Panthers 30, Cowboys 27
DAK PRESCOTT: I wouldn't say it's demoralizing. I'd definitely say it's frustrating, right? Even the last time we had the ball, probably not our best series of the game right there, other than the three-and-out to start the game out. At a crucial point like that, we can't just do that.
On top of that, that being the last time we touched the ball, it makes it frustrating. That's the NFL. You trust that those guys are going to get a stop.
Unfortunately had a PI called on the third down. After that, they just kind of ate the clock up, kept running the ball, did a good job.
They won the fourth quarter. That's the NFL. We won the turnover battle. Don't know the big plays, but they won the fourth quarter, and that was the difference there.
A team that's got a obviously second-year coach, young quarterback playing well, getting better. Young running back that we're familiar with. Told us to buckle up. Went and had a hell of a game. Credit to them. They got the best, they're the better team this afternoon.
Q. What was opening up for you and Pickens?
DAK PRESCOTT: He's just an elite receiver. He's an elite receiver. Playing hard. Understanding everything we throw at him. In different positions. Saw him in the slot a lot more today making big plays. After he gets the ball in his hands, some of the things he does, only George can do.
He's a special player. We're lucky to have him. We're only going to get better each game.
Q. Talk about the joy he's playing with. Having fun out there.
DAK PRESCOTT: For sure. Yeah, I mean, no, you're right. It's contagious. I'm obviously having a blast. When you get to throw it to a guy like that, he makes the catch, makes the people miss afterwards, try to jump over him.
He loves football. You see it on Sunday. I see it all throughout the week. There's plays at practice, whether he catches a touchdown, does a celebration, catches a big play, act like, I don't want to say 'act like it', preparing to cut back and make people miss. That's who he is. That's the way he approaches it every day when he comes in. We're crazy fortunate to have him.
You see that every day that he touches that field. When he's around the guys, he loves his teammates and he loves the game of football. It's contagious and it's fun to watch.
Q. You said after the Green Bay game, these next two games will show you what kind of team you have. What do you know about your guys now?
DAK PRESCOTT: Yeah, I mean, we can play with anyone. But it's the NFL. We've got to make sure that we're locked in 'cause you can lose any game. That's the beauty of the NFL, the parity. That's why the draft is set up the way it is, why free agency is the way it is. It's great. It's great.
You get into a game like this, you feel like you're going to win every second. Even the field goal block right there, Sam is jumping over with the block. In my mind we're going to block, win this thing in overtime.
We got a good team that's grimy. Got to find a way to win these games. That's the missing chink in the armor right now. Whether it's the tied game or this game, we have to find a way to win games. If we do that, we feel a whole lot different in the locker room.
The reality, is the team different? Not necessarily. You feel a lot better, taking confidence. When you get that confidence, that allows you to feel more confident at the end of games, knowing I guess you could say and believing you're going to pull it out.
Right now we have to find a way to win the fourth quarter.
Q. Were you hoping they almost let him score there at the end?
DAK PRESCOTT: Yeah, for sure. Obviously when they tried it, they went freeway. It's NFL. Those guys know exactly what we're going to try to do, too.
That's the beauty of the league, is every play matters and every play is hard to execute. Even when you're trying to give it to them, they understand that and they don't want to take it.
Yeah, maybe we have to install picking a guy up and running him into the end zone. That's the beauty of game management. They did it better.
Q. You obviously go against your defense in practice. What gives you confidence they can get it fixed?
DAK PRESCOTT: That we go against them every day. It's an iron-sharpens-iron mentality. Understand the players and pieces they have over there. You see them working each and every day. You see them getting better. At the end of the day they're getting better. The communication, getting the ball out, so they're going to get better.
Q. A loss like this, how does it impact your thoughts on what the season holds?
DAK PRESCOTT: It's a long season. It's a long, long season. I've been 3-5 before I guess, ran and made the Playoffs. That's my point, is you got to find a way to win these close games right here. I have all the confidence we will, right? That game, I wanted the ball back in my hands knowing we'd go win. Unfortunately that didn't happen.
