In what we’ve always judged to be a clever form of “teaching leadership,” Dallas Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy has over his four seasons here developed a habit of naming different team captains for each game day.
Spread the attention. Spread the responsibility.
The level of play must step up. So the “true captains” are invited to do the same. To wit, the revelation that for this game and all the rest in the postseason – yes, that is the Super Bowl-minded plan – permanent captains.
And so you have your highlighted leaders and your designated and “permanent captains” for the entire playoffs: Repping the offense are MVP candidate QB Dak Prescott and All-Pro guard Zack Martin. For the defense, it’s DeMarcus Lawrence and cornerback Stephon Gilmore. And the boss on special teams? Maybe a bit of a surprise as it’s the rookie kicker Brandon Aubrey along with punter Bryan Anger, both All-Pro picks this year.
The Packers come in at 9-8, as the Cowboys are 12-5 and 8-0 at home … with 16 straight wins here at AT&T Stadium dating back to September 2022. Kickoff is slated for 3:30 p.m. CT … and CowboysSI.com has you covered from here at the stadium!
Mike Fisher – as a newspaper beat writer and columnist and on radio and TV, where he is an Emmy winner – has covered the NFL since 1983 and the Dallas Cowboys since 1990, is the author of two best-selling books on the Cowboys.
Our long (well, two years), national (well, Cowboys Nation plus the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex) nightmare (well, for those who regularly cover the NFL) is over.
Dak Prescott agreed to a long-deserved extension with the Dallas Cowboys on Monday evening. The four-year pact will pay him $160 million with a maximum value of $164 million. The guarantees amount to $126 million – meaning Prescott moves ahead of the Texans’ Deshaun Watson and will trail only the Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes on the compensation scale when it comes to contract value, guaranteed money and average annual salary ($40 million).
But the considerations go beyond just Prescott’s wallet. Here are winners and losers from the NFL’s biggest story of the offseason (so far):
Let’s dispense with the Captain Obvious stuff. He’s being paid like a Super Bowl MVP and reeled in the relatively short-term deal that should allow him to cash in yet again in the not-too-distant future – once the league’s coffers are full of newly negotiated television contracts which are expected to send the salary cap soaring once again. Prescott, who was likely one day away from getting stuck with another franchise tag, also has precious security on the heels of a season when he suffered a compound fracture and dislocation of his right ankle. And, per NFL Network, he even secured a no-trade clause and can’t be franchised by Dallas in the future.
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