How long is Dak Prescott out for? Week 5 return timeline and injury status

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott remains on the sidelines as he deals with his hand injury. Sustained in the second half of Dallas' 19-3 loss in their season-opener against the Buccaneers after he hit a defender's helmet with his hand, Prescott hasn't been seen since.

The initial prognosis was that Prescott would be out for between six to eight weeks, which for most Cowboys fans, ended any resemblance of hope for a playoff run.

With each passing week, the want for Prescott to return seems to have waned somewhat with Cooper Rush stepping in and winning three consecutive games, taking the Cowboys record to 3-1 for the year.

How long is Dak Prescott out after the week 1 injury?

Thankfully, with Rush performing well and winning games, the Cowboys are in no rush to get Prescott back on the field. There was a thought that Prescott could return against the L.A. Rams next week, but a date with the Philadelphia Eagles looks more likely for him.

With Rush taking care of things and having Dallas in a good position at 3-1, Dallas doesn't have to rush Prescott back when he isn't ready. After trying to get in a bit more work during the week, Prescott had some swelling on his hand that hampered his attempts to pass.

Due to this, it remains to be seen if he will be risked against the Rams. Owner Jerry Jones spoke with reporters after the game and said that the quarterback's hand doesn't need to be fully healed to play football again.

Jones said via Jon Machota:

"Because of the nature of how they repaired it, you don't have to have healed bone, because that's the deal, because they put a plate in there and because of where this is located, you don't have to have full healing."

Jerry Jones says he hasn’t seen any recent X-rays of Dak Prescott’s surgically-repaired thumb. He says the bone doesn’t need to be completely healed for Dak to play because of the plate that was inserted https://t.co/HQ9ZaRTx3x

Prescott's absence hasn't affected Cowboys performance

Thanks to Cooper Rush, Dallas has barely missed Dak Prescott over the last three games. It puts into focus the importance of having a solid quarterback on the roster and in all likelihood, if Rush keeps playing like this, he won't be a back-up for too much longer.