Dak Prescott or Cooper Rush? Jerry Jones confirms who Cowboys' starter will be

Dak Prescott injured his right thumb during the Dallas Cowboys' game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 1 of the 2022-23 NFL season. This forced the Cowboys to turn over the starting quarterback job to Cooper Rush, a backup with little starting experience during his career so far.

Rush started just one game for the Cowboys prior to the 2022-23 season, winning the game in 2021 against the Minnesota Vikings. His inexperience has been a major concern for many around the NFL. However, so far, he has exceeded expectations, winning four consecutive games during the 2022-23 season while filling in for Prescott.

He also helped the Cowboys to a 4-1 record following a Week 5 victory against the Los Angeles Rams.

Rush's surprising success has led owner and general manager Jerry Jones to make some controversial comments about the Cowboys quarterback situation. He mentioned that there may be a quarterback controversy if Cooper Rush continues to play well, even with Dak Prescott ready to make his return from injury.

Prescott appears to be nearing his official return as he has ramped up his practice activities. Jerry Jones recently provided some clarity on the situation in an interview with the Star-Telegram.

“Dak is the number one quarterback. Dak is our guy, but isn’t it great that somebody came in and played well enough so that we can ask that question? That’s my point.”

It sounds like Jones has changed his stance, at least for now, about a quarterback controversy in Dallas upon Dak Prescott's eventual return. However, it appears Cooper Rush's days in the starter role are currently limited to when Prescott is ready to play again.

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Will Dak Prescott play in Week 6 against the Philadelphia Eagles?

Dallas Cowboys QB Dak Prescott

The Dallas Cowboys are entering their biggest game of the 2022-23 NFL season so far in Week 6. They will face off against the undefeated Philadelphia Eagles, their biggest division rivals.

Jerry Jones weighed in on the Cowboys' starting quarterback situation for their game against the Eagles in a statement to the Star-Telegram:

“Dak is going to get better this week. I have no idea whether he’ll line up against Philadelphia, but he’ll get better. And what’s inspirational here is that we’ve got a lot of good players here that didn’t play today that we’ve got help on the way with. Cooper Rush and the Dak Prescott syndrome, so to speak, is a fingerprint of this team.”

Jones implied that Prescott is questionable ahead of their Week 6 matchup and his availability will depend on how much progress he makes during practice this week. If Prescott is unable to go, Jones remains confident that Cooper Rush can get the job done for the Cowboys.