Run Dak, Run! Prescott Secret Weapon in Cowboys 'Texas Coast Offense'
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott has yet another 12-win season under his belt. Does he also have another way to win on his ... tool belt?
With head coach Mike McCarthy now taking over the play-calling duties, there will be some notable changes to how the Cowboys go about their business offensively next season.
In theory, less will be placed on Dak's shoulders with McCarthy's "Texas Coast Offense'' featuring more short, crisp passes that allow the skill position players to do their thing in open space.
But what it also might do is allow Prescott to utilize one of his most underrated yet dynamic weapons ... his legs.
Entering the league in 2016, Prescott, in his first three seasons, rushed for over 280 yards and six touchdowns in each year. Since 2020, he has rushed for just five touchdowns and has no more than 182 rushing yards in a season.
We have seen how dynamic Dak can be when he is used as a runner, and we can look no further than the Cowboys' demolition of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the playoffs last season to see what kind of damage Prescott can do with his legs.
Dak had seven carries for 24 yards and a touchdown. That might not seem like much, but it was the timing of those runs that broke the back of the Buccaneers' defense. Prescott also rushed at 5.5 yards a clip vs. the San Francisco 49ers a week later, as he totaled 22 yards on just four carries.
We have seen how effective Dak can be on bootlegs, and in McCarthy's new system, his mobility could be a valuable weapon if called upon.
Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers were on the move (as either runners or throwers on the run) in this offense in Green Bay. Same thing with Joe Montana and Steve Young before that in San Francisco. (Which, by the way, makes Young's "No Chance!'' rip job of the Cowboys' offense so confounding.)
With so many "what-ifs'' surrounding the Cowboys and Prescott offensively next season, the one thing that might just jump off the screen is his running ability. Now, there is some level of care that must be taken; the stiff-arm with his throwing hand is a bad idea. So is "fighting for every yard'' when discretion is valorous enough.
But Dak has done it before, and in "Big Mike's" Texas Coast Offense, we could be about to see Prescott utilize one of his best weapons - himself ... as the QB become an extension of the running game McCarthy wants to make a centerpiece of an attack capable of controlling the ball when needed.
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