National Football League

Dak Prescott excited by Brandin Cooks' speed, remains hopeful for Zeke return

Updated Apr. 20, 2023 3:50 p.m. ET

Dak Prescott's first review of new Dallas Cowboys teammate Brandin Cooks was a good one.

The star quarterback shared that he held his first throwing session with the veteran receiver earlier Tuesday during an appearance on "The Adam Schefter Podcast."

"Got a good little throwing session in today," Prescott said when asked how his offseason has gone so far. "Got to throw with B. Cooks. It’s going well."

Prescott didn't break down too much from the throwing session he had with Cooks, but there was one trait in particular that stood out to him.

"It's existing, I'll say that," Prescott said of Cooks. "It was very exciting to throw with him today. The guy is different. That is real speed."

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The Cowboys traded for Cooks in March, giving up a fifth-round pick in 2023 plus a sixth-round pick in 2024 to the Houston Texans for the 29-year-old receiver. With the trade, the Cowboys are trying to get Prescott more help at wide receiver after not getting much production at the position outside CeeDee Lamb in 2022 following the trade of Amari Cooper.

Cooks should be the dependable No. 2 the Cowboys are looking for. He has recorded at least 1,000 receiving yards in six of his nine NFL seasons. He is coming off a down year, recording 57 receptions for 699 yards and three touchdowns over 13 games. However, Cooks recorded a career-high 90 receptions the season prior.

While Cooks is a new face in the Cowboys' locker room, there are several familiar faces that have departed this offseason. First, it was offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, who Prescott played with for two seasons before being coached by him for the last five years. Moore went to the Los Angeles Chargers for the same role.

"Yeah, it wasn't easy, to put it like that," Prescott said of Moore's departure. "Not only Kellen Moore, but also [former quarterbacks coach] Doug Nussmeier. Just two men that I've grown with. Me and Kellen, we were together since I've been drafted. We created a relationship as teammates and then more of that as player-coach. At the end of the day, he was a brother. So, just seeing him leave was tough, but I'm happy for him, happy for his new opportunity."

The other notable departure in Dallas was running back Ezekiel Elliott. The Cowboys released the three-time Pro Bowler to help create cap room in March. Prescott admitted he misses Elliott, who joined him in Dallas at the same time and became close friends with him.

"That one still doesn't feel right as we're going into the facilities for the offseason program," Prescott said. "He's been my locker buddy for years and he's just a guy I'd go to war with and I'd do anything for in this world. It's tough not going into work with him. He's somebody I support. But he won't be a free agent for long. I don't understand why he still is."

As Elliott remains on the open market, there has been some thinking that he could wind up back in Dallas. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones seemed open to the idea when speaking to reporters at the NFL's owners meeting in March.

When Schefter brought up the idea of Elliott returning, Prescott said, "I'm going to imagine with you until he's with another team."

"I'd tell ya, that would be nice," Prescott said. "I know myself and I can tell you that there's not only a lot of people on the team, but also in the organization that would love that. I'm sure Zeke would as well. We understand that this is a business. As you said, the market changes and things go up and down and don't go the way we see it. But, hopefully, that could happen."

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Still, Prescott recognizes that changes are always going to be made in the NFL, especially if you fall short of the ultimate goal.

"It's been tough," Prescott said of the changes. "But with change, change is good as well. So, I've got to embrace that and embrace what we've got moving forward. I'm excited for it."

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