Philadelphia Eagles defense gives Dak Prescott a reality check
The reigning offensive rookie of the year had his biggest test of the season on Sunday night.
The Philadelphia Eagles are having quite the season. They just wrapped up their first game back since their Week 10 bye. They went on the road to play the Dallas Cowboys in what turned out to be a blowout 37-9 victory. Although a lot of the headlining stories were about the Cowboys missing players, the true headline was Dak Prescott versus Carson Wentz.
The two young quarterbacks entered the NFL in 2016. Wentz was a first-round pick, while Prescott had to wait until the fourth-round to be selected. Fortunately for Prescott, he entered onto a team that had plenty of talented veterans around him. Wentz on the other hand inherited a team with a rookie head coach and little to no talent in skilled positions.
Prescott clearly had the better rookie season in his 2016 rookie campaign. He was crowned as the offensive rookie of the year and clinched a first-round bye in the playoffs. Obviously, we know that the Cowboys did not advance to the NFC Championship in 2016. But the future looked bright for young Prescott.
Dak vs Carson 2017:
A lot has changed for both teams over the course of an offseason. The Eagles went from a 7-9 record season to 9-1 by Week 11 of the 2017 season. The Cowboys, on the other hand, started the season off at 5-5 after a loss to the Eagles on Sunday night. The Eagles took care of the Cowboys in Dallas, giving Dak Prescott his biggest challenge of the season.
Prescott has had his fair share of struggles this season, but nothing like we saw against the Eagles. Clearly, he was heading into a divisional rivalry against one of the best defenses in the league. Without star running back Ezekiel Elliott and left tackle Tyron Smith, Dak had plans to prove that he could put the team on his back and win. But the Eagles had different plans for the young quarterback.
A Reality Check…
Prescott has proven that he could play in the NFL. But without his key weapons surrounding him, it was difficult for the young quarterback to make things happen. In four quarters of football at home against the Eagles, the Cowboys failed to score a single touchdown. To make matters worse for the enemies of the birds, Prescott was responsible for turning the ball over four times.
It is quite obvious that the pressure of the Eagles defensive front got in the head of the quarterback. He forced interceptions to Ronald Darby and Malcolm Jenkins while getting another pass tipped into the hands of Rodney McLeod for a total of three interceptions. By the time the Eagles were ready to put the game away, rookie defensive end, Derek Barnett got his hands on Dak for the second time forcing a fumble that would go for a touchdown.
The Future of the East:
Things got so rough for Prescott on Sunday night that they had to put in the backup, Cooper Rush to avoid any injury. At that point, the Cowboys knew they were waving the white flag and giving up any hope of coming back and winning. Prescott heads into Week 12 coming off of a two-game losing streak, which is something he was not used to since last season.
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The dominant defensive display that the Eagles put on proves that they are truly elite. Prescott will need to get used to seeing this tough unit because he will be seeing them for many years to come. As the Eagles advance on, both franchises have finally confirmed one thing, the Eagles defense exposed Dak Prescott. That is not to say that Prescott can’t bounce back, though. But one thing is for sure, the Eagles may have Dak Prescott’s number for the future, which could mean great things for the Eagles and the future of the division.