How Dak Prescott is inspiring Dallas Cowboys with his leadership and offseason rehab

When the Dallas Cowboys made quarterback Dak Prescott the richest player in team history and the second-highest paid player in the NFL last March it wasn’t just because of his play and potential on the field as the team’s franchise quarterback.

It was also because of his leadership and inspiration off the field — two things that are usually hard to quantify but they’re qualities you just know when you see them.

The Cowboys won’t get a full return on their investment until Prescott suits up for the 2021 season and — just perhaps — leads them back to the Super Bowl for the first time since 1995 some time before his four-year, $160 million contract expires.

But the outlay has already paid dividends in Prescott’s ability to motivate and influence his teammates with his seemingly miraculous fast rehab and return from fractured ankle that sidelined him for the final 11 games of the 2020 season.

There is no question that injuries to Prescott as well as a number of key teammates like tackles La’el Collins and Tyron Smith and guard Zack Martin played a role in the team’s 6-10 finish last season.

And there is no doubting in the Cowboys facility that all ready go to for 2021 thanks in part to the how Prescott led the way in the offseason in overcoming his grueling rehab, participating in OTAs and minicamp and being fully cleared for the start of training camp in July.

“For me, the way Dak worked throughout the whole off season the way he pushed himself the way he came back and is able to be on the field with everybody else, its amazing,” said Smith, a seven-time Pro Bowl player, who is returning from neck surgery that sidelined him for 14 games in 2020.

“It lights a fire under you to like, ‘hey push a little bit harder.’ If your quarterback is going to push like that, we got to push the same way or even harder for him. It’s motivational to do what he does.”

Prescott sets the tone

Leadership has been a hallmark of Prescott’s career since he took the NFL by storm as a rookie in 2016. He was wise and poised beyond his years but it wasn’t by accident.

He earned his bachelor’s in educational psychology, and in his final year in college earned a master’s in workforce leadership. He has said he would like to earn his Ph.D. in psychology.

Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy called Prescott the face of the locker room. He said his influence is palpable and tangible.

“Dak Prescott’s leadership exudes through the whole football operation,” McCarthy said. “I’m sure it goes far beyond that. The everyday interaction with him is so consistent and steady. He’s as real a person I’ve been fortunate to work with, and I’ve been fortunate to work with a lot of great ones. He’s the same in the training room. He’s the same in the weight room. The equipment room. Everybody has such a strong relationship with him.”

And Prescott making his presence felt by rehabbing with his offensive linemen was not by coincidence.

So while Prescott was appreciative of Smith’s words, it was also about building chemistry, developing a bond and pushing each other to be better than ever.

“In a situation like that, I’m going to lead by example,” Prescott said. “For me, it was really about just showing those guys how I work and just doing that by concentrating on getting this injury better and I feel like if they needed to see a leader, if they needed something from me, they could have got it from just the way that I approach the day.

“It’s just building that confidence, that camaraderie in each other and just commitment, true commitment, from grinding from the rehab and the injuries. But not only that, just doing the rest of the stuff that the team’s doing to make sure we’re all better than we were before we got injured.”

Prescott did that that mainly by working in tandem with Collins, who missed all of last season with a hip injury.

They came in early and waited until all the rehab guys got off the field, offering words of encouragement and asking them how it went.

Health up front is key

No one knows Prescott better than Collins, his locker mate and one of his closest friends. And therefore there is no one better to measure his progress and rehab outside of Prescott or the Cowboys’ medical staff.

“[Seeing him from] Day 1 to now, it’s like night and day,” Collins said of Prescott’s recovery. “It gives me chills to think about it because he doesn’t complain. Even if things bother him, he just finds a way to keep going and keep pushing. It goes a long way with guys, especially on tough days. He keeps going. It just makes everybody want to keep going, especially me. He’s definitely a big-time leader.

“When I see that guy, that’s who I do it for. That’s my locker mate. I’ll protect him at all costs.”

And there lies the genius of Prescott’s influence and leadership in the offseason. It was selfless and selfish.

He understands that the Cowboys’ success is incumbent on getting Smith, Collins and Martin, a six-time Pro Bowl player who missed six games in 2020 with an ankle injury, back healthy and dominant again.

“They’re the most important, if you ask me,” Prescott said. “From the time that I got drafted until now, this offense is built off of those guys. They’re the three most veteran guys on this team, and that’s for a reason. Those guys are walk-in Pro Bowl guys when they’re healthy. Everything starts with them. When you have those guys back healthy, energized, it’s special.”