No one is harder on this player than Dallas Cowboys fans. Despite being among the most productive at his position in franchise history, many fans are quick to dismiss him as “not good enough.”
Dak Prescott is one of the most heavily criticized quarterbacks in the NFL, but why do Cowboys fans hate Dak?
Is the hate really justified, or are fans just repeating a cycle that dates back to the Tony Romo era?
Let’s break it down.
Why Cowboys Fans Hate Dak Prescott
1. Playoff Struggles
The most common criticism? Postseason failure. Prescott has a 2-5 career playoff record and has never reached the NFC Championship Game.
Cowboys fans are desperate for a Super Bowl, and any quarterback who can’t deliver one becomes an easy scapegoat, no matter how good he is in the regular season.
2. Costly Mistakes in Big Moments
Fair or not, Prescott’s turnovers in high-stakes games have fueled the narrative that he “chokes under pressure.”
Two interceptions in the 2022 Divisional Round loss to the 49ers still linger in the minds of fans, even after a statistically elite 2023 campaign.
3. Not Viewed as Elite
Many fans believe Prescott is a “second-tier” quarterback—good, but not in the Mahomes, Burrow, or Allen tier.
That perception leads to doubt that he can ever win a Super Bowl, even if his stats suggest otherwise.
4. The Contract
Dak signed a four-year, $160 million deal in 2021, putting him among the league’s highest-paid players.
For some fans, that price tag means he should be flawless, even though no quarterback is. The minute something goes wrong, critics point to the contract.
Here’s the Truth: Dak Isn’t the First to Face This
Cowboys fans might not want to admit it, but they’ve been here before—with Tony Romo.
Romo, one of the most talented quarterbacks the franchise ever had, was treated almost the same way.
For years, he was blamed for every playoff failure, every late-game interception, and every missed opportunity, even when the team around him was clearly flawed.
Sound Familiar?
- Romo went 2-4 in the playoffs—the same criticism now aimed at Dak.
- He was blamed for team losses despite playing behind a shaky offensive line and with underwhelming defenses.
- He made game-changing mistakes, like the infamous botched snap in Seattle in 2006, which haunted his career.
Yet now, Romo is beloved—because fans miss what they had once it was gone. The same thing may happen with Prescott.
Why the Hate for Dak Prescott is Unfair
1. Top-Tier Production
Prescott is consistently one of the most productive quarterbacks in the NFL.
In 2023, he led the league in touchdown passes and was the runner-up in the MVP race. He routinely finishes among the league leaders in passer rating, QBR, and completion percentage.
2. Toughness and Leadership
Dak has missed his fair share of games, but how many people remember Dak trying to pop his ankle back into place after a fracture? This man is tough.
Damn! Dak just put it back like that! Praying for a speedy recovery! pic.twitter.com/reNwLIwHzg
— Bemi713 (@Bemi713) October 11, 2020
He’s a respected locker room leader who represents the franchise with class. Fans may not realize how rare that is.
3. It’s a Team Sport
Football is not a one-man game.
The Cowboys have failed in the playoffs due to coaching misfires, defensive lapses, and special teams errors, not just Dak Prescott.
But like Romo before him, Dak takes the brunt of the blame.
Remember the Pre-Dak and Romo Quarterbacks? It Wasn’t Pretty
Before Dak Prescott and Tony Romo, the Cowboys went through years of quarterback struggles.
Here’s a quick look at the forgettable names who started between Troy Aikman and Tony Romo—and again between Romo’s injuries:
- Quincy Carter (2001-2003): Inconsistent and never developed into a franchise QB.
- Chad Hutchinson (2002): A failed MLB-turned-QB experiment.
- Drew Henson (2004): Another failed crossover who never panned out.
- Vinny Testaverde (2004): 41 years old, immobile, and clearly a short-term stopgap.
- Drew Bledsoe (2005-2006): Past his prime and benched for being ineffective>
- Brad Johnson (2007-2008): Old, slow, and ineffective.
- Stephen McGee, Matt Cassel, Brandon Weeden (2009-2015): Backup-caliber players forced into starting roles.
