Skip Bayless has never been shy about voicing his frustrations with the Dallas Cowboys, and the team’s uneven 2-4 start to the 2026 season has pushed him to a striking conclusion.
On the Gridiron podcast alongside Aqib Talib, the longtime Cowboys supporter declared that he would swap starting quarterback Dak Prescott for Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels in a one-for-one deal without hesitation.
“If they want to trade me Jayden Daniels for Dak Prescott. It’s done. Straight up, player for player. Let me have him, I’ll take it,” Bayless said.
He followed by noting the results when Prescott has been available: “He was available all last year when we went 7-9-1. He’s been available this year; we’re 2-4. Give me Jayden Daniels.”
Bayless’s case rests heavily on postseason contrasts. Daniels, in his third NFL season, reached the NFC Championship Game as a rookie in 2024.
Prescott, who has been Dallas’s primary starter since 2016, has yet to advance past the divisional round. Bayless made the distinction plain, adding that he is “living off 11 years of Dak Prescott. We ain’t sniffed an NFC Championship Game.”
Through six games, Prescott has completed 163 of 246 passes for 1,639 yards, 10 touchdowns and five interceptions, producing a 90.1 passer rating and a 66.3 percent completion rate.
Dallas ranks sixth in the league in passing yards per game at 273.2, yet the rushing attack has lagged near the bottom of the league.
Daniels, limited to four starts this season, has completed 75 of 116 passes for 759 yards, five touchdowns and zero interceptions for a 97.6 rating, while adding 213 rushing yards and two scores.
The Cowboys’ recent results have amplified the criticism. After a 24-16 home loss to a previously winless Tampa Bay Buccaneers side, Dallas fell 23-13 to the Green Bay Packers.
Prescott’s individual numbers have remained solid on paper, but the team’s overall inconsistency and lack of deeper playoff success have left Bayless unconvinced.
Dallas now faces a critical Monday night matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles, who also sit at 2-4.
A win would pull the Cowboys into a tie for second in a soft NFC East, where the New York Giants currently lead at 3-2-1 and the Commanders are 1-4-1.
Bayless has long maintained that regular-season production alone is not enough after more than a decade without a championship-game appearance.
His proposed swap with Daniels underscores how far that patience has stretched as the Cowboys try to salvage their season.
