Quarterback: Dak Prescott. The Cowboys apparently had no issues with Dak’s return from his ankle injury, as they signed him to a four-year deal worth $160 million this offseason. I guess that’s what watching Andy Dalton, Ben DiNucci and Garrett Gilbert start in his place will do for you. It’s like taking a trip to Vegas and staying at the Luxor. One night there, and you’ll happily pay top dollar for the Circa. Because sometimes, it costs less to pay a little more.
Dak went through surgery and really grinded through his rehab to get ready for the Cowboys’ OTAs. He said recently that he was so far ahead of schedule, he “could go out there and be very successful, start the game, finish the game and not even worry about the leg.”
Which is good enough for me. I know there are always going to be concerns about how players will perform coming off devastating injuries. I have none about Dak, who I fully expect to regain the form we saw over the first month of last season.
Projected 2021 MVP: Dak. This might seem too easy. It might be more of a curveball to go with, say, someone on defense, where Dallas really needs to step it up. But I’m not going to get cute. Dak is the most important part of this team. Let’s just roll on.
2021 breakout star: CeeDee Lamb, wide receiver. I’m talking more of a breakout on national terms here. Cowboys fans already know about Lamb, but his nice rookie season was overshadowed on the league-wide stage by Vikings rookie Justin Jefferson’s out-of-this-world stats — thus marking the first time a Cowboys player actually didn’t get the national attention he deserved. (Well, since Jay Novacek.) CeeDee kind of reminds me of Hangman Page — it’s tough to get noticed when you’re hanging with Cody, Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks, but eventually, Hangman was able to show what he could do, and now it’s only a matter of time before he’s top-of-the-card. CeeDee had 74 receptions last year, going for nearly a grand in receiving yards and putting up five touchdowns despite, uh, questionable QB play. I expect a monster year, especially with Dak healthy and ready to go.
New face to know: Keanu Neal, linebacker. The free-agent signee is a longtime favorite of mine, because he was named after famed actor Keanu Reeves. What, you think I’m making that up? Well, here’s another thing I’m not fabricating: Keanu, who’s been a safety since entering the NFL as a first-round pick in 2016, is going to be asked to play WILL linebacker for defensive coordinator Dan Quinn — a guy who (checks notes), coached him in Atlanta. So perhaps he knows what’s best for him.