None of these quarterbacks brought consistency. None brought playoff hopes, and none were long-term answers.
Tony Romo: One of the Greats—Who Got the Same Hate
Despite being a franchise icon now, Tony Romo was relentlessly criticized during his career.
Fans and media pundits mocked his playoff record, blamed him for collapses, and even questioned if the team should move on.
Like Dak, Romo:
- Carried flawed rosters
- He was more talented than he was appreciated.
- He made a few costly mistakes that defined his legacy for years.
Only now, after his retirement, is Romo finally getting the credit he deserves.
History is Repeating Itself
Cowboys fans hated on Tony Romo until he was gone. Now, some are doing the same to Dak Prescott.
The truth is, Prescott is one of the best quarterbacks Dallas has ever had. He’s not perfect, but he is a top-10 quarterback who gives his team a real shot every year.
The grass isn’t always greener.
If fans run Dak out of town, they will be staring down another decade of quarterback instability, just like they did before Romo and Dak arrived.
It’s time to appreciate what you have—before it’s too late.
a Dallas Cowboys fan, since the 70’s as a Cowboys fan I don’t hate Dak Prescott I already know Dak Prescott will lose in the first round of the playoffs 2nd Dak Prescott can’t beat the San Francisco 49ers and can’t stand Jerry Jones and all the sports media groups Jerry Jones and all the sports media groups are both delusional and senile
This writer is wrong about his comparison. Romo never had as much talent around him that dak has had. Dak gets the hate because of stat padding against bad teams. When facing a good team dak folds like paper. Once the game is out of hand dak then has, oh by the way stats that don’t influence the outcome. Stats don’t lie. But they don’t tell the entire story either.
Romo had just as much talent at certain times during his career.
I thought football was a team sport. Dak isn’t playing these games by himself. Since he’s been the QB for the Cowboys he has given the defense plenty of leads only to have the defense lose the lead and the game. Poor coaching and bad play calling has doomed him on many occasions over the last eight years. A few of his injuries have come from poor offensive line play. Then letting the wrong players walk or trading away a few weapons. Now he can be blamed for quite a few interceptions ,he is not fully at fault. I don’t believe he would be making the money he is if he wasn’t worth it. And even though he has blown a few leads he has put the BOYS in positions to win on many occasions. Really the only things lacking on his resume is playoff wins and a Superbowl win. Again this is a team sport not a individual contest. Cut Dak some slack and give him a chance. He needs weapons to succeed. I thank Mr. JJ for finally doing that instead of giving them or letting them walk away. Mr. JJ stop trading the good ones and keeping the wrong ones. This is truly a team sport. We won as a team and we lose as a team. Stay off Dak’s jock and let him do his job. Trust me you all will miss him when he is gone.
I agree 100%!! But I guess some people don’t realize that there are 10 other players on the field on offense and 11 more players on defense every game!! Or they just don’t think those players matter when it comes to winning games, but either way, it don’t make any sense to put all the blame on Dak when he is the reason we have a chance to win every year!! That should be obvious considering how many games we lost every time Dak had to miss a lot of games!! 2020 we went 6-10 because he hurt, and missed most of the season, and then last season we went 7-10 because he had to miss most of the season again!! But every season in between we went 12-5 with a healthy Dak, with 2023 Dak being runner up to the MVP award, which by all stats, he should’ve won it over Lamar Jackson, cause he was way better than Lamar that year in every way that year!! So yeah, I agree with you, people don’t know what they have, and I’m sure they’ll miss him when he’s gone!!
Romo had just as good, if not better players around him when he played!! He had one of the best offensive lines in the NFL the whole time he was QB, he definitely had better RBs in the backfield, and the receivers he had were just as good as the ones Dak has played with, maybe better!! At times they were better, especially when Terrell Owens played for us!! And then the defenses he had on his teams were always better than what Dak has played with so far!!