Reality is we have to do better on that last three-and-out. We have to score in the red zone when we had that chance there, right? That field goal is for a tie, they're having to score to win.
It's a long season. It's a long season. We got a lot of great players. We got guys getting healthy, coming back. That's only going to make this team better and more explosive. We got to keep our heads down and keep working, understanding it is a process.
It is a loss, but we got to take something and learn from it.
Q. How do you not let frustration boil over when you basically have to go out there and score every drive?
DAK PRESCOTT: That's my standard. I don't ever go out there thinking let's punt the ball, or after a first down we're good.
If we don't score, last thing I'm doing is being frustrated at the defense. That's my problem, our problem, somebody on offense, something that we didn't do better.
You guys know me, I'm a look-in-the-mirror type guy before I ever would think about pointing the finger. I have to be accountable.
There's two or three plays I can think of off the top of my head. Maybe not big plays, plays you don't pick out. I'm thinking if I throw it there, do this, what does that drive turn into? What's the next play, the next third down look like?
Part of game. Look at yourself and face that first.
Q. George, is this the quickest you've been able to establish a relationship?
DAK PRESCOTT: I guess. I mean, CD was pretty fast. Unfortunately I was hurt within five games, didn't get to show the rest of it.
That's credit to these guys. That's credit to them, one, to understand what I'm thinking, running their routes hard, after we communicate going and executing it.
It's fun to throw it to a guy like that. It's fun to watch him. Speaking of CD, he gets back, he gets healthy, good luck on how teams are going to play us. You have guys like Ferg, other play-makers making plays. In terms of getting healthy. We have Flo, J.T. George definitely opens it up. Thankful to have him.
Q. You had a couple misses earlier in the year with Ferg up the middle. To see it cash in today, how refreshing was that?
DAK PRESCOTT: Yeah, it was great. Got a good look from the defense. The back row is kind of flat-footed, so they wasn't getting depth. Leaned the safety over there. That's probably one of the easier ones, right? Trusting a guy like that. Good to cash in, especially after last week, if we talked about the one that should have been easy. Just to come back today and get one, proud of him.
Q. Obviously that screen pass on the last drive, a couple plays after that, how difficult was it to try to push the ball downfield nothing you were behind the sticks?
DAK PRESCOTT: It was tough. Understanding that they're going to try to put a lid on it. Not just because of the success we were having, but that's their get-back-on-track defense. They gave kind of a two-man look. One of those things, looking at the picture, man, could I have taken that inside slot to J.T.? You guys would go back look at it and say yeah.
One of those thinking that nickel can drive, should potentially drive it with that coverage. Went through the progression as normal. Got two negative plays in a row after the screen. That hurt us. On the third down, just about being smart.
Trust me, I want to throw it into tight windows and make plays, but it's a team game. You have to trust the other side. You have to trust special teams, defense, the coaching, the play calling. Unfortunately we just didn't get it back tonight.
Q. (No microphone.)
DAK PRESCOTT: The red zone. The red zone. The last drive, we'll all have to go back and look at it, try to dissect that. Good job by them. Said it over and over. NFL, good job by them. Having a lot of success. They got us on first down. When you're behind the sticks, it's hard to get going again.
But most definitely the red zone one. I know there were two balls in the end zone that were ops to cash in on. One was a scramble. Had to make a hell of a catch. Not on him.
Then they brought a cover zero late. Didn't alert the receivers that it was zero. GP ran a good route, one of those we'll communicate on. Run it a tad different next time understanding the situation, we maybe cash in on that.
But yeah, definitely, anytime we get in the red zone, knowing the players, the plays, what we're capable of, we don't score, the game's different. The rest of the four or five minutes, what was left or whatever, six minutes, it's different after that.
Q. Do you have a message for Rico?
DAK PRESCOTT: Great job tonight. Great job last week. He told us to buckle up. He got the last laugh.
We got a hell of a group of running backs. I love my team, but I miss the guy. Rico is a hell of a friend. But proud of him more than anything. As I said, I didn't get to see him right after the game, I'll connect with him. He knows there's nothing but love.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports