FRISCO, Texas - Football season is getting closer and closer.
The Cowboys are set to depart for training camp in a few days. That's when we'll get an up-close look at Brian Schottenheimer's second season with this revised roster and coaching staff. When we get to Oxnard, that's when we'll start to get some real answers about this 2026 Cowboys team.
But what are the questions? We've compiled our annual list of pressing questions that need answers heading into the regular season. The staff writers, consisting of Patrik Walker, Tommy Yarrish, Nick Eatman, Mickey Spagnola and Kurt Daniels, weigh in on some of the pressing issues.
Today, we'll continue the series with a look at if Cowboys QB Dak Prescott is a legitimate MVP candidate going into his 11th season at the helm of the offense in Dallas.
No.2) Is Dak a legitimate MVP candidate?
Tommy: Yes. As long as Prescott has CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens healthy, I would say he has a chance to be in the conversation. Is he the favorite? That's a completely different conversation and I would say he isn't.
I feel as though the 2023 season showed that Prescott is capable of winning the award. Three years later, I think Prescott has a better receiving core than he did in that season, which means he absolutely has a chance to be a candidate, but the rest is up to him. When he's been healthy, which he was in 2025, you can see that he can play to the level of some of the best quarterbacks in this league.
The rest of the group around him, not just on offense, will have to do their part too. Prescott will certainly have to do his part to help the team win games, which makes him the "most valuable," but the defense and his run game will have a lot to do with that as well. If Javonte Williams and Dallas' offensive line can continue paving the way on the ground to open up the play action game, and Christian Parker's defense gives Prescott some extra possessions, an MVP for Prescott could definitely happen.
Nick: Talented enough ... of course. Good enough to put it all together ... yes, to that as well. So it's not about what Dak brings to the table, it's what the rest of the table looks like that makes me wonder if he's a "legitimate" candidate or not.
Let's not mistake this for saying Dak can't get the job done because it hasn't happened yet. Ok great ... Drew Brees and John Elway come to mind as quarterbacks that couldn't win ... until they did. But I do wonder if the Cowboys as a team are ready to take that big step along with Dak. Now, if he ends up carrying them to the finish line, then yes he absolutely will be recognized as such.
You rarely see an MVP on a team that isn't right there at the very top - and that's where I'm getting at. I don't know if the Cowboys have enough to jump from back-to-back 7-win seasons and be ready to compete for the conference title. But that's probably what it's going to take for Dak to get himself in the conversation. Yes, he's good enough and I don't doubt that at all. I just wonder if the supporting cast is good enough to get him over the hump.
Kurt: Absolutely, he is. There were periods last season when Prescott was near the top in terms of odds to win the MVP award, and remember, he finished second in MVP voting in 2023 and was sixth in 2016. So why people think Prescott wouldn't be in the running again is hard to fathom. Heck, according to USA Today, he's currently tied for the fifth-best odds to take home the honor in 2026.
But to finally earn the award, he has to again put up big numbers statistically and take his team to the playoffs, which means he's going to need help from the Dallas defense in order to rack up more wins. Despite his production last year, Prescott eventually dropped out of the MVP race because the other side of the ball just couldn't take care of business. However, if the defense has indeed improved, and he keeps the offense humming, Prescott could, and maybe even should, add more hardware to his trophy case.
Mickey: Why not? Didn't Dak finish second in the NFL 2023 MVP voting to winner Baltimore QB Lamar Jackson, finishing with 152 points, ahead of Christian McCaffrey (3), Brock Purdy (4) and Josh Allen (5). Now again, Dak isn't out there playing singles. So not only does Dak need to put up those big passing numbers, but the Cowboys must put up a winning record as they did in 2023 with a12-5 finish and the NFC East Division title. Remember team success has a lot to do with the MVP voting. In 2023 Jackson led the Ravens to a 13-4 record, first place in the AFC North and a first-round bye, only to lose in the AFC Championship game to Kansas City, 17-10. His passing numbers, aside from his running success, paled in comparison to Dak's, but team success went a long way toward Jackson winning his second MVP award, receiving 49 of 50 first place votes.
Patrik: It tickles me to see some people act as if this question is bold or unreasonable (I call that the "Cowboy Tax") when, in actuality, it's so reasonable that it almost earns a yawn from me. Let's talk facts here, or science, if you will. Prescott is an All-Pro quarterback that has been at the front of the NFL MVP conversation not once or twice, but three times over the last five seasons — to the point where there's a contingent that argues he should've won the honor over Lamar Jackson in 2023.
So, can Prescott be a legitimate MVP candidate again when the 2026 season rolls around? Yes, and yes again. He's at the top of his game. He's got weapons galore. He's got an offensive play-caller that invites fresh ideas and proved he can call a No. 1 offense. If the Cowboys' defense plays up to expectation under Christian Parker, or at least above average, Prescott's play won't be wasted with a playoff-less campaign or early postseason exit and, then and only then, will the world be willing to give the former fourth-round pick his credit … following a playoff run that requires both sides of the team to show up every week and not just Prescott and the offense. (*yawns*)
