Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy talked to reporters on Thursday ahead of the team's joint practice with the Los Angeles Rams ahead of Sunday's preseason opener.
McCarthy was asked about the importance of the practice, considering he's highly unlikely to play Dak Prescott in the preseason.
Since the head coach arrived to Dallas in 2020, Dak has never played a preseason game. Additionally, McCarthy sits most of the established starters, including the entire offensive line in 2023. Rookies Tyler Guyton and Cooper Beebe will likely see playing time as they're competing for starting roles ahead of the regular season and need the reps.
Instead, Prescott will be facing the Rams starting defense in a more controlled environment this Thursday in practice. But even though there's a whistle ending the plays and despite the fact that Dak's jersey will be a bright red to discourage defenders from hitting him, the coach explained why the practice will be a big deal for the quarterback.
“I just want to see (Dak) go out and have another good day," McCarthy told reporters ahead of the practice. "I think Dak’s having an excellent camp. (…) We've been lining up against Mike Zimmer's defense, this is a different system, similar to (Dan Quinn's) defense in the past. It’ll be really good to get the defensive looks that we're going to see today. Just go out, be productive and have a hell of a day.”
With no more joint practices on the schedule and no August football ahead of him, Thursday is the one day he'll get to go up against a non-Zimmer defense. Getting the reps will be key for the second-team All-Pro.
It's essentially impossible to tell if McCarthy is making the right choice by sitting Prescott: Playing starters in the preseason is a controversial topic among league coaches. The Kansas City Chiefs will play Patrick Mahomes this weekend, for example. So will the Buffalo Bills with Josh Allen . Those are two of the best quarterbacks in the league yet many other teams, like the Cowboys, simply won't want to roll the dice.
Obviously, there are benefits to both schools of thought. On the one hand, not playing raises the risk of coming out with some "gridiron rust" in Week 1 of the regular season. On the other, every coach knows he'll be put through hell by the media and fans if the quarterback suffers even a scratch.
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