Crystal Ball: Will Dak Prescott Be The Cowboys QB Of The Future

[big dog cowboy]

A guy can hope BDC...

I won't deny that. But.....

 

[Dodger12]

Of course it won't. We won't draft a QB in the first until it is abundantly clear Romo is washed up.

Like most problems, it will be addressed only after the situation has blown up in our faces, sometimes more than once.

Until then, it will be toe-dipping with the Prescotts of the world and a lot of "hope".

I mean, we had to draft a bunch of OL in the 1st round because of our complete inability to patch that line any other way (barring Collins). And yet folks think we're going to find the hardest position to evaluate and hit on (ie: frachise QB) later in the draft. Wishful thinking......

 

[School]

I think you're setting yourself up for disappointment if you expect Dak to be the future starter. The bar should be set as capable backup, and anything above that is gravy.

According to scouting reports he doesn't flash elite traits with enough consistency to be projected as much more than a game manager. Could he become a franchise caliber qb? Sure, but I'd set the percentage pretty low.

That being said, I liked the pick and will be rooting for him. Football Outsiders uses a formula called QBASE to project the performance of rookie qbs, and Dak has the second highest rating in this class behind only Goff (yes, he's even ahead of Carson of Bismarck).

And in a thread a while back, some of us touched on how Jonathan P. Niednagel uses brain types to project future performance of athletes. This guy has been a consultant for NFL teams, and accurately predicted that Peyton Manning would be an all-timer and Ryan Leaf a bust by mainly analyzing their brain type. Dak seems to have the brain type that is shared by many top QBs, and he also has the "eagle eye" look physically that is supposed to be a tell-tale sign of this brain type. So there is hope!

 

[Arkyvarminter]

My crystal ball says Dallas will roll with Dak when Romo quits. If he's not that good, he will be given a few years to develop. Hopefully he's really good because if he shows flashes of greatness they will hang onto him and try to make him an NFL QB while wasting even more time.....

 

[Kaiser]

I hope this preseason Showers and Dak get time with the 1st team. One thing I do like about Dak is that he has played well against solid competition in college.

I have only seen Dak in the Senior Bowl so I haven't really arrived at a comp for him, but he clearly has the skillset to be a good QB. With Showers I think my comp would be Tony Banks. Banks was a guy with a good arm and good mobility, not a top starter but somewhere between an average starter and a good backup. If Showers develops into that as a UDFA its a win for the scouting department.

 

[Fla Cowpoke]

I have only seen Dak in the Senior Bowl so I haven't really arrived at a comp for him, but he clearly has the skillset to be a good QB. With Showers I think my comp would be Tony Banks. Banks was a guy with a good arm and good mobility, not a top starter but somewhere between an average starter and a good backup. If Showers develops into that as a UDFA its a win for the scouting department.

I think a better comparison might be Rodney Peete. He wasn't the biggest guy, didn't have a huge arm, had a little mobility to his game. Peete carved out a decent NFL career...but you were always looking to upgrade from him.

 

[Fla Cowpoke]

It's like Andy Dalton. Good enough to win some games but just doesn't seem capable of moving to the next level.

 

[Kaiser]

I think a better comparison might be Rodney Peete. He wasn't the biggest guy, didn't have a huge arm, had a little mobility to his game. Peete carved out a decent NFL career...but you were always looking to upgrade from him.

That is a great comp, I'm going to start using that. You can picture Dak developing some of the "field general" qualities that Peete had.

Funny tangent, something like ten years ago I was on the 405 Freeway and a woman in front of me got cut off twice trying to merge in. I let her in and she waived, you could tell she was a very sweet older woman being treated badly in traffic. Her car was a green Jag, when she pulled in front of me her license plate said "Mrs Peete". I was like "That has to be Rodney Peete's Mom".

 

[mattjames2010]

Wilson was drafted with a relatively high 3rd round pick, not 4th. And the Seahawks had just signed Matt Flynn in FA. I believe it was a new coaching staff and regime who literally had to build that team through the draft. They had a plan.

Wilson won the job in pre-season and was named the starter his rookie year. This is not the NFL of old and Dak is not a high pick. The game is geared towards the offense and I see no reason the "stash" Prescott as if he's a 1st rounder we want to develop. Had Moore not gotten hurt, Prescott wouldn't even be the back-up. Prescott may or may not be a good NFL QB and the future of this franchise. But to believe he is and bypass drafting a QB in the future because we want to see Dak develop is silly. The position is too important.

You don't know this, there was a ton of TC left. Also, if he wasn't, so what? We can afford to have him second or third on the bench due to having a franchise QB. Seattle had Matt Flynn.

 

[Fla Cowpoke]

That is a great comp, I'm going to start using that. You can picture Dak developing some of the "field general" qualities that Peete had.

Funny tangent, something like ten years ago I was on the 405 Freeway and a woman in front of me got cut off twice trying to merge in. I let her in and she waived, you could tell she was a very sweet older woman being treated badly in traffic. Her car was a green Jag, when she pulled in front of me her license plate said "Mrs Peete". I was like "That has to be Rodney Peete's Mom".

Too bad it wasn't wife....she was a looker.

 

[mattjames2010]

Draft position matters in a sense that there are some basic tangibles that you can't teac: size, accuracy, arm strenght, etc. Even Jery know that which is why he's kicking himself for not giving up more to move up to get Lynch. To think Dak can develop when McGee couldn't, as well as a whole host of others, it taking a gamble on the cheap with the most important position on the field. And that's assuming that this staff can develop a QB....I have my doubts.

