EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ — It's easy to misconstrue the totality of what head coach Mike McCarthy and the Dallas Cowboys mean by their newly-revealed mantra for the 2023 season — i.e., "Carpe Omnia" or "Seize Everything" — especially considering how they sailed into a storm-drenched MetLife Stadium like Blackbeard the pirate and left with a 40-0 victory.
The plundering began with a heartfelt message by McCarthy ahead of the invasion, as quarterback Dak Prescott explained following the win.
"He took 5 minutes and told us to take our phones out," Prescott said. "Text, call and thank all the people who mean the most to you and who got you this point."
It's a continuation of what McCarthy and his coaching staff did during the unveiling of the mantra to players, a meeting that included showing images of every single player and their loved ones on the big screen followed by an empty frame with the year "2023" on it.
The latter signifies a picture that hasn't been taken yet.
So when the Cowboys are working everyday to seize everything, it's a duality that includes pillaging opponents' treasure as much as it is remembering who they're truly playing for, and that's one reason the Giants never truly stood a chance once the tide turned in Dallas' favor.
"It's huge [for setting the tone of the season]," Prescott said of the drubbing in New York. "Play for everything. Play every down. Everything matters and do it for the people you love.
"It was a great start. Credit this staff — the way they've prepared us [in] training camp and throughout this week, and then an amazing meeting this morning. … Great way to start."
Be not misled, however, because everyone involved still views it as one game, and nothing more.
"It's just the start, though," Prescott added.
The sentiment is echoed loudly by McCarthy, who addressed the media on Monday afternoon, both acknowledging the literally historic evening had by his team while also quickly moving toward his and players' focus on a familiar nemesis in Aaron Rodgers.
"We've turned the page," McCarthy said. "We're on to the Jets."
To that point, Prescott isn't dwelling on what went on in Week 1 anymore. That mission was accomplished and, regardless of the fashion in which it was, the fact remains there are 16 more regular season games to be played and each week will present a unique challenge.
"It's the first game," said Prescott. "That's [the media's job] to write whatever statement [that game] needs to be. For us, it's about not getting ahead of ourselves, continuing to stay disciplined, show the discipline — not only that we did through these four quarters, but taking that and making sure we use that in our preparation throughout this week, and then moving forward to next week going home against another New York team, a good team.
"It's the NFL. You've gotta show up week in, week out and be prepared. You don't see a lot of wins like this, so we're not going to get ahead of ourselves on this."
This is a team staying behind its sails as it moves from dock to dock this season, with a mindset that views more as far too little, and that believes wholeheartedly the only thing keeping them from finally locating the "X" on the treasure map in Las Vegas next February is the man staring back at them in the mirror.
Because until you can seize yourself, you'll never seize anything else.
