DETROIT – Nothing Dak Prescott does on a football field surprises his good friend Ezekiel Elliott.
But Zeke can sense the Cowboys quarterback has entered some kind of zone lately.
"I don't know, something's clicking there," Elliott said with a smile after Sunday's 35-27 road win over the Lions. "He's throwing the (crap) out of the ball."
The numbers alone agree: Prescott is playing the best ball of his four-year NFL career.
He had 444 passing yards Sunday, the third-highest of his career and his second-highest total this season. He has thrown three touchdown passes in three straight games for the second time since getting drafted in 2016.
"He's playing phenomenally," wide receiver Amari Cooper said.
It's not just the stats. Prescott looks more comfortable than ever making reads and throws from the pocket. Sunday he completed passes to seven different receivers, including offseason additions Randall Cobb (4 for 115, touchdown) and rookie Tony Pollard (4 for 44, touchdown). His rapport with second-year wideout Michael Gallup (9 for 148) keeps growing.
And, Prescott's strength and mobility continue to be major assets. He ran 6 times for 18 yards Sunday on designed runs and scrambles. Multiple times he shrugged off or spun away from a potential sack, including his 7-yard run on third down in the third quarter that moved the offense into the red zone and led to a field goal.
"He's a really confident player right now," offensive coordinator Kellen Moore said. "He feels very convicted in what he's doing, whether it's Amari, whether it's Randall, whether it's M.G. (Gallup), whoever's out there. If they're open, he does a great job just going throw progressions, finding guys and making plays."
Prescott credits those around him. The offensive line allowed one sack on 46 pass attempts Sunday and only 11 sacks through 10 games. Last season they gave up 56.
"There's a couple times I literally went through the progression two or three times," Prescott said. "It just gives you a lot of confidence when your guys are fighting for the ball, they want the ball and they're going to go out there and win."
The offense piled up 509 total yards despite another slow start. For the third straight game and the seventh time in 10 games, they didn't register a touchdown in the first quarter.
Yet, by halftime Prescott had 274 passing yards and Dallas held a 24-14 lead. They didn't look back the rest of the way.
"It's all about moving forward, getting better," Prescott said.
On to New England next Sunday to face the Super Bowl champs.
