Are Dak's Problems Mostly Mental or Physical?

[Ken]

Not even close.As far as football knowledge goes,if it makes you feel better to believe that, then go right ahead.I don’t have to google stats like you, because I watch the games and analyze.You see a real football person thinks beyond just your googled stats , like for example,completion %.is more than just a total % and sign of accuracy.You’re too stupid to see past your blessed stats.” Oh, but he’s in top whatever in completion %, he must be accurate.” A real football person can see that he’s not.Have fun w/ your keyboard instead of actually learning something.Good riddance.

To address this and your previous post where he throws short all the time....

Intended Air Yards is a stat that is tracked....just so you know.

Justin Herbert- 7.6 ypa Season Comp %- 65.9
Aaron Rodgers- 7.7 ypa- Season Comp %- 68.9
Pat Mahomes- 7.3 ypa- Season Comp %- 66.3


Dak Prescott- 7.7 YPA- Season Comp %- 68.8


You were saying?

 

[RonnieT24]

don't get me wrong, Dak has to make improvements. his issues are often with his poor footwork. he also has to improve his mental aspect of the game. he has gotten better, but not to the point fans expect him to as he consistently gets compared to Rodgers, Brady, Wilson, Burrow, etc......and I am first to admit he is not them. he is not elite, but doesn't mean he is not good or you can't win with him.

but the part that's funny, is all these guru's can never provide any measures, any stats, anything to point to their views, its the "eye test". when they talk about, lets say inaccurate throws that don't allow for YAC, but then you tell them, Dallas was 9th in YAC, they dismiss you as being a stat nerd and not understanding football.

the one thing, that I do agree with them is Dak has to play better against bette teams. he is very up and down against those type opponents. if he is more consistent, then he will be better naturally.

The thing that is puzzling about this is that early in his career Dak was at his absolute best against the better teams.. Those wins at Green Bay and at Pittsburgh stick out and at home against Cincy. The butt whuppins he put on the Ravens, KC at home the following year.. Remember how he lit up Philly (twice) the year after they won the Super Bowl and were still a VERY good team especially on defense? He did the same to the Rams that year. Dak's struggles against "good" teams coincided with the day Kellen Moore became OC. Garrett and Linehan had him ready to rock against everybody.. Moore seems to only be able to "dial it up" against chumps. At some point Dak himself needs to take the reigns away from "Yards are Yards" or his career will be wasted. I don't know if Dak has it in him to do it but that's his only chance until Moore gets hired away or fired.

The footwork thing is a real issue because his mechanics fall out of alignment when the footwork is off. No one will ever convince me that a calf injury on the same leg that was snapped on the turf the previous year didn't get in the way of his footwork at the end of the year... It cost him the rhythm as a passer he had been putting on display before that injury and he just never was able to get it back. With all that behind him, I expect him to come out on fire this year just like he did last year. And as long as his body doesn't betray him, I expect him to do it all year.. even against "good teams."

 

[RonnieT24]

To address this and your previous post where he throws short all the time....

Intended Air Yards is a stat that is tracked....just so you know.

Justin Herbert- 7.6 ypa Season Comp %- 65.9
Aaron Rodgers- 7.7 ypa- Season Comp %- 68.9
Pat Mahomes- 7.3 ypa- Season Comp %- 66.3


Dak Prescott- 7.7 YPA- Season Comp %- 68.8


You were saying?

These numbers mean nothing. You have to use the eye test. If I watch a pass being completed but I don't like how the QB threw it, then that pass doesn't count. Even if it turns into a touchdown the QB will receiver no credit because he didn't throw it how I would like for him to throw it. <~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 100% sarcasm.

 

[buybuydandavis]

Unfortunately I think we have a double whammy situation with Dak, i.e., he has both mental and physical problems. On the one hand he has weird mechanics and this results in worm burners and passes sailing over the outstretched arms of receivers. On the other hand, his inaccuracy has clearly affected his confidence, to the point he never attempts difficult passes especially in clutch situations, culminating in that wonderfully comic slide to end last season.
What do the rest of the zoners think?

You break your ankle and your foundation for throws is screwed for a while. He regressed last year. It was expected by anyone with any sense. With a full healthy offseason to train, his proprioception should come back.

 

[RonnieT24]

You break your ankle and your foundation for throws is screwed for a while. He regressed last year. It was expected by anyone with any sense. With a full healthy offseason to train, his proprioception should come back.