And as far as Dak padding his stats and folding against bad teams…. That’s false too…. He’s beaten plenty of good teams!! He balled out against Tom Brady and the buccaneers in the playoffs not too long ago, and the only reason I bring that game up is because Tom Brady has never lost to us until that game!! But not only did Dak ball out in that game he beat and played better than the “goat” in the playoffs!! I could name off plenty more games, but I think this one game is enough to prove that your statement is false!!
How do we know if DP is “run out of town” there will be a decade of “QB instability”? We really don’t. BTW, Cowboys NEVER drafted a QB to give DP any kind of real competition.
That long list of QBs before Romo just shows how incompetent the Cowboy front office has been for draft/FA additions. Glad you brought that up, as it is really bad. Do not know why they have NOT invested in a 1st round QB since 3-time SB winner Troy Aikman. I think a team has a better chance of playoff success by drafting a top tier QB, than signing a UDFA (Romo) or drafting a 4th rounder (Dak). Of course, there are exceptions (Brady) but they are pretty rare.
Look at the top QBs in the NFL RIGHT NOW.
Mahomes, Allen, Jackson, Burrow; all FIRST rounders. I think we can agree these QBs are head and shoulders over DP, not to mention younger.
Been commenting here for years about this player, so I’m not going to rehash AGAIN. No “hate” just my opinion, just as anyone else has. As a longtime Cowboy fan, I wish he was better.
Question for anyone here including you, Cody; Why did PFF rank him at 17. They probably do more research than most people. I have an opinion which has been stated here to probably ad nauseam. But just reacting to articles.
The team did not draft a quarterback higher than the fourth round while Tony Romo was the starting quarterback. One of those players was later converted to a receiver.
PFF ranked him 17th, I believe, due to his recent injury. This could impact his performance, or he might have a stellar season, just like he has in previous seasons after recovering from injuries.
I appreciate your opinions, so keep them coming! It’s refreshing to have a debate without keyboard warriors resorting to cursing and name-calling.
Likewise, Cody, I appreciate your articles/opinions, as well as from the other authors here, even if I don’t always agree. But it’s good to get information and differing viewpoints on our team.
Drafting a QB in the 1st round don’t isn’t a guarantee for success!! There are even more that didn’t work out than there are that did work out!! This front office tried drafting QBs in the 1st round a few times in the last 10 years or so, 2014 Jerry wanted Mr Johnny football, but we ended up drafting Zach Martin, and then in 2016 Jerry tried trading up twice for 2 different QBs, but luckily didn’t get it to happen, cause neither one of them QBs are in the NFL anymore, and didn’t even make it through their rookie contracts, and if they did, they didn’t last much longer than that!! And Johnny Manzel didn’t even make it through his rookie contract either!! So there’s 3 QBs that Jerry tried getting in the 1st round and none of them worked out for their teams and that’s just the few that Jerry tried getting the last few years, that’s not including all the other failures that other teams traded up for, or just drafted in the 1st round!! So again, there’s no guarantee a 1st round QB is gonna bring success to the team!! We should be lucky to have Dak cause there’s no guarantee we’ll get anything any better when he’s gone!! And I can guarantee right now that if the 2016 draft was done all over again, half the QBs taken in the 1st round and 2nd round wouldn’t even be drafted at all, and I guarantee Dak would be a 1st round pick, probably top 5!! He would probably be at least the 2nd pick over Carson Wentz!! That’s just how good he’s been for us!! There’s no way a team would let him out of the 1st round if they knew then what they know now!! If teams knew then what they know now, I about guarantee Dak Prescott would be an eagle right now, taken with the 2nd overall pick in the 2016 NFL draft over Carson Wentz!! It would be a toss up with Jared Goff, the rams might have even taken Dak first overall over Goff, but to be fair, I’ll just say that he would go 2nd overall to the eagles!! Either way, I guarantee he would be a 1st round pick!!
At a certain point, one must say what dak has accomplished objectively. 9 seasons 2 playoff wins. Runner up mvp is not an award. He’s never done anything particularly special. Yet highest paid player in nfl history and longest tempted qb in the league with current team. Moving on from him is very logical
Longest tenured qb with current team* sorry for autocorrect