Feb. 5, 2026, 10:30 p.m. CT

When playing for the Dallas Cowboys, there are no shortage of opinions. As the quarterback for America’s Team, the praise and criticisms is even louder. Thankfully, the Cowboys have a QB in Dak Prescott who can take anything that comes his way.

The haters were out after a rough 2024 season where Prescott wasn’t great, but the tone has changed once again during a 2025 campaign where the franchise QB played a full year and earned the admiration from many inside football’s inner circles. The latest media person to give Prescott his flowers is Chad Ochocinco, who works on Inside the NFL and co-hosts a podcast with former NFL tight end Shannon Sharpe.

Ochocinco believes more people should be talking about Prescott when it comes to the better quarterbacks in the league.

The reasoning is sound, every time the Cowboys have a chance to contend, Prescott’s play is a big part of the team’s success. Only twice in the veteran signal callers’ career has he missed the playoffs or not had a chance at the postseason heading into the final week of the season. Most seasons, when he’s been healthy for the majority of the year, the Cowboys have made the playoffs.

Some might question the use of ‘contending for a title’ because Prescott still hasn’t led the Cowboys into the final four at any point in his 10 years in the league, but he’s helped put the team in position to make deep playoff runs, it just hasn’t happened yet. 

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You have to be in it to win it, and Prescott’s played a large role in getting the team into the postseason. Whether he’s played his best football in the playoffs is up for debate, but rational football people will admit that without Prescott, the Cowboys wouldn’t have a chance. 

Ochocinco also acknowledges how Dallas needs to improve on the defensive side of the ball to make Prescott’s job easier. After a season where the Cowboys’ offense was near the top of the league, while their defense was one of the worst in the NFL, the media personality understands how Prescott can be a top QB but also needs help on the opposite side of the ball.

Is Prescott any good or not, has become an annual topic of the NFL offseason, and it comes with the territory of playing quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys. It will also continue until Prescott has the team in the Super Bowl.

Ochocinco made it clear where he stands, let the debate rage on.

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