive through nine games of running the Cowboys’ offense.
“(Dak Prescott) is playing as good as I’ve ever seen him play,” Jones added via The Athletic’s Jon Machota. “He’s playing with confidence, but knowledge of the offense. He’s playing in sync with his coaching. As good as I’ve seen him play.”
For Jones to say that about Dak in McCarthy’s first year calling the plays in Dallas is a massive compliment. We’ve known Prescott is a very good quarterback for a while now. But we’re entering a new territory based on the level he’s played at as of late. The kind of run that was rare with Kellen Moore or Scott Linehan before McCarthy’s takeover.
Since that Week 5 loss in San Francisco, it appears the offense has featured him and CeeDee Lamb and they’ve taken that chance and run with it. On Sunday, Prescott dealt touchdowns to four different players and ran for another one himself. He passed for 404 yards. “It was definitely the plan by coach Mike to air it out,” Jones claimed.
And by the way, Cowboys fans who are paying attention to how well their quarterback is playing lately will probably agree with Jones. Per Ben Baldwin’s quarterback efficiency composite rankings (EPA + CPOE), Prescott ranks as the third best this season and ranks first since Week 6. His day against the Giants, per advanced analytics, was close to perfect and that’s even with an interception that proved to be very costly in EPA numbers.
Oh my dear heavens… it’s beautiful pic.twitter.com/BNcIN2o2jO
— Joey Ickes (@JoeyIckes) November 13, 2023
Since the bye week, McCarthy’s offense has drastically evolved. We’re seeing much more motion and creative formations, Lamb is being featured as a true No. 1 wide receiver, and Dak Prescott is using his legs. But most importantly: The offense is prioritizing the pass.
While we’ve criticized the Cowboys’ head coach for several reasons since he arrived in 2020, getting the best out of Prescott as a play-caller recently is special and should not be overlooked. Since Week 6, he’s been proving the Cowboys right about making him the offensive architect. Here’s hoping he keeps it up.