Whole heartedly agree. What gives this take credence was how well he played before he hurt the calf. His footwork was on point and his accuracy was off the charts. He was literally throwing the ball as well as anyone in the league. Kurt Warner and Troy Aikman repeatedly stated as much as did other experts. When he came back from the calf he was simply off kilter a lot of the time. Maybe it was even 100% healthy but the damage was done. He was like a golfer trying to correct his swing in the middle of a round. Sometimes it would look and feel right.. and at others it would be off. And all of that rattled around in his head as he tried to work through it. I firmly believe that removing all of that noise from his offseason will get him back on track and hopefully he stays there. But we all know Dak is not as natural throwing the ball as some other guys and thus has to work that much harder to keep his mechanics straight. The injuries, especially the second one, robbed him of the ability to do so and the results speak for themselves.

 

[plasticman]

Roger Staubach could come out of retirement and be the highest rated passer if he faced the teams that Dak faced to get that rating.

Roger Staubach can still throw the ball, no argument here. He was Aaron Rodgers before there ever was an Aaron Rodgers.

Dak played against NFL teams and if they looked overwhelmed, Dak played a part in that.

I didn't notice any other team putting 56 on Washington or 51 on the Eagles or 44 on the Giants. If they were so easy then why didn't every team do what the Cowboys did to them. The Cowboys didn't just beat these teams, they high scored all three of them.

 

[RonnieT24]

Roger Staubach can still throw the ball, no argument here. He was Aaron Rodgers before there ever was an Aaron Rodgers.

Dak played against NFL teams and if they looked overwhelmed, Dak played a part in that.

I didn't notice any other team putting 56 on Washington or 51 on the Eagles or 44 on the Giants. If they were so easy then why didn't every team do what the Cowboys did to them. The Cowboys didn't just beat these teams, they high scored all three of them.

Yeah logical takes there. Clearly the Cowboys match up favorably with their division foes which is why the Cowboys were able to boat race them for the most part last season. People often forget that the first step to getting to the promised land is winning your division. So owning your division rivals is of huge value. That all done, the Cowboys now need to tweak what they have to be able to do the same to teams outside the division. Hopefully McCarthy is the man for the job.

 

[G2]

don't get me wrong, Dak has to make improvements. his issues are often with his poor footwork. he also has to improve his mental aspect of the game. he has gotten better, but not to the point fans expect him to as he consistently gets compared to Rodgers, Brady, Wilson, Burrow, etc......and I am first to admit he is not them. he is not elite, but doesn't mean he is not good or you can't win with him.

but the part that's funny, is all these guru's can never provide any measures, any stats, anything to point to their views, its the "eye test". when they talk about, lets say inaccurate throws that don't allow for YAC, but then you tell them, Dallas was 9th in YAC, they dismiss you as being a stat nerd and not understanding football.

the one thing, that I do agree with them is Dak has to play better against bette teams. he is very up and down against those type opponents. if he is more consistent, then he will be better naturally.

Dak reminded me of a QB that didn't practice being a QB for over a year.

 

[RonnieT24]

Dak reminded me of a QB that didn't practice being a QB for over a year.

Not in games 1-6 he didn't..

 

[G2]

Roger Staubach can still throw the ball, no argument here. He was Aaron Rodgers before there ever was an Aaron Rodgers.

Dak played against NFL teams and if they looked overwhelmed, Dak played a part in that.

I didn't notice any other team putting 56 on Washington or 51 on the Eagles or 44 on the Giants. If they were so easy then why didn't every team do what the Cowboys did to them. The Cowboys didn't just beat these teams, they high scored all three of them.

It's funny, Staubach is so competitive he would still take anyone on, lol.

 

[G2]

Not in games 1-6 he didn't..

Fair

 

[plasticman]

I never bought that Dak was "completely healed" from his devastating 2020 injury. I think an injury like that may heal to the point that Dak could compete but not to the point where he was before the injury.

I remember Michael Irvin coming back in the middle of the 1990 season from an injury the year before in 1989. However, it wasn't until the 1991 season that Irvin broke out.

I think Dak still had some hangover from that injury and it effected both his abilities and his stamina. Then when you add in the other offensive woes, they were nowhere near a peak at the end of the season.

 

[BoyzBlaster]

don't get me wrong, Dak has to make improvements. his issues are often with his poor footwork. he also has to improve his mental aspect of the game. he has gotten better, but not to the point fans expect him to as he consistently gets compared to Rodgers, Brady, Wilson, Burrow, etc......and I am first to admit he is not them. he is not elite, but doesn't mean he is not good or you can't win with him.

but the part that's funny, is all these guru's can never provide any measures, any stats, anything to point to their views, its the "eye test". when they talk about, lets say inaccurate throws that don't allow for YAC, but then you tell them, Dallas was 9th in YAC, they dismiss you as being a stat nerd and not understanding football.

the one thing, that I do agree with them is Dak has to play better against bette teams. he is very up and down against those type opponents. if he is more consistent, then he will be better naturally.

