Another year with this Brian Schottenheimer offense could mean good things for Dak Prescott's pursuit of Cowboys - and NFL - history.
Will Dak Prescott throw for over 5,000 yards in 2026?
Dak Prescott, armed with a second season of the CeeDee Lamb/George Pickens receiver duo, is set to make history for the Dallas Cowboys in 2026.
The veteran quarterback enters Year 11 as the captain of "America's Team" needing just six touchdown passes to pass Tony Romo for the most in franchise history.
Last year, Prescott jumped Romo in career passing yards and also set the new high mark for total completions. He enters the new season with a Cowboys record of 35,989 yards and is the only player with over 3,000 completed passes.
This puts Dak in the ballpark to hit 40,000 yards for his career ... a number only 25 players have ever reached.
In this offseason's edition of "bold predictions," ESPN believes Prescott will hit that number by the end of 2026 ... and that he'll do so in even rarer form.
Writer Ben Solak picks Prescott to be just the 10th quarterback to ever throw for 5,000 yards in a season.
That's as lofty as it comes (especially for a player once thought of as 'injury prone'), but with Lamb and Pickens opposite one another, Jake Ferguson entering his prime up the seam, a solid offensive line and another strong season out of 1,000-yard rusher Javonte Williams, this is certainly in the cards.
"To clear 5,000 passing yards in a 17-game season, a quarterback must average 294.1 passing yards per contest. In Prescott's best season (2019), he averaged 306.4 yards per contest and fell just 100 yards short of the 5,000-yard mark since there were 16 games," Solak notes.
"Interestingly, the Cowboys weren't particularly pass-happy that season, with a 60.7% dropback rate that was below the league average. But they had a high total number of plays because they were moving fast. In their first season under offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, no team snapped the ball with more time on the play clock. Only five offenses had more plays per game; only six ran no-huddle more frequently."
Year 2 of head coach Brian Schottenheimer and offensive coordinator Klayton Adams, with a nearly identical offensive core as his debut season, could mean the Cowboys play just as they did a year ago. If health is on their side (remember, Lamb missed time early because Schottenheimer wanted him to play running back), then that's a bonus.
Dallas snapped the ball faster than anyone a year ago, and they led the league in offensive plays per game. As a result, Prescott led the league in completions for the second time in the last three seasons ... even with the Cowboys possessing a 2025 defense that wasn't efficient in getting opposing offenses off the field.
"Volume is the first half of the riddle; explosiveness is the other half. To that end, the Cowboys must successfully get wide receiver George Pickens to play on the franchise tag for Prescott to reach the mark," Solak says. "Pickens unlocked a new level to his game in just one season with the Cowboys, as Prescott provided him with stable quarterback play for the first time in his NFL career.
All signs point to Pickens suiting up in Oxnard when the Cowboys head to training camp in just under a month. The explosive wideout was present for mandatory minicamp, has grown his rapport with Prescott and Lamb during the offseason, and has agreed with the team's front office about tabling contract talks until after he plays on the franchise tag in 2026.
If the stars align as they seem to be right now, things could work out for Dak Prescott to make NFL history during his pursuit of Dallas Cowboys passing records.
