Tale of the tape: Dak Prescott’s mechanics

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are failing him http://www.cowboysauthorizedshops.com/authentic-byron-jones-jersey , and time is running out to fix them It has been an ugly start in 2018 for third-year quarterback Dak Prescott. Through five weeks, Prescott is ranked 24th in yards, 28th in passer rating, 31st in completion percentage, and 32nd in average yards per completion. These numbers are absolutely unacceptable, and this is coming from someone who has been a big supporter of Dak Prescott since coming into the league in 2016. There are plenty of questions surrounding the scheme, play-calling, and personnel surrounding Prescott, but there are things he can improve on first that have nothing to do with any of that other stuff. Stats are stats, and sometimes they lie, so today we will take a look at the tape from the 19-16 loss to the in-state rival Houston Texans, to see if the numbers match the tape.Prescott has struggled to sequence is bodyBody sequence is something you can look at in any sport. In baseball hitters use it to synch up their hips, hands, and barrel of the bat to create power. In tennis, you use your base, hips, and shoulders to create power and placement. In golf, if your upper body out-fires your lower hips/legs, you’ll continue to pull the ball badly. In football, if your lower half is pointing one way, and your upper body is pointed another, you won’t be accurate with the football. This has been one of Dak Prescott’s biggest issues.Play 1: Throwing mechanics start with the lower halfFirst off, this is bad pocket management from Prescott. There is literally zero reason for him to start to fade to his left when he sees the DB blitzing. It seems as if Prescott has lost all faith in his blocking, and that shows here with how quick he’s starting to bail out of a clean pocket. When Prescott pulls this football back to fire, he’s actually in pretty decent shape to throw an accurate football. That all goes south when instead of driving through this football he pulls off of it which causes a wide throw. Prescott’s weight is distributed so poorly here that after he releases the football his front foot slips Zack Martin Jersey , which makes his front shoulder and upper body fall away from his target even more. This all comes from poor mechanics, due to poor weight distribution, and not driving through the throw, that all happens when your body isn’t in a position to do those things.Play 2: Poor weight footwork leads to near pick sixSimilar to the play above, Prescott is releasing this football off of his toes, with zero positive weight distribution in his lower half. This is what happens when you try and throw a ball of your toes, it normally sails high. This can’t happen, and so far it’s happening far to often on Prescott’s short throws.Poor pocket awareness leads to rushed and inaccurate throwsWhen Prescott is comfortable in the pocket, he normally showcases pretty decent arm talent and accuracy. The problem is, he hasn’t been comfortable in the pocket much this season. So of that falls on the inconsistency of the offensive line, and some of it falls on his inability to step up in the pocket, reset his feet, and fire the football. Play 1: Poor pocket awareness leads to another rushed throwOn this play, there is plenty of room for Dak Prescott to step up in the pocket, reset his feet and upper body, and deliver and accurate football to Michael Gallup. Instead, Prescott stands in the pocket without moving, and allows the Houston defender to get in his face while delivering the football. This causes Prescott to throw off of his back foot which results in an underthrown ball that Gallup is unable to haul in. Awareness of the pocket is one of the most underrated traits in a quarterback's game, and so far this year, Prescott has struggled with it.Play 2: Prescott has to step up, reset, and drive the football. He does none of these thingsAgain, check out where Dak Prescott’s front foot is pointed, and where his follow through leg is when this ball is released. No follow through, leads to yet another poorly thrown ball that leads to an interception. It is up for debate on whether or not Tavon Austin should have hauled this in Authentic Sean Lee Jersey , but that has nothing to do with the fact that the ball was thrown 10-12” to high due to the lack of ability to finish his throws.He wasn’t able to finish this throw due to the blitzing linebacker coming through the “A-gap”. Prescott could have done himself a huge favor by stepping up in the pocket and by himself plenty of time to reset, and fire a much more accurate football in for Tavon Austin.Lack of anticipation is killing Dak PrescottIt seems like forever since 2016 when Prescott was playing at an all-time-high. In 2016, Prescott showed the ability to throw with some anticipation, put the ball where it needed to be, and make plays with his legs when he needed to. Here, the Texans showed a slot blitz pretty early, when the safety comes creeping down, this gives away that the Texans are playing man coverage with a safety who is 10 yards off playing man coverage on Cole Beasley. Prescott makes the right read, but he throws the ball too late, which cancels out any opportunity for yards after the catch. This has to be a ball that Prescott delivers as soon as he hits his back foot, instead Beasley catches the ball as he’s stepping out of bounds for a gain of eight, on 3rd and 9. Prescott also had an opportunity to run to his left here if he wanted to, and from the looks of it, he might still be running if he gets around the edge and breaks a tackle in the second level. In 2016, when Prescott didn’t like what he saw when scanning the field, he ran, and for the most part those plays resulted in positive plays for the Cowboys offense. I’m unsure if his lack of running is coming from the coaching staff, ownership, or himself, but it’s something he needs to start doing more of if the Cowboys offense wants to have any success moving forward. While the play of Dak Prescott has no question hurt this football team, the offensive scheme, play-calling, and supporting cast has not done their part