Disrespect is nothing new for the Cowboys quarterback, and once again, his talents are being undersold.
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott has long been the subject of disrespect as it pertains to his status among his peers.
Some see Prescott as a top quarterback in football; others think the opposite, and there are great arguments for both sides, but we can all agree that Dak is a top 10-ish quarterback in football, right?
Yes, the playoff failures are real, so too are the poor games against good opposition in the regular season, but for the most part, when Dak is healthy, the Cowboys have a top offense and are playoff-bound.
So that brings me to the quarterbacks tiers list by CBS Sports' Bryan DeArdo.
He's put all 32 starting quarterbacks into six tiers, and Dak lands in the second tier, called "Borderline stars," along with 12 other players.
The first tier if for Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Joe Burrow, Lamar Jackson and Matthew Stafford. That's fine, those five are in a category all by themselves.
Dak is with Jalen Hurts, Sam Darnold, Caleb Williams, Bo Nix, Jayden Daniels, Jared Goff, Brock Purdy, Jordan Love, Justin Herbert, Drake Maye and Trevor Lawrence.
"Prescott has more than proven he is a franchise quarterback capable of leading the Cowboys to postseason success," DeArdo wrote. "Injuries, coaching, and personnel changes contributed to Prescott and the Cowboys' inability to snap the franchise's NFC title game/Super Bowl drought, which is now at 31 years."
So, Dak's placing in the second tier isn't the problem for me, it's who he's in there with.
Assuming this is based on 2025, Darnold, Lawrence, and Maye are the ones who would be in the same tier as Dak for me. The others? It isn't close that Prescott had a better year than they did.
Is Dak a borderline star? That depends on what your definition of a "star" is, but there's no doubting that Prescott deserves to be in the higher rankings for quarterbacks in football.
Again, not at the top, but that next tier down, and certainly not in the same breath as Nix, Daniels, Lawrence (career duration hasn't been a top QB), and Herbert. You can make a case for the others.
Dak has proved in the regular season that he is among the best in football, but that playoff failure is what drags him down into the chasing pack.
Will Prescott be able to pull a Darnold and change the career narrative surrounding him in 2026?
Your guess is as good as mine.
