Can Dak Prescott Bounce Back in Year Three?

After a crushing loss in the NFC Divisional Round to the Green Bay Packers in 2016, Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys felt like they hadn't fulfilled their full potential for the season. The rookie duo of Prescott and star running back Ezekiel Elliott had carried the Cowboys to a 13-3 season before being bounced by Green Bay as the top seed in the NFC.

But there was a huge, glistening silver lining in Dallas after that heartbreaking last-second loss to the Packers. The 'Boys had tied their best regular season record in franchise history while being lead by two rookies on offense. Things were looking brighter than ever in Big D for the following season.

Weeks prior to the start of the 2017-18 regular season, commissioner Roger Goodell announced that Ezekiel Elliott had been suspended for the first six games of the season after a scandal arose surrounding his alleged abuse of an ex-girlfriend. Zeke was able to battle it out in court, remaining eligible to play up until week 10, until he finally decided to serve the suspension.

Dallas was sitting at 5-3 at the time Elliott's suspension went into effect. They ended up losing three straight following his suspension before finishing the season 4-1 to end up at 9-7, missing the playoffs by one game. Quarterback Dak Prescott struggled mightily in Zeke's absence. In six games without his star tailback, Prescott matched his seven total touchdowns with seven interceptions.

Opinions and takes began floating that Dak couldn't be an NFL quarterback without Ezekiel Eliott to help carry the workload. Prescott has expressed confidence this offseason that he can bounce back to carry the Cowboys back to the playoffs in 2018 -19. He certainly will have the challenge of working with a new receiving corps, losing Dez Bryant and security blanket Jason Witten over the summer. However, now that charges against Zeke Elliott have been dropped and his entire fiasco is in the past, Dallas' dynamic duo can fully focus on the task at hand.

Look for Prescott to have a more successful season in year three. The front office has added more "Dak-friendly" receivers around the 24-year old, as well as another young, strong offensive lineman in Connor Williams. If they are both able to stay healthy for all 16 games, you could see flashes of the same offense of 2016 that won Dallas 13 games.

Getting back to the postseason should be priority number one for the Cowboys, but it will be a more interesting challenge with all the moving pieces Dallas has on both sides of the ball. Dak Prescott's grit and determination will definitely be challenged more than ever in his third season, and only time will tell how he will handle those challenges.

By Bryce Wheeler/@BryceWheeler5

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