ARLINGTON, Texas -- Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott is never going to give his critics the satisfaction of thinking he listens to them. He wants us to believe they’re invisible and irrelevant.

But you can bet Prescott heard the criticism after last week’s poor performance against the New York Giants, whether it came from sports talk radio, his friends relaying comments, or on social media.

Even Adidas unveiled a timely national ad this week with Prescott essentially telling people to doubt him at their own risk.

Prescott did what he needed to do Sunday night at AT&T Stadium against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in front of a national television audience. He emphatically shut up his critics, especially those calling for Tony Romo to replace him, even though the Cowboys' former starter hasn’t taken a snap in a NFL regular-season game in 389 days.

Prescott completed a career-high 88.9 percent of his passes (32-of-36) for 279 yards and ran for a touchdown in the Cowboys' 26-20 win Sunday night.

“I think he’s shown that he can do what you hope that a quarterback can do,” owner Jerry Jones said. “He can come back from when he doesn’t play as well as he wanted to play. I think it ought to show you he’s sure not worried about anything being said peripherally about him. He’s gonna go to work and go to town, so we can quit worrying about that kind of stuff.”

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott was back on his game Sunday night against the Bucs. Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

Jones, of course, is among the culprits when it comes to discussing hypothetical ways Romo could start again. Last week, Garrett and Prescott each addressed comments made by Jones and former star quarterback Troy Aikman, who harshly criticized the owner.

“There was less time on social media, but that was about the only thing different," Prescott said. "I don't pay attention to the noise.

“I couldn’t tell you what was said all week, but I kind of found out about some stuff later in the week. But it doesn’t really bother me. If anything, it’s motivation. I just wanted to perform after the game I played last week. I just wanted to respond after my performance. He said, she said doesn’t affect me.”

That’s one of the things that's special about Prescott. He hears the critics but doesn’t let it bother him.

“He’s handled every situation he’s come across since he’s been with us very, very well,” Garrett said of Prescott. “He’s handled success really well. He’s handled adversity, adversity within games and adversities from week to week.

“He’s got a great demeanor. Guys follow him. He’s just a natural leader. He did what he needed to do to play well and play at a high level for us, and everyone responded around him.”

In a 10-7 loss to the Giants last week, Prescott completed 17 of 37 passes for 165 yards and two interceptions. Against Tampa, Prescott had 21 completions for 191 yards in the first half.

He didn’t force the ball into coverage this week. He didn't just look for the big play or force the ball to Dez Bryant. He took what the defense gave him and completed passes to six different players in the first quarter, displaying the confidence we’ve seen from him all season.

As a result, Dallas’ offense moved the way it has moved nearly all season against teams not named the Giants. The Cowboys gained 449 yards and collected 24 first downs. They were 5-of-13 on third down after going a combined 2-for-24 over the previous two games.

For the first time in 11 games, Prescott failed to throw a touchdown pass. He could not care less. Prescott is the anti-Romo. His game is all about intangibles and winning -- not statistics. These Cowboys run the ball more than any other team in the league. Their style is not conducive to accumulating gaudy passing numbers, and Prescott is cool with that.

“Patience is one of his strengths, and he’s done a good job of that all year,” Garrett said. “He reads things well. He understands what we want to do against what defenses are doing and he throws the ball to the right guy.”

Prescott completed his last 12 passes, including all 11 of his attempts in the second half as the Cowboys rallied from a 20-17 third-quarter deficit.

Prescott’s most important pass came with 6:30 left in the fourth quarter when he completed a 19-yard slant to Bryant on second-and-nine from the Dallas 5. The Cowboys led 23-20 at the time, and if they couldn’t get a first down or flip field position, Tampa would be in prime position to tie the score or take the lead. Ezekiel Elliott gained 42 yards off right tackle on the next play, and the drive ended with Dan Bailey's fourth field goal.

There won’t be any questions this week about whether Romo should replace Prescott, but they’ll pop up each and every time Prescott plays less than stellar, as long as Romo remains on the roster.

Prescott, however, has proved he can answer them.