Blogging The Boys
Dak Prescott wants big things for the Cowboys this season.
FRISCO, Texas – The Dallas Cowboys have missed the playoffs in each of the last two seasons.
A record of 14-19-1 across that time span is evidently not where Dak Prescott and his teammates want to be. Heading into a 2026 season with a new-look defense and almost all of a top offense in the league returning, Prescott views reaching the postseason as the bare minimum.
“It sucks,” Prescott said of not making the playoffs in the last two years. “Definitely. But we’re pushing. That’s our goal, that’s a minimum. When you have a team like this and they’ve done everything they have in the offseason, obviously we got to push and get better on offense, but when we know we’re already improving on defense, that’s the minimum. That’s everybody’s goal in here.”
Not that any motivation is needed to be able to achieve that goal, but Prescott is motivated by some of his teammates that play at a high level, but still haven’t played a snap of NFL playoff football yet in their careers.
“To hear [Quinnen Williams] say he’s never been to the playoffs, that’s what you want to do it for,” Prescott said. “And that’s what I told him. I said, “‘I’ll get you the playoffs. I’m going to need you to go help us win it.'”
If the Cowboys do reach the playoffs, another player Prescott will lean on to help them win is wide receiver George Pickens, who has played in two career playoff games with Pittsburgh but has yet to win one.
There’s plenty to dissect from Cowboys’ minicamp.
Don’t forget the other first-round pick
Cowboys rookie outside linebacker Malachi Lawrence doesn’t mind being in the shadow as the “other” first-round pick in Dallas. He said that’s a comfortable place for him, dating to college, or even during the draft process, as he rose in public opinion to eventually becoming a first-round pick.
“It really doesn’t phase me,” Lawrence said.
And while Downs has earned a lot of the hype he’s received, Lawrence has earned some recognition, too. Lawrence and Rashan Gary were the team’s first outside linebackers on the first team defensive snap of minicamp. It’s hard to truly evaluate pass rushers in minicamp because there are no pads and they want quarterbacks to be kept clean, but Lawrence’s speed was on display. That should be encouraging for Cowboys fans. The biggest question about Lawrence heading into his rookie season is whether he can harness the 4.52 40-yard dash speed and the 1.59 10-yard split he showed at the combine. He didn’t always during his time in college. It looks like he’s starting...
