No more Rush to judgment

Cooper Rush’s fairy tale story ground to a halt Sunday Night, minus the Hollywood ending. In this rivalry game, the Philadelphia Eagles took care of the Dallas Cowboys, 26-17, and exposed Rush as the undrafted backup quarterback he’s always been.

Looks like Rush’s wife, Lauryn, chose the wrong game to attend.

Midnight struck, and Cooper’s ride turned back into a pumpkin right before our eyes, after everyone looked to push him ahead of Dak Prescott. For as good as Rush had been in his previous four games this season, he was even worse against the Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field Sunday night.

Before facing the Eagles, Rush had not thrown an interception this year, and had just one in five career starts. Philly picked Rush off three times in this game and forced the Central Michigan product into arrant throws and bad reads all night. The undrafted free agent recorded more incomplete passes than he completed hitting just 47 percent for the game. It wasn’t Rush’s night, and his lapse couldn’t have come at a better time for Cowboys fans with Prescott on the mend. The QB controversy Jerry Jones once spoke of is now completely thrown out the window.

Even former Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant can admit Prescott is still the rightful owner of the QB1 spot in Big D. Prescott and Bryant aren’t exactly what you’d call best friends by any means, as they never seemed to quite get on the same page early in Dak’s career. The former No. 88 even had a well-publicized Twitter feud with Dak’s brother Tad that’s likely still lingering in the background.

The key takeaway here is precisely what Dez points out in his Tweet. The Cowboys starting QB job was, is, and will be Prescott’s well into the future. We can’t discount the stability that Rush brought in Prescott’s absence, but there was never a real chance for Cooper to remain “the guy” once Dak was healthy enough to return.

Right now, it looks like Prescott’s return could happen next week (Week 7) in Dallas against the Detroit Lions. That’s a much better game to come back to than against the Eagles because No. 4 will be rusty. He’s coming back from a busted thumb on his throwing hand. Just because team doctors say he’s healthy enough to play (if they clear him) doesn’t mean he’s 100 percent healthy.

“That’s my plan,” Prescott said after the Cowboys’ 26-17 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday night. “Obviously, got to see the doc, but, yeah, that’s kind of my plan.”

Miami Dolphins doctors told Tua Tagovailoa he could stay in a game after suffering what looked like a head injury, then cleared him to play again less than a week later. Of course, the injuries of Prescott and Tagovailoa are much different, but the fact remains that team doctors aren’t always operating with the player’s best interests in mind.

Dallas’ schedule sets up nicely over the next few games and should give Dak enough time to work his way back into a good groove. After the Lions in Week 7, the Cowboys welcome the Bears to Big D, then go on the road to play the Packers and Vikings. If the start of the season for Green Bay is any indication, that should be a win for Dallas, but then again, we know how so-called “guaranteed” wins often turn out for this franchise.

However you choose to view it, Prescott is the man in Dallas and will be for years to come. Like many, I’ve never been the biggest believer in Prescott when it comes to leading the Cowboys back to the Super Bowl, but he’s undoubtedly the best option at QB on Jones’ roster.