OXNARD, Calif. (AP) 鈥� When Dak Prescott arrived at training camp Tuesday, he celebrating the Dallas Cowboys鈥� last Super Bowl win as a statement of intent.
After 10 years in the NFL without a meaningful playoff run for an organization that has not claimed a championship since after the 1995 season, their star quarterback is ready to end those droughts through his deeds, words, and even wardrobe choices.
鈥淭o go into training camp and to go into the season to say that those are our goals, I mean, it鈥檇 be stupid or we鈥檇 be remiss not to own that, and take accountability in that, and take pride in saying this is what we want to be and what we want to do,鈥� Prescott said Thursday.
Prescott admitted to being 鈥渄efinitely less patient鈥� when it comes to the lack of postseason success, his angst rising after missing the playoffs each of the past two campaigns. He has a 2-5 record in playoff games and never reached an NFC championship game, something the Cowboys have not done over the previous 30 seasons.
However, Prescott believes the pieces are in place for the organization to move past those struggles. He expects a potent offense to be even better in its second season under head coach Brian Schottenheimer by benefitting from improved continuity on the offensive line and further growth from the pairing of standout wide receivers CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens in their the second year together.
鈥淲e know it鈥檚 not going to carry over, and so it鈥檚 awesome to see these guys in meetings and just walkthroughs taking every moment, every rep serious because we鈥檝e going to be better than we were last year in our mind,” Prescott said. “And that鈥檚 our standard, and we鈥檙e going to push each other and hold each other accountable to do that.”
Coming off a season where he threw for 4,552 yards and 30 touchdowns against 10 interceptions, Prescott has been sharp through the first two days of practice, even pointedly criticizing himself for the two throws he wanted back from Thursday鈥檚 session.
As an indication of how high his expectations are for the whole unit, Prescott has set their motto as 鈥淕OTI,鈥� an acronym for 鈥済reatest offense there is.鈥�
鈥淲hy can鈥檛 we be, you know? Let鈥檚 be the greatest offense there is. You鈥檝e heard the 鈥楪reatest show on turf鈥� and all the other different nicknames,鈥� he said.
With their early success coming against a defense that appears to have made strides after being one of the worst in football a year ago, it is giving Prescott another reason to think big.
Prescott is holding off on grander pronouncements, but he has been pleased with the communication and attention to detail the defense has demonstrated.
鈥淲hen we motion, you can hear how loud they are, and getting to the right fits or calls that they need to make, and just challenging us,鈥� he said. 鈥淟ike I said, it鈥檒l be awesome when we put the pads on and really see and get the physicalness from them and feel the physicalness from them. But so far, it鈥檚 been great.鈥�
With owner and general manager Jerry Jones having already over the past year, and if the right deal presents itself, Prescott felt emboldened to break out a shirt that had been in his closet for years.
But Prescott understands the opportunity to replace it with one celebrating a title on Feb. 14, 2027, is still far off.
鈥淲hen you鈥檙e watching the playoffs or you鈥檙e not getting to even compete for it, you know, that sucks. It鈥檚 terrible, and so just to have everybody on the same accord, everybody having the same standard is the way that it has to start,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e only going to get there if we win each rep, we win each drill individually, and then that carries over into offense trying to win each play against the offense, and them doing the same.鈥�
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