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Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott underwent surgery on his left shoulder at the end of the 2021 regular season, addressing an injury incurred in the first contact practice of training camp last summer.

Head coach Mike McCarthy said the team expects “no issues” with Prescott’s recovery and that he will only experience short-term limitations during rehab.



Speaking for the first time since a press conference with owner Jerry Jones in the days after the playoff loss to the San Francisco 49ers ended the Cowboys’ season, McCarthy also addressed lingering elephants in the room — rumors the team is clearing the runway to hire Sean Payton as head coach and that Dallas is shopping $20 million wide receiver Amari Cooper.

“I’ll just say this: It’s a narrative I don’t want to be a part of,” McCarthy said of the Payton rumors. “I don’t think anybody wants to be a part of it on either side of the fence. Nothing good comes out of that. I think you do need to understand, I get to spend a lot of time with Jerry — both as the owner and as the GM. In our conversations, we talk about the partnership between the head coach and the GM. The strength of the partnership, short-term plan, long-term plan. … He addressed it, we laughed about it and moved on.

“I don’t see it as any type of topic or anything that gets in the way of winning.”

‘Major Decisions’ Looming

McCarthy said he and Jones are speaking regularly about the “major decisions about our current roster” that reportedly include Cooper’s future with the team. Jones called out Cooper for not producing on the level expected given his salary on the heels of a $100 million contract extension.

McCarthy said he loves “getting the ball to Amari Cooper” and he loves players “wanting to do more.”

Executive vice president Stephen Jones said Monday at the combine that there were “moving parts” and things that would develop regarding Cooper that he couldn’t address, again raising the notion the 27-year-old could be traded.

–Field Level Media (@FieldLevelMedia)