CLEVELAND, OH - NOVEMBER 06: Dak Prescott #4 of the Dallas Cowboys under center in the first half against the Cleveland Browns at FirstEnergy Stadium on November 6, 2016 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

Troy Aikman heaps Hall of Fame praise on Dak Prescott

Troy Aikman says he knew Dak Prescott was going to be special even before he even took the field

Former Cowboy great Troy Aikman isn't short on superlatives when discussing Dak Prescott.

The Hall of Famer recalled meeting Prescott for the first time just before the rookie was about to make the first start of his NFL career in week one, and said he was already carrying himself like a veteran quarterback.

"I never felt the presence of a young quarterback like I did with him," Aikman told SiriusXM NFL Radio. "I said this was the most impressive young player I've ever been around at the position. I really believed he was going to go out and play well. Before halftime of the game in his first start I was no longer looking at him and viewing him as a rookie. My analysis was along the lines of a vegteran quarterback. It spoke volumes how he carried himself."

What's been most impressive about what Prescott's done, Aikman suggested, is that he's succeeded in spite of virtually everyone's expectations he was a long-term project coming out of college.

 "...He was regarded as a project coming out of Mississippi State as a fourth rounder. He had never taken snaps under center. He had never run play action. He wasn't even expected to the backup. He was going to be a long-term project. After a few injuries, all of sudden he steps in."

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And his friendship with Tony Romo notwithstanding, Aikman was one of the first people to regard Prescott as the future of the franchise, even lobbying for him to remain the starter when Romo had fully recovered from a back injury.

Apparently, it takes a good quarterback to know one.