ARLINGTON, Texas — Jake Ferguson caught two of Dak Prescott’s four touchdown passes Sunday, including the 12-yarder that tied Tony Romo’s franchise record, in the Dallas Cowboys’ 37-20 win over the Washington Commanders at AT&T Stadium. When the conversation turned to the record afterward, Ferguson talked about what Prescott did for him during training camp, when his stepfather died.
“Yeah, it means the world to me. The kind of man he is off the field is pretty special. How he carries himself, how he treats people. And I’m not just talking about the football player. I’m talking about the man. The father he is, it’s unbelievable,” Ferguson said. “It’s who you strive to be. He’s a role model for me. And he’s been there for some hard stuff for me. I lost my stepfather in camp, and he was there for me through the whole time, pulled [me] out of a meeting, came to talk to me, and really kept me together. And, yeah, he means a ton to me and means a ton to this team, and it’s pretty special.”
Ferguson was targeted 4 times and caught all 4 for 43 yards. It was the third multiple-touchdown game of his career. He and Prescott have been teammates since 2022, when Dallas drafted Ferguson in the fourth round, the same round it took Prescott six years earlier.
Dak Prescott On Being There For Jake Ferguson
A reporter relayed Ferguson’s answer to Prescott at the podium. His own mother, Peggy, died in 2013, when he was at Mississippi State, and he said he knew where Ferguson was.
“Yeah, they make up more than the records. This world’s about people, man. This life’s about people. It’s about loving and pouring into people and being there for somebody and giving them what you can through your own experiences, being a helping hand,” Prescott said. “And, yeah, me and Jake obviously have grown close over this offseason and just over the past years. And then, yeah, when he lost his father in camp, I knew where he was. I’ve been in that position and just wanted to be there for him and check on him and let him know that whatever your feeling is, okay. Like, you’re mad, pissed, whatever.”
“He handled it as good as anybody can, losing a stepfather and being there for his mom and for his family and being a rock. I just wanted to be a little help if I could,” Prescott continued. “So just for him to even pivot, talking about a record to that, it just goes back to me just saying that all these little things matter. It’s not what I do it for, but it’s humbling, and it makes me emotional to think about that small thing, small gestures can mean so much.”
Jake Ferguson’s Record-Tying Touchdown Started On The Team Bus
Ferguson’s first touchdown came from 10 yards out in the second quarter, one play after a third-down catch by George Pickens drew an unnecessary roughness penalty. The second came late in the third quarter, two plays after Jaishawn Barham’s forced fumble and one possession after Dallas settled for a 44-yard field goal. Prescott traced it to a throw he passed up in the opener.
“Yeah, I mean, the first one, we knew that formation and that look in the red zone, depending on what they’re going to do, was going to give them trouble. We were interested to see how they would play that. And so kind of got exactly what we wanted,” Prescott explained. “And the second one, I think we had stalled out the drive before that, kicking a field goal, and I just said, ‘Man, let me get vertical.’ It’s like I just think we need to run by him. And [Schotty] called a good play, and they once again leaned over to GP, double GP, leaving Ferg one-on-one with the frontside safety or the backer trying to push, and just threw it off of the backer’s ear, understanding where Ferg was going to be, and that’s just trust.”
“That’s stuff that we talked about. That’s actually almost identical to a play we talked about last week where I wanted to hit him. And I didn’t think he gave me his eyes fast enough. And we had a conversation on the bus about it,” Prescott continued. “And it wasn’t the exact same play, but we came back in a very, very similar look, very similar attack. And he did exactly what I wanted him to do. And I just trusted it and ripped it. And he made the catch. And that’s what those conversations and all those moments on the bus and all those things matter, because you never know when they’re going to come up, and [it] came right back up tonight.”
Ryan Flournoy caught 5 passes for 23 yards, three of them in a row on the drive Ferguson finished with his first touchdown. Ferguson and Flournoy spent part of the spring running routes together when few teammates were in town.
“I think that just goes back to offseason. There were times where there might not be many guys in town, but we’re still throwing routes. We’re still figuring it out,” Ferguson explained. “I remember I grabbed Flo after this game, and I was like, ‘That’s all those routes that were just me and you in April, just running routes in our free time.’ And I think that just shows. We’ve been putting in a lot of work. We’ve been putting in a lot of work on the connection, the brotherhood that we’re trying to build here. And we’ve got a lot to do, but that’s just what we’re striving for.”
Ferguson has been voted to two Pro Bowls, in 2023 and 2025. Dallas faces the Baltimore Ravens on Sept. 27 in Rio de Janeiro, with kickoff set for 3:25 p.m. CT on CBS.
