How Valuable is Dak Prescott?
Sep 26, 2015; Auburn, AL, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs quarterback Dak Prescott (15) looks to pass during the first quarter against the Auburn Tigers at Jordan Hare Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Shanna Lockwood-USA TODAY Sports
Dak Prescott doesn’t play offensive line. Dak Prescott doesn’t play linebacker. Dak Prescott can’t make up for the holes in the secondary.
This is what the media told Mississippi State fans before the 2015 season.
It didn’t matter how often we tried to tell people having the best quarterback in the league will make up for a number of shortcomings on the rest of the team. We screamed it from the rooftops, but no one listened.
And it looks like Bulldog fans were right.
There is still a lot of football left to be played, but the Bulldogs already have a win over the team the media picked to win the conference championship. Based on most people’s projections, the Bulldogs are looking like a 7 to 9 win team, depending on how they do against the Texas A&M Aggies this weekend. Winning the West might be a long shot, but finishing in last place looks to be a long shot as well. But how long of a shot is it?
Alex Scarborough wrote this nice little piece about Mississippi State earlier. This weekend’s game against Texas A&M could change the entire perception around Mississippi State’s season. A win and they will be right in the thick of the SEC West race. A loss probably kills that dream, but 8 wins still isn’t out of reach. It’s a far cry from last place.
And none of this would be possible without Prescott and his development. Here were the knocks against him entering this season, and what he has done to improve them.
- Dak Prescott would rather beat you with his legs than his arm.
- In 2014, Prescott had a Passing yard to rushing yard ration that was 3.5 to 1. So far in 2015, that ratio has increased to almost 9 to 1.
- Dak Prescott isn’t accurate enough.
- Prescott has increased his completion percentage from 61.6% to 66.9% in 2015.
- Dak Prescott throws too many interceptions.
- In 2014, Prescott averaged almost an interception a game. In four games, he has yet to throw one.
We all knew Dak Prescott was going to have to carry a heavier burden in 2015, but we didn’t realize how heavy it was going to be. Most people thought the Bulldogs would have decent running game, but it hasn’t developed so far. I think the Bulldogs get some of that ship righted this weekend, but time will tell. The only threat the offense has is Dak Prescott throwing the ball, and not only is he getting by, he is thriving.
What simply did not make sense at the time, and the thing we tried to tell everyone is if the Bulldogs have the 1st team All SEC quarterback as Dak Prescott was voted in the preseason, there was no way the Bulldogs would finish last. And the media still did it anyway. For some reason, they forgot this sport is a quarterback driven league.
Dak Prescott makes this team relevant. He is a transcendent player, and he is the first the Bulldogs have ever had. Prescott will keep the Bulldogs in the game until the final buzzer. In the only loss of the year, Prescott was rallying the troops until the field goal sailed wide right against LSU.
Go ahead and count the Bulldogs out if you want to. But with Dak Prescott on the team, you’ll probably end up regretting that decsion.