Blogging The Boys
Notable headlines surrounding America’s team.
There are worse bets to make than trusting #4 to put up stats.
Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon gave reasons to believe Prescott could win the award despite these odds, pointing to his 2023 season as proof that Prescott can get the job done.
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott scrambles against the Atlanta Falcons in the third quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. / Brett Davis-Imagn Images
“For: Just a year ago, the highly-paid veteran led the league with 36 touchdown passes while posting a 105.6 passer rating as the MVP runner-up.” — Gagnon, Bleacher Report
Gagnon also had reasons to believe Prescott won’t be in the running, which include his injury history and the talent they have to face in the NFC East.
“Against: Prescott, who turns 32 this month, has missed large chunks of three of the last five seasons. His offensive line might also face major challenges on the edge, and the Cowboys have the second-lowest odds to win the NFC East. ” — Gagnon, Bleacher Report
Has Dallas invested enough in the trenches?
To somewhat stop the bleeding from the loss of Martin, the club signed Robert Jones, a full-time starter formerly of the Miami Dolphins. Jones hasn’t played at the level of Martin’s reputation at any point of his career, but Martin was nowhere near that standard in recent years either. Martin posted pedestrian Pro Football Focus grades in 2024, with a 65.2 overall and a 62.0 pass protection mark. Jones wasn’t that, with an overall grade of 56.1, but it’s not as big of a drop off as it would’ve been going from the Martin of 2022 and before. Jones comes to Dallas as a serviceable starter with some upside.
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Jones has 30 starts under his belt acros his four NFL seasons, including all 17 from his final year with the Dolphins. On the outside, it initially appeared Jones would be in competition with ERFA re-signing Brock Hoffman, giving him more money than any other free-agent on offense, $3.75 million, but that was before Dallas spent the No. 12 overall selection on Tyler Booker from Alabama.
Now, Jones is in competition to be a game-day active backup, with outside training camp competition from fellow free agent signings Saahdiq Charles and Hakeem Adeniji, neither of whom played in 2024. Jones’ age indicates his best days are ahead of him, as do his small-school background and the general notion that it takes a while for a mid-tier UDFA to acclimate himself to the league before he can reach his full potential.
