A season ago, Cincinnati Bengals fans watched Joe Burrow have the greatest single season of any quarterback in franchise history, only to see their team miss out on the postseason due to a poor defensive unit.
Sadly for Dallas Cowboys fans, they're witnessing something similar through the first four weeks of this 2025 campaign. Dak Prescott is easily playing some of the best football of his 10-year career but only has a 1-2-1 record to show for it because the Dallas defense has been absolutely dreadful, as Matt Eberflus' unit has allowed the most total yards (420.5) and the second-most points (33.0) per game through these first four weeks.
Prescott, meanwhile, has led a Cowboys offense that ranks first in total yards (404.4) and fifth in scoring (28.5), while he himself ranks second in both completion percentage (72.9) and passing yards (1,119). He also owns the second-highest overall PFF grade of any quarterback in the league at 91.2.
Prescott was particularly impressive a week ago in the Cowboys' wild 40-40 tie with the Green Bay Packers, who entered the game with the NFL's top-rated defense, completing 31 of 40 passes for 319 yards with three touchdowns and zero interceptions, while accounting for a fourth touchdown on the ground. And with that performance, combined with everything else he's done this season, even his biggest haters have to be impressed.
Dak Prescott is finally being recognized for the incredible talent that he's always possessed
In a recent YouTube Shorts video, which you can view in its entirety above, Zac Lee of The Landry Hat podcast said the quiet part out loud about Dak's dynamic start to the season, noting how he's being recognized for his play, not for the star that sits on the side of his helmet.
"The discourse around Dak Prescott as a top quarterback in this league has always been centered around him playing for the Dallas Cowboys, but for once, it feels like the conversation is actually revolving around his talent because Dak should be in your early MVP favorites with the way that he's been playing."
Now, is Prescott going to actually win NFL MVP if the Cowboys miss the playoffs for the second straight year? Absolutely not. Sure, he could finish in the top five, just as Burrow finished fourth for the Bengals last season.
But if the Dallas defense can improve even a little bit as the season progresses and the Cowboys can get some wins and get themselves into the postseason, Prescott will undoubtedly have to at least be in the conversation if he continues to play at the level we've seen over this first month, just as he was two years ago when he finished as the runner-up to Lamar Jackson.
The Cowboys have a pair of very winnable road games against the New York Jets and Carolina Panthers over the next two weeks, and if Dak can get Dallas over .500 with a pair of victories, that would obviously go a long way in getting America's Team back on track.
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