Apparently, the San Francisco 49ers have lived rent-free in the minds of the Dallas Cowboys for the past year. On January 16, 2022, the Niners knocked the Cowboys out of the playoffs with a wild 23-17 win at AT&T Stadium. A year later, Dallas is preparing for a playoff rematch with San Francisco, this time at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California.
Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, who previously admitted that last year's loss to the 49ers remains on players' minds and was motivation for this season, further discussed the topic following Monday night's game.
"Me and this team, that's a scar," Prescott said after the Cowboys beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31-14 (h/t Angelina Martin of NBC Sports). "That one hurts, and it will hurt for the rest of my career, and it will be a motivation throughout my career, just to make sure I'm preparing the right way, leaving no doubt in the preparation.
"So just being able to get those guys again … this thing's set up just for us—playing teams that have beat us, teams that we're familiar with. So it's important for us now, as I said, to capitalize on this preparation, take it one day at a time, and make sure we're ready to go as we work for this one."
The 49ers finished the regular season with the league's top-ranked defense. On the other side of the ball, the offense has been impressive with rookie quarterback Brock Purdy under center. The 49ers have averaged nearly 35 points per game in Purdy's six starts, and the team has won 11 consecutive games.
"We've got to start fast, knowing the team that they have, the offense that they have," Prescott said. "They're on fire. Win streak, I guess, the longest in the league right now? Yeah, it'll be important for us to start fast, get on top of them.
"I know the pass rushers they've got, but, once again, I'm so confident in the guys that I've got, this group we have, and what we're capable of doing. So it's going to be important for us to have a great week of preparation and just get ready for it."