either. Most of the offensive woes for the Cowboys are pointing back to Dak Prescott’s inability to make plays through the air, and after each week those questions are continuing to grow. If Dak wants to play better he needs to start from the ground up, because right now his footwork is a mess Youth Tyron Smith Jersey , which is throwing off his release point, drive through the football, and ability to avoid pressure due to poor body positioning. He has 11 weeks to figure it out, but his window is closing much quicker than most expected. Can Dak Prescott turn it around and be the franchise quarterback the Cowboys need?NFL Draft prospect to know: TCU’s Ben Banogu is a unique talent in deep EDGE class Blogging The Boys will take a look at some of the NFL Draft prospects that will be in the 2018 NFL Draft class. This early in the season, it’s impossible to know the Cowboys draft position, so we’ll look at a variety of prospects.Starting last September, we began taking a look at a different potential NFL Draft prospect each week throughout college football season and through the draft process. We saw stocks rise and stocks plummet during the series. The first edition of the series this year takes us across the DFW area, to the TCU Horned Frogs. The top-15 ranked Frogs are gearing up for a clash with the top-5 ranked Ohio State Buckeyes in, oddly enough, AT&T Stadium. Needless to say, there will be no shortage of scouts with their eyes on this early season battle.Gary Patterson has been known for building defenses filled with athletes that are both big and fast. This season is no different, as Patterson’s squad features a talented front seven built to make TCU a contender in the Big 12 in 2018. Let’s look at one prospect that may potentially grab the attention of those within the Dallas Cowboys.Ben Banogu — EDGE, TCU Horned Frogs6-foot-4249SeniorTim Heitman-USA TODAY SportsOne of the more intriguing EDGE prospects in the 2019 crop plays his football about an hour away from the Cowboys headquarters in Frisco. Ben Banogu, a lengthy 6-foot-4 EDGE, burst onto the college football scene en route to recording just under 10 sacks as a junior.Before Banogu emerged as one of the better pass rushers in college football with TCU, the McKinney, Texas, native and Prosper High School almnus began his career in Louisiana with the ULM Warhawks. The former two-star prospect took a redshirt during his first season in The Boot, but splashed as one of the team’s better players the very next season.As a redshirt freshman, Banogu earned a starting position along ULM’s defensive line. From there, he became a nightmare for opposing offensive lines. Banogu started every game for the Warhawks, recording 45 tackles, 14.5 tackles-for-loss, and five sacks. He was named the Sun Belt Conference’s Newcomer of the Year for his impressive debut season. That was not the last honor he would go on to earn.Following his big season with Louisiana-Monroe, the Texas native opted to transfer to a bigger school that happened to be closer to where he went to high school. NCAA rules forced him to sit out the 2016 season http://www.cowboysauthorizedshops.com/authentic-demarcus-lawrence-jersey , but he only improved by the time he stepped back onto the field. Banogu earned the starting spot at LDE for the Horned Frogs before he ever took a snap with his new team. As a result, he put together a season that earned him numerous honors and put him on the radar of NFL scouts.Banogu’s first season in purple saw him take the Big 12 by storm. The ULM transfer started in all 14 games for Gary Patterson’s squad, racking up 55 total tackles in addition to career-highs in TFLs with 16.5 and in sacks with 8.5. Offensive tackles had no answers and quarterbacks grew tired of seeing No. 15 in their backfield. TCU’s star EDGE earned accolades such as the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year and first team all-conference.Through two weeks in 2017, Banogu has recorded two tackles, one TFL, a sack, and he forced a fumble.Where does Banogu stack up among a deep EDGE — and defensive line in general — class? Let’s take a look.The elite EDGE prospects in the upcoming draft class that immediately come to mind include the likes of Ohio State’s Nick Bosa (yes, Joey Bosa’s younger brother — who some believe may be better than the 2016 Defensive Rookie of the Year), Mississippi State’s Montez Sweat, and Florida State’s Brian Burns, to name just a few. Banogu has a chance to move up to that top tier with a strong senior campaign.In fact, last December, ESPN’s Todd McShay had Banogu slotted in the first-round of one of his mock drafts for 2018.Take that for what it is worth, but it is worth noting that the TCU defender has received some day one hype already. McShay is not the only one high on Banogu, as draft analyst Jonah Tuls had this to say:Three PlaysHere are three plays that demonstrate what Ben Banogu can do. On this first clip, Banogu — playing in his second game with TCU — flies by Arkansas’ left tackle, forcing a stripping the ball out of quarterback Austin Allen’s hand. Banogu finished the contest with 13 total tackles, one TFL, a sack, and a forced fumble.This next clip shows Banogu again disrupting the play and knocking the ball out of the quarterback’s hand. Banogu is lined up on the top of the screen against right tackle Bobby Evans — a good player in his own right. TCU decides to bring their talented defender inside on a stunt and Banogu blows by OU’s center Erick Wren. As a result, Banogu knocks the ball out of Baker Mayfield’s hand and nearly causes a turnover.The last clips hows Banogu’s ability to recognize and dissect a play. As he sees Iowa State setting up a quick shovel pass to gain some easy yards, Banogu steps right by the Cyclone’s tackle and wraps the ball carrier up for a loss.Two TraitsScary athleticismExplosive speedOne SentenceBen Banogu is certainly not a finished product — especially when defending the run — but his unique length and speed makes him a prime candiadate to be a late first or early second round selection come April 2019.*All stats courtesy of sports-reference.com.
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