Stephen A. Smith Offers Rare Dak Prescott Praise With Jalen Hurts Comparison
When it comes to ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith, there are at least two things that sports fans can count on happening when he speaks on the network or his personal platforms: his animated personality and heavy criticism of Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott.
The Cowboys defeated the Rams, 43-20, to earn their 11th consecutive home victory Sunday afternoon. In the win, Prescott completed 25 of 31 passes for 304 yards with four touchdowns and one interception.
Prescott registered the sixth game of his career where he topped 300 passing yards with four touchdown passes. He’s also the only signal-caller in the league with a completion rate above 80% in three games this season.
On Monday’s episode of ESPN’s First Take, Smith praised the Prescott for his performance and said he played better than Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts on Sunday.
“I gotta give credit where credit is due,” Smith said of Prescott’s performance. “… I’m not gonna sit up there and dog [Prescott] all 16 weeks—[even though] a vast majority of the time I have a reason to do so. Yesterday was not one of those times. … He showed up on Sunday, but he usually shows up when they get off early, and he’s got a lead, a little cushion. It’s when it’s tight and it’s late and the pressure is there, it’s a little bit different. That’s not what happened yesterday.”
.@stephenasmith thinks Dak Prescott played better than Jalen Hurts yesterday ????
— First Take (@FirstTake) October 30, 2023
"I gotta give credit where credit is due." pic.twitter.com/FflHheS4QU
The Cowboys led the Rams 33-9 at halftime before Los Angeles outscored Dallas, 11-10, in the second half of the contest. Dallas (5-2) sits in second place in the NFC East behind the Eagles (7-1) and have won two consecutive games since its embarrassing 42-10 loss to the 49ers on Oct. 8.
Incidentally, Hurts also played well Sunday, completing 29 of 38 passes for 319 yards with four touchdown passes and zero interceptions in a win over the Commanders.
The Cowboys are scheduled to play the Eagles in Philadelphia on Sunday at 4:25 p.m. ET.