The Dallas Cowboys secured a historic 40-0 win against the New York Giants in their regular-season opener.
There was not much to nitpick about the game, considering the 40-point win was the second-largest margin of victory in a season opener in team history. The first was back in 1968 when the team beat the Lions 59-13.
The only “loss” of the game on the Cowboys’ end was the time of procession. The Cowboys had the ball for 26:32, compared to the Giants, who had it for 33:28.
Prescott was 13 of 24 in passing attempts with a 72.0 rating, racking up 143 yards. Tony Pollard ran for two touchdowns, and KaVontae Turpin took another rush to the end zone.
Was This Game a Statement to Dak Prescott?
When Prescott was asked what statement this game made, he was quick to say, “It’s the first game.”
“That’s y’all’s jobs to write whatever statement it needs to be. For us, it’s about not getting ahead of ourselves, continuing to stay disciplined, show the discipline not only that we did through these four quarters, but taking that and making sure we use that in our preparation throughout this week and then moving forward to next week going home against another New York team, another good team,” said Prescott.
So, he acknowledges that although this was a rare win, they can’t get ahead of themselves.
Special Teams and Defense Set the Tone Early
Prescott said it all started with special teams and the blocked kick by Juanyeh Thomas that led to Noah Igbinoghene’s touchdown.
The quarterback discussed how this led to the defense creating turnovers, giving the team the early lead and allowing the defense to “go feast” even more.
“I’ve talked about it all spring to training camp, understanding the pass rush that we’re going against at practice and just watching that come alive against another team, another quarterback, was exciting,” he said.
Fine-Tuning the Offense With Mike McCarthy
All eyes were on the Cowboys’ offense during the game and how they fine-tuned the miscommunication issues that plagued them last season.
Prescott was asked how the game went, with Mike McCarthy calling the plays for the first time in a real-game scenario.
Prescott understood McCarthy’s flow and tempo within the craft of calling the game, but most of all, he understands “the why” now.
Prescott Recounts 49-yard Bomb to CeeDee Lamb
Prescott mentioned the playmakers within the offense who have speed and need to get the ball out in space to make big plays.
“That’s something that you’re going to see this year from us. I don’t want to say featuring those guys more but getting those guys that deserve the ball in space as much as we can knowing that they’re great guys to make guys miss and create explosive plays,” stated Prescott.
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He was asked about CeeDee Lamb and the 49-yard pass on third down. Prescott smiled and said, “Any pass to CeeDee [Lamb] is going to consist of that.”
But he explained that it was a play call based on what they anticipated they would get from the Giants on third down.