OXNARD, Calif. — Cowboys quarterback took time out of his busy schedule to sign autographs for several fans. While great keepsakes these autographs not nearly as valuable as the contract Cowboys Quarterback Dak Prescott is expected to put his signature on soon.
And he’s been working to earn it.
"From ’17 as the end of that year to what I saw this offseason it’s a completely different player,” said tight end Jason Witten.
Last year’s slow start defined areas where Prescott could improve, "I signed up for this position as a little boy a long time ago knowing you take the heat and you get the credit and that’s part of it,” he said. "That’s something I love, something that pushes me, something that drives me.”
New quarterbacks coach Jon Kitna focusing on footwork with Prescott this off-season, and by all accounts, the time has been well-spent.
I’ve talked to people inside the Cowboys organization who've seen every offseason practice. They characterize Dak's improvements in accuracy and footwork as substantial. He’s able to throw into much tighter windows, with the misses being much more minute.
"I think we live in a world where the general idea is, ’that’s good enough,’” said Kitna. "And it’s never good enough for him. "There’s a very small percentage of people that live in that world.”
Teammates notice how Prescott goes about the work allowing him to lead effectively from the front. Another example provided when Dak took charge, organizing a pre-camp trip to San Diego for several of his receiving targets.
"The intangibles that he has, as a leader as a guy, it’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen,” said Witten.
Offensive lineman Zack Martin agrees, "Everything that you want in a quarterback he is, so everyone would run through the wall for him."
And if he can translate what we’ve seen on the practice field and bring it to games that count, Prescott realizes he’ll have a chance to cash in on more than a big bonus check.
"You look around this team we have and you look around this roster that we have the talent,” said Prescott. “The leaders that we have, it’s to win and it’s to win everything.”
Yes. You saw that right. He said, “everything."
