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Dak Prescott has been waiting for good news up front, and on Monday, he finally got some, sort of. Tyler Guyton, Dallas’ 2024 first-round pick and now second-year left tackle, returned to practice after a knee setback. Not in full pads, not anchoring the edge in team drills, but moving again, testing that frame through individual reps. For a quarterback who knows how fragile protection can be, that sight was more than a relief.

Guyton himself kept it simple, “I’m feeling blessed. I’m just happy to be back out there.” At 6-foot-7¾ and 322 pounds, with 34-inch arms and the athletic profile that made him the 29th overall pick, he’s more than just a piece of the line. He’s the long-term blindside investment, the guy Prescott has to trust when the heat comes.

The question everyone wants answered, though, will he be ready for Week 1? Guyton wasn’t making promises. “We’re gonna keep monitoring it, but I’m gonna leave that up to the training staff.” That’s the bittersweet part. Progress is there. The movement looks encouraging. But certainty? Still missing.

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That’s been the tone throughout his rehab, cautious optimism. He admits he’s testing things day by day. “It’s a little bit of both,” he said when asked about pushing his knee versus knowing how it will respond. “Right in the middle, I would say.” His positive attitude hasn’t gone unnoticed. Veterans like Tyler Smith showed him the blueprint, and Guyton followed it. “I’ve learned a lot from everybody, taking bits and pieces here and there,” he said.

For Prescott and the Cowboys, this update lands somewhere in the middle. They’re watching their cornerstone left tackle inch closer to full strength, and that matters. Yet with kickoff looming, the reality is clear. The offense’s ceiling and Prescott’s comfort in a contract year, depends on whether Guyton’s body says yes when the games actually count.

While Guyton brought huge relief for his team, everyone is more concerned about their defensive side.

Dak Prescott is confident of Micah Parsons’ return

Dak Prescott doesn’t sound worried. Not about Week 1, not about Micah Parsons, and not about the months-long standoff that’s turned into the Cowboys’ summer storyline. “I’ve got confidence,” Prescott told reporters Monday, August 25. “I told y’all that way back when. And I’m just going off experience, honestly. No different than mine.” He’s not wrong. Prescott knows this game better than most.

Last year, he spent the entire offseason waiting for his deal to come through. It didn’t arrive until September 8, four years, $240 million, $231 million guaranteed. The timing wasn’t ideal, but it got done. He’s assuming Parsons’ deal will eventually follow the same script. The difference? Prescott never asked out. Parsons has. He’s pushed for a trade, made it clear he’s not budging without a record-breaking contract, and watched teammates line up on his side of the negotiation. That’s not your typical business as usual holdout. And yet, Dak Prescott’s calm.

Maybe that’s just quarterback diplomacy. Maybe it’s genuine belief that the Cowboys aren’t foolish enough to start their season against Philadelphia without their most destructive defender. Because make no mistake, Parsons is that player. Four years in, he’s at 52.5 career sacks. He managed 12 in just 13 games last season. He’s a two-time All-Pro, a four-time Pro Bowler, and the kind of edge rusher you don’t replace, you just pay. The market has already moved in his favor.

Nick Bosa reset the bar last fall, Myles Garrett cashed in earlier this summer, and now Parsons is staring at the chance to become the highest-paid non-quarterback in league history. He wants that number. Jerry Jones isn’t exactly racing to give it. So the standoff continues. Prescott, though, keeps pointing back to experience, to faith that the mess will sort itself out in time. Week 1, Parsons in uniform, Eagles on the schedule.

If it doesn’t? Then the Cowboys’ most important season in years starts with their biggest weapon standing on the sideline in street clothes. And that’s a reality Dak Prescott, for now, refuses to even entertain.