Tony Romo retires: 5 reasons it hurts Cowboys
By John Buhler
4. Dak Prescott could have a sophomore slump
The Cowboys were the talk of the NFL last season. After going a miserable 4-12 in 2015, Dallas went worst-to-first in the NFC with a 13-3 record, earning home-field advantage in the 2016 NFC Playoffs. Losing to the Green Bay Packers in the divisional round hurt, but Dallas has found Romo’s heir apparent in Prescott.
Prescott’s rookie campaign out of Mississippi State was the best in NFL history by a first-year signal caller. He completed 67.8 percent of his passes for 3,667 yards, 23 touchdowns and four interceptions. Prescott earned a trip to the Pro Bowl.
His rise from a fourth-round pick to the Cowboys starting quarterback has Hollywood written all over. However, wouldn’t a regression to the mean be in play for Prescott’s second season? Isn’t he poised for somewhat of a sophomore slump?
It would be incredible if we saw no dropoff from Prescott in year two, but it will be hard for him to top what he did last year. Cowboys fans have to realize that Prescott thrived in a perfect storm of scenarios that went his way last year. He had a last place schedule to navigate, he played behind the best offensive line in football with a stud running back in Ezekiel Elliott, and NFL defenses didn’t throw complex coverages on him until later in the season.
Prescott will have to throw the ball down field more in 2017. He can do that, as he would go vertical at Mississippi State. NFL players do tend to see a big leap in production from year one to year two. However, how many rookies have a year one like Prescott? Exactly. He’s not on the come-up anymore, he has arrived in Dallas.