The idea that total YAC equates to accuracy is full of massive holes. It doesn't look so hot when you consider the team was 3rd in total receiving yards. This means Dallas' YAC/total receiving yards ratio was one of the worst in the league. I don't think you can use YAC to draw a conclusion about accuracy, but if you did it would suggest Dak is INACCURATE not accurate. Put another way, most QB's generate MORE YAC per passing yard than DAK, which suggests the opposite of what you think it does.

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

The idea that total YAC equates to accuracy is full of massive holes. It doesn't look so hot when you consider the team was 3rd in total receiving yards. This means Dallas' YAC/total receiving yards ratio was one of the worst in the league. I don't think you can use YAC to draw a conclusion about accuracy, but if you did it would suggest Dak is INACCURATE not accurate. Put another way, most QB's generate MORE YAC per passing yard than DAK, which suggests the opposite of what you think it does.

a reasonable explanation....however that's why you never look at a single stat or number....given the numbers are kind of all over the place....The bills had 1757 YAC and were ninth in passing and far worse than cowboys, by far actually the worst in the league...no one will ever say Josh Allen is not accurate. the Rams were 10th in YAC and 5th in passing and about the same as cowboys...no one will say Stafford is inaccurate. the guy just won the superbowl.....by the same token Rodgers, Mahomes and Burrows were insanely good as some of the tops in the league, however Carolina was the absolute best, but I doubt if anyone thinks much of Darnold or Newton. and Daniel Jones was better than Brady and Brady had a much better recieving group. I doubt if Jones is better than Brady, but hey some may argue that.

but I do however agree, its rather low and I would like that ratio to be higher. I think Dak has room for improvement. his accuracy is directly related to his footwork, I wish there was some stats on a game by game basis I could explore and compare first half of the season to second half of the season.

 

[BoyzBlaster]

a reasonable explanation....however that's why you never look at a single stat or number....given the numbers are kind of all over the place....The bills had 1757 YAC and were ninth in passing and far worse than cowboys, by far actually the worst in the league...no one will ever say Josh Allen is not accurate. the Rams were 10th in YAC and 5th in passing and about the same as cowboys...no one will say Stafford is inaccurate. the guy just won the superbowl.....by the same token Rodgers, Mahomes and Burrows were insanely good as some of the tops in the league, however Carolina was the absolute best, but I doubt if anyone thinks much of Darnold or Newton. and Daniel Jones was better than Brady and Brady had a much better recieving group. I doubt if Jones is better than Brady, but hey some may argue that.

but I do however agree, its rather low and I would like that ratio to be higher. I think Dak has room for improvement. his accuracy is directly related to his footwork, I wish there was some stats on a game by game basis I could explore and compare first half of the season to second half of the season.

Personally I wouldn't use YAC yards at all as a proxy for accuracy. There are too many other variables. But if you are going to use it, IMO looking at it the way I suggested gets you closer than total YAC yards.

 

[LACowboysFan1]

When you continuously throw short and “dump off”, completion % is going to be higher.Dak rarely will take any chances downfield as he doesn’t have the confidence to or ability to put the ball where he wants.Just another skewed stat that doesn’t show what kind of throws are being attempted.There’s a big difference between throwing the the ball 5-10 yds and throwing 20yds + downfield.Tua has a high completion % too.He must be great.

Your assumption is that longer throws aren't attempted as much due to Dak's shortcomings. While that may be true, it's also possible it's the way the offense is structured. Difficult to tell, since we're not on the coaching staff and privy to those discussions. But I will certainly concede it's Dak's issue mainly.

The West Coast offense is structured to use short throws a lot, with some of our coaching staff I'd have to wonder if they really understand how the West Coast offense works...

 

[LACowboysFan1]

You break your ankle and your foundation for throws is screwed for a while. He regressed last year. It was expected by anyone with any sense. With a full healthy offseason to train, his proprioception should come back.

May not either, it's harder to break a bad habit than to learn a good one.

We'll see...

 

[acr731]

To address this and your previous post where he throws short all the time....

Intended Air Yards is a stat that is tracked....just so you know.

Justin Herbert- 7.6 ypa Season Comp %- 65.9
Aaron Rodgers- 7.7 ypa- Season Comp %- 68.9
Pat Mahomes- 7.3 ypa- Season Comp %- 66.3


Dak Prescott- 7.7 YPA- Season Comp %- 68.8


You were saying?

More meaningless stats to prop Dak up....

Do all the stats really matter when we all know Dak can't beat the better teams and constantly fails in the big games? Prop him up all you want, but I would prefer a QB who shows up when the games matter the most.

 

[Captain-Crash]

More meaningless stats to prop Dak up....

Do all the stats really matter when we all know Dak can't beat the better teams and constantly fails in the big games? Prop him up all you want, but I would prefer a QB who shows up when the games matter the most.

come on, one day those stats will beat a good team on its own. lol. not

 

[PAPPYDOG]

Dak's PR dept. working overtime!!!