Troy Aikman still believes in Dak Prescott following another playoff disappointment

The Dallas Cowboys and quarterback Dak Prescott have been defined by one thing in their eight years together: Playoff disappointment.

2023 was no different, as after going 12-5 and winning the NFC East, the Cowboys went home in the Wild Card Round. This time, it came courtesy of the Green Bay Packers, who picked up a dominant 48-32 victory inside Jerry World. Though the season came to a premature end, the Cowboys have retained head coach Mike McCarthy for another season, and likely will Prescott as well.

During an event in Dallas Tuesday, Troy Aikman, the last quarterback to win a Super Bowl in a Cowboys uniform, said he still believes in Prescott’s ability to lead the team to success in the postseason.

Troy Aikman: “I still believe in Dak.” pic.twitter.com/GBFDNhKDxG

— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) January 24, 2024

“I still believe in Dak,” Aikman said via Jon Machota of The Athletic. “Until you do it, there’s always those criticisms. And I know Peyton Manning went through that his first three years, he didn’t win a playoff game, and then you look back on it now and you can’t imagine that anybody questioned whether or not he could win a playoff game.”

Dak Prescott’s impressive season undone by playoff failure

Prescott, 30, had arguably his best season in 2023. He threw for 4,516 yards, a league-leading 36 touchdowns and nine interceptions on a career-high 69.5% passing. At one point, he was thought to be in the discussion for the AP NFL MVP Award. In the loss to the Packers, however, Prescott struggled. Even though the numbers indicate something different — 403 yards and three touchdowns — Prescott threw two interceptions and Dallas trailed 27-0 at one point.

And when you quarterback “America’s Team,” a franchise which has gone nearly three decades without a Super Bowl appearance, blame appears to find you. It certainly has found Prescott, and with several veterans such as right guard Zack Martin and defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence among others getting older, the reality is that Dallas’ window could be closing soon.

“The pressure gets higher as they go into this offseason and next season,” Aikman said. “Everyone talks about that proverbial window and how long it’s going to stay open, it’s hard in this league to keep it open. We just assume that because these key guys will be back that they’ll continue to play at a high level, win 12 games, and put themselves at that position. It doesn’t always work out that way.”