I’m curious what you think about Dak Prescott and his “championship window.” Meaning, how long do the Cowboys have to ride Prescott while he’s still playing at an elite level? He’s 32 and has had several major injuries. I’m concerned that his decline will be coming sooner rather than later, and the Cowboys will once again have wasted the prime of an elite player. – Bryan Woodward/Oklahoma City, OK

Nick: I’ve never really looked at that way. To me, the variables that are involved in winning championships are countless. And to be honest, I always think it’s silly to say the Cowboys “waste” the opportunity for these players, especially the quarterback. If you think about it, the quarterback is the one position that is tied to the record. That’s what defines them and their overall legacy.

So to say the Cowboys are wasting this time with Dak doesn’t make sense. If Dak’s legacy is tied to this, then it means he’s playing a major part in the successes or failures of this team. Now I’m not saying Dak is the reason they haven’t gone there. Overally, the team hasn’t been good enough. In the playoffs, they haven’t won the big games. Part of that is on Dak, and he’s the first to admit that.

Same goes for Romo, Witten and D-Ware. Those are players that have been mentioned as great careers that were ‘wasted’ without a title. I know D-Ware won in Denver, but the others obviously didn’t. But I just don’t see it that way. The Cowboys have surrounded Dak with a lot of talent and right now he’s playing great football. But they’re still 2-3-1 right now and that’s good enough. Good thing is – Dak knows it and will strive to play even better.

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Kurt: You could say the Cowboys are currently enjoying the second of Prescott’s two windows. The first, of course, was when he burst onto the NFL scene back in 2016, earning Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. At that time, the team had a window during which he was on his rookie contract. Meaning, plenty of salary cap space to build the roster up around him. As we know, though, Dallas could never get past the second round of the playoffs.

Now, I think Prescott and the Cowboys are in another window of opportunity. He certainly is getting paid more, but he’s also reached that apex where his knowledge of the game is on par with his physical talent. When he was younger, he had the physical tools to run faster, throw farther, that sort of thing, but he was still learning defenses, how to lead, those mental aspects that truly separate the great ones.

For many quarterbacks, once they finally gain that edge in the mental game, their bodies have worn down – Tony Romo being the perfect example. But Prescott is currently in a window where we’re seeing his experience and know-how are equal to or better than his physical tools. And consequently, he’s taken his play to entirely new levels.

The question, of course, is how long can he keep that window open since he’s dealt with some serious injuries already? And he’s being asked to carry an extremely heavy load this season. There’s no way to know when this wave will crest, but so far he’s been outstanding, undoubtedly the MVP of the Cowboys if not the entire league.

We just have to hope he can stay healthy, because if he does, there’s no reason to think he can’t continue this successful run for a few seasons to come. But we also have to hope the Cowboys can build a team around Prescott before this final championship window, however long or short it may be, firmly closes. Which indeed may be the real question that needs to be answered.