Oh, and I know enough to know that Kellen Moore wasn't the answer. He was and is too athletically challenged to be a franchise QB in the NFL.

It's funny you say draft position matters, because most scouts considered Russel Wilson to be a late third or 4th rounder. Many people thought Seattle reached for Russel Wilson.

So, despite where he was taken, it's not like everyone was cheering across the board. He was still a very questionable, and in ways, controversial pick in Seattle and the NFL due to his landing spot.

 

[Dodger12]

You don't know this, there was a ton of TC left. Also, if he wasn't, so what? We can afford to have him second or third on the bench due to having a franchise QB. Seattle had Matt Flynn.

The team was telling you they were going to be patient with Prescott. And Moore was running with the first team. It's not hard to figure out.

No one really knows what we have in Romo. Each year at this stage of his career is a question mark he has to answer. And I'm a huge believer in the man. But I also believe we need to look at his heir apparent. Dak may be that guy but the odds are against him.

 

[Dodger12]

It's funny you say draft position matters, because most scouts considered Russel Wilson to be a late third or 4th rounder. Many people thought Seattle reached for Russel Wilson.

So, despite where he was taken, it's not like everyone was cheering across the board. He was still a very questionable, and in ways, controversial pick in Seattle and the NFL due to his landing spot.

Seattle thought they had their starter when they signed Flynn and Wilson was drafted with the idea to back-up Flynn and maybe develop into a future starter. There was reporting that Wilson might have gone to Philly (who took Foles) if Seattle didn't take him.

In any event, Seattle hit paydirt with Wilson but it's rare. Just ask the Eagles and Foles.

 

[JohnnyHopkins]

Yes, but only because I like being the foil!

 

[School]

Seattle thought they had their starter when they signed Flynn and Wilson was drafted with the idea to back-up Flynn and maybe develop into a future starter. There was reporting that Wilson might have gone to Philly (who took Foles) if Seattle didn't take him.

In any event, Seattle hit paydirt with Wilson but it's rare. Just ask the Eagles and Foles.

This makes me like Seattle more.

 

[Plankton]

Prescott came from an offense that does next to nothing to prepare a Quarterback to play at the NFL level. It's a one read offense, limited route progressions, and predicated on a quarterback being able to run. That is the definition of a square peg in a round hole in translating to an NFL QB. The guy seems like he has a good head on his shoulders, he has the want to, and he does have leadership skills. I don't know that what he needs to learn to become an NFL QB can be accomplished to make him anything more than a backup or a changeup option. I also don't have a lot of faith in the QB coach to properly develop him as well.

 

[mattjames2010]

Seattle thought they had their starter when they signed Flynn and Wilson was drafted with the idea to back-up Flynn and maybe develop into a future starter. There was reporting that Wilson might have gone to Philly (who took Foles) if Seattle didn't take him.

In any event, Seattle hit paydirt with Wilson but it's rare. Just ask the Eagles and Foles.

Yes, there are always "reports" of such and such team may have and may not have taken this or that player. The simple fact is, many thought Wilson was a complete reach. He was thought of as a late third rounder or 4th round pick. Gruden was nearly laughed off the stage at NFL Network for being so high on Wilson.

Yes, it's tough to find a quality QB anywhere in the draft really. But this is all just statistic talk now, this ends where I start to observe players. I evaluated Prescott as being very similar to Russell Wilson's game in college. He's smart, a leader, dual threat, and a better passer than many give him credit for. Seeing camp observations, I am not surprised he seems to be coming along well.

All the statistics become that, just statistics. It's now judging the individual and I'm happy to see Prescott coming along.

 

[HoosierCowboy]

Sure, he has a better chance of being great than Romo did in his rookie training camp.

 

[MileyDancer]

I'm really interested in seeing him on Saturday. I'm assuming he will start. Showers I actually like last preseason; or was it in 2014? I haven't really seen him actually play, so I will reserve any judgment. Do you guys thing he and Showers will get equal playing time against the Lambs?

 

[Dodger12]

Yes, there are always "reports" of such and such team may have and may not have taken this or that player. The simple fact is, many thought Wilson was a complete reach. He was thought of as a late third rounder or 4th round pick. Gruden was nearly laughed off the stage at NFL Network for being so high on Wilson.

Yes, it's tough to find a quality QB anywhere in the draft really. But this is all just statistic talk now, this ends where I start to observe players. I evaluated Prescott as being very similar to Russell Wilson's game in college. He's smart, a leader, dual threat, and a better passer than many give him credit for. Seeing camp observations, I am not surprised he seems to be coming along well.

All the statistics become that, just statistics. It's now judging the individual and I'm happy to see Prescott coming along.

The only knock on Wilson was his height. He had absurdly ridiculous numbers his final year at Wisconsin. He had the arm and the accuracy. He just wasn't tall enough. Seattle gambled a 3rd round pick knowing they had to rebuild their team. Nothing wrong with that. I was all for giving up a 3rd for Henson and the guy was out of football for a while.


Here's what I laugh at though.....we're always copying someone else. Need a McNabb clone? Draft QC. Now we need a Wilson clone, draft Prescott. And I don't have an issue with where we drafted Prescott nor do I have a real issue with Prescott. I have an issue with how we're trying to find and develop the next franchise QB. It really won't be urgent until Romo is gone. Last year is already forgotten.