Dak Prescott had one of his best seasons in 2025, and one ESPN analyst thinks Dak could soar even higher in 2026.
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott had a seriously good 2025 season, and yes, it ended with a 7-9-1 record and no playoffs.
However, you could argue that Dak more than held up his end of the bargain under Brian Schottenheimer, and that, at least in the first half of the season, maybe one player was playing the quarterback position better than Dak.
As such, he was in the MVP conversation after seven weeks.
Dallas was 3-3-1, and Prescott had thrown for 1,881 yards, 16 TDs, and just three interceptions. Hardly Dak's fault, with Matt Eberflus' defense, for most, letting the entire team down.
Such was the defense's poor performance that many agreed Dak and the offense had to play perfectly for the Cowboys to win, and sometimes that wasn't enough.
Now, with Christian Parker as the new defensive coordinator, if he can get the unit to average, there is little doubt that the Cowboys, with George Pickens and Javonte Williams returning, are a playoff team.
And for ESPN's Matt Bowen, he sees something rather special coming Dak's way in his latest season prediction...an MVP award.
"Dak Prescott, QB, Cowboys," Bowen writes. "Prescott had more than 4,500 passing yards and threw 30 touchdowns this past season. With the Cowboys expected to retain wide receiver George Pickens, whom they will likely give the franchise tag, look for Prescott to produce high-level numbers again for a team that could challenge for the NFC East title in 2026 with an improved defense."
We have stated repeatedly that if the Cowboys had an average defense in 2025, Dallas was playoff-bound, and Dak's name would likely have been in the MVP conversation much longer.
But as the losses piled up, Dak and the offense had to do more, and overextended themselves, and trouble arrived.
The losses to the Carolina Panthers and Arizona Cardinals were daggers, and the Cowbosy would lose four of their last five as the steam finally ran out.
But with ample cap space and two first-round picks, if the Cowboys can get some starting-caliber players and hit on both draft selections, there is no reason to think the defense won't at least be average, right?
Would having an average defense to pair with one of the NFL's best offenses be enough for Dak to win MVP?
That is a conversation starter, my friends.