Dak Prescott didn't need Thursday's game to end in order to enjoy a helping of turkey on Thanksgiving Day.
Following his fourth touchdown pass of the night -- a 34-yarder to KaVontae Turpin in the fourth quarter -- Prescott and his Cowboys teammates huddled around the Salvation Army kettle near the end zone and pulled out several turkey legs to celebrate the game-sealing score.
The Cowboys' star quarterback could be seen taking a big bite as he walked back to the sidelines.
"Team effort. Team idea," Prescott said of the planned celebration after Thursday's 45-10 victory. "We talked about it, it was probably a two-, three-daylong process. Whether it'd be a 15-yard (penalty), whether coach (Mike McCarthy) would accept it. I actually go talk to coach before every game, and sure enough I caught him as he was talking to Jerry (Jones). So, I mentioned it. Of course Jerry liked it.
"At that point my direction was to just make sure we're up and the game was in hand. The touchdown to CeeDee (Lamb) and the following two-point conversion, if you watch, I'm kind of like, 'Is it time? Can we do it?' I'm like, 'Nah, we'll get another one.' Sure enough, right after the one to Turp it's like, yeah, let's go for it. And it was good."
It was merely an appetizer for Prescott as he and DaRon Bland, who set an NFL record in the game with his fifth pick-six of the season, were appropriately named the John Madden players of the game on the CBS broadcast, allowing the duo to take bites out of more turkey legs following their postgame interview.
Prescott finished the game 22-of-32 passing for 331 yards with four TDs, no interceptions and a 142.1 passer rating. Utilizing the great protection his offensive line provided (zero sacks allowed), Prescott spread the ball around with great accuracy, completing passes to 10 different Cowboys receivers with Turpin, CeeDee Lamb, Brandin Cooks and Rico Dowdle each hauling in scores.
The Thanksgiving Day feast continued what has been an offensive hot streak in recent weeks for Dallas. Prescott notched his third four-TD game since coming off a Week 7 bye and has led 43-plus point efforts in each of those outings.
"I don't know that I can put my finger right on and say this is the why," Prescott said of the Cowboys' recent success. "As much as I've talked about new system, new play-calling, we know what we want to do. We know how we want to attack. We know how we want to go at these different teams. We're running plays that we've ran since the spring. Dress them up different ways. Give a different approach. Comfortable. And honestly, credit to the offensive line. I think that's where it starts. The way that they're protecting, giving me time to take shots down the field, allowing me to extend plays -- whether it be using my feet -- extend plays, make plays down the field again after breaking the pocket. Guys are running. Guys are running to win. (McCarthy) is flying them off the call sheet, and it feels good."
More importantly, the Cowboys (8-3) kept their division hopes alive with Thursday's win and remain in the hunt to host a playoff game at AT&T Stadium, which would be huge for a team that has been dominant at home. Dallas extended a 13-game home winning streak and is the first team in NFL history to win each of its first five home games of a season by 20-plus points, according to NFL Research.
The impressive numbers show a team rounding into form as the season heads into December, which, according to Prescott, is why the Cowboys are confident to implement such a fitting celebration on Thanksgiving Day.
"Yeah. It goes again to the prep," Prescott said of the team's confidence to plan such a celebration. "The preparation we've put into this thing. Obviously, we feel good about what we've got. We feel good about the players that we have, the plays that we're gonna call, the matchup, the film study we've had, the preparation, the game plan. Credit these coaches week in and week out. They're dialing up things and putting playmakers in their best position, and, yeah, it's confidence. Simple as that.
"We understand we're going to be in there. It's not like we had them in just that end zone. They were in every bucket. DaRon could've got one himself when he jumped in the other bucket. He was just probably stepping on them. Yeah, we planned. We planned to be there. That says a lot when you plan, whether it be a touchdown celebration, kettle celebration, it's a mindset. And I think that's important for us to have. Those expectations of getting in the end zone and understanding that we'll get back in there."
