Cowboys' Garrett: Dak Prescott knows he has to get better
Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett is impressed by what quarterback Dak Prescott has accomplished thus far in his career, but he says the soon-to-be 25-year-old still has room for improvement.
"He's done a lot of good things, but he knows, we know, everybody knows he's got to get better," Garrett said Tuesday at the NFL owners meetings in Orlando, according to Todd Archer of ESPN.
"One of the exciting things about him is he has such a determination to get better every day. ... I think he has to work on the physical part. The fundamentals have to continue to be refined. And that's everybody. That's footwork, delivery, getting away from center, his mechanics in the gun, getting the ball out quicker, being more accurate. All the things that every quarterback in this league is working on, he has to continue to refine those," Garrett said.
Prescott suffered some regression in his sophomore season in 2017, experiencing significant declines in his completion percentage, yards per attempt average, and total number of passing yards. He threw for 22 touchdowns and 13 interceptions after throwing 23 touchdowns and just four interceptions while leading the Cowboys to the playoffs in his rookie season.
Both Prescott's and the team's decline came amid the six-game suspension served by running back Ezekiel Elliott from Weeks 10 through 15.
"Obviously a couple years ago in his rookie year, we won 13 games and he was a big part of that. I thought we did a good job of attacking defenses a lot of different ways," Garrett said. "Certainly we were predominately a running team, but he was very effective throwing the football."
Wide receivers Allen Hurns and Deonte Thompson have been added via free agency in an effort to help Prescott and the passing game this season, and make the Cowboys' offense more balanced.
Garrett will get his chance to start preparing Prescott and his new receiving options when offseason workout programs open on April 16.
"Now, does he have to get better at everything? Absolutely. And we're working very hard with him on that. We're excited to get back with him in the middle of April and get back to work," said Garrett.