Cowboys’ Prescott to have thumb surgery; will miss “several” weeks

What was already a disastrous start to the season on Sunday night against Tampa Bay only got worse for the Cowboys in the waning moments of their 19-3 loss when quarterback Dak Prescott left the field with a thumb injury on his throwing hand.

It was quickly determined that Prescott would need surgery and be sidelined for an undetermined number of weeks.

“Dak will be out for a little while, so we will be dealing with that as well,” said Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones, immediately after the loss. “This was a really tough night for the Cowboys. … To lose him for several weeks, but we will see more about how many weeks that may be.

“He has an injury above the joint in his thumb that will need surgery.”

Prescott, who was not having a good day, hit his hand on the helmet of a Tampa Bay defender with just under six minutes to play in the game. After flexing the hand, the QB exited the field.

“I thought I jammed it,” Prescott said. “I have hit my hand on helmets or bodies a lot in my career, but never really had anything (more) than a jammed finger here, and actually thought that’s what it was. The next play I realized I couldn’t grip the ball, let the sideline know and when I got off, I told the trainers know the same thing – ‘I can’t grip, but I feel like if you yank it, I will be okay.’ But no, we came in got x-rays and things are different.”

Prescott finished completing just 14 of 29 passes for 134 yards, with one interception.

“Plan is for surgery (Monday), and they will let me know when they get in there and see everything. I was told it was much cleaner than it could have been.”

With no timetable for return, the Cowboys will turn to backup Cooper Rush. Rush, who came in and competed seven of 13 passes for 64 yards in the final minutes against Tampa Bay, will make just the second start of his career on Sunday when the Cowboys host Cincinnati.

Rush, who filled in for Prescott in 2021 when the starter was out with a strained calf, led the team to a Week 4 victory over Minnesota. The fill-in threw for 325 yards on 24 completions with two touchdowns in the 20-16 win.

“It is very disappointing, but injuries happen.,” Prescott said. “You can’t necessarily control it. It is just unfortunate. Obviously, I am going to miss some time and not be there for my team, and that is what hurts more than anything. Especially after the start that we just put out there.”