GAME DAY Cowboys at Cardinals: Which Stars Will Play?

Dallas fans will have to wait a bit longer for the return of quarterback Dak Prescott.

The Dallas Cowboys hit the road to play the Arizona Cardinals on Friday night in the official first week of NFL preseason. The Cowboys lost their bonus preseason game, playing very few starters, against the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Hall of Fame game in Canton, Ohio, last Thursday. 

Dallas fans will have to wait a bit longer for the return of quarterback Dak Prescott, who suffered a shoulder strain in his throwing arm that caused him to be pulled from training camp practice on July 28. Prescott said on Wednesday he will undergo an additional MRI for the strain when he returns to Dallas.  

Backup quarterbacks Garrett Gilbert and Ben DiNucci, who did not see the end zone in their first preseason game, will see a lot of action vs. Arizona.

Prescott, who is fully recovered following his 2020 season-ending ankle injury, still seems on track to lead the Cowboys in their regular-season opener on Sept. 9 at the defending Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Prescott said he's experienced no arm soreness in the last couple of days, and that if a regular-season game was this weekend, he'd play.

Speaking of star players, new Cardinal defensive lineman J.J. Watt is dealing with a hamstring issue and is not expected to play. Arizona coach Kliff Kingsbury is planning to give starting quarterback Kyler Murray some reps in the exhibition opener.

COWBOY TO WATCH: Rookie Micah Parsons' first time in a Cowboys uniform lasted 11 snaps. The linebacker finished with a fumble recovery and a thirst for more game time. 

The Penn State product and 12th-overall pick in the NFL Draft has developed drastically during Cowboys training camp and is in competition for starting middle linebacker. Parsons and new defensive coordinator look to improve last year's 31st-ranked NFL defense.

PRESEASON RECORDS: Dallas Cowboys (0-1) and Arizona Cardinals (0-0)

ODDS: The Cowboys opened as 1.5-point underdogs on FanDuel. The over/under is 39.5 total points.

GAME TIME: 9 p.m. CT on Friday, August 13, 2021

LOCATION: State Farm Stadium, Glendale, AZ

TV/RADIO: NFL Network, 105.3 The Fan

THE FINAL WORD: Cowboys Coo Stephen Jones on Prescott's limited participation due to his shoulder strain: "Dallas will bring him along the right way and we will protect him from himself... This guy is so driven. That’s his nature to overwork. He’s like Michael Irvin and Troy Aikman rolled up into one guy.”