Dak Prescott will require surgery for hand injury suffered Sunday night

Dallas Cowboys fans are holding their breath after quarterback Dak Prescott left late in Sunday night’s game against Tampa Bay with a hand injury. But unfortunately, owner Jerry Jones provided a grim update on the two-time Pro Bowler’s status going forward.

“Dak Prescott (hand) will be out for a while, according to Jerry Jones,” The Atheltic’s Jon Machota tweeted. “Several weeks. He needs surgery.”

The injury is said to be to a joint above the thumb in Prescott’s right hand, also his throwing hand.

Prescott exited the game late in the fourth quarter after taking a hit to his hand. He came out during the drive and was examined by medical staff on the sideline while Cooper Rush came in to relieve him. Prescott later jogged off the field and back to the locker room, where he received X-Rays.

It wasn’t a great performance for Prescott prior to his injury. The quarterback completed less than half of his passes, going 14-of-29 for just 134 yards and an interception. Dallas failed to score a touchdown all evening and dropped the game to Tampa Bay by a score of 19-3.

“Real disappointed before Dak’s injury,” Jones said. “And certainly disappointed after it.”

Prescott is coming off one of the best seasons of his career, throwing for a career-high 37 touchdowns and 4,449 yards along with 10 interceptions. He helped lead the Cowboys to a 12-5 regular season record, though they lost to San Francisco in the wild card round of the playoffs.

Rush is expected to start in place of Prescott until the latter is healthy enough to return. Rush finished Sunday’s contest 7-of-13 passing for 64 yards as the Cowboys lost 19-3.

A Central Michigan product, he started one game last season against Minnesota when Prescott was out due to injury. Rush went 24-of-40 passing for 325 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in a 20-16 Cowboys victory.

Following the loss to Tampa Bay, Dallas will look to bounce back in a Week 2 matchup against Cincinnati at 3:25 p.m. CT next Sunday.