AP

The Cowboys didn’t make an immediate deal for a veteran backup quarterback, in part because the price people were asking was too high.

But now that rookie Dak Prescott justified that convenient faith with a strong showing in his preseason opener, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said the team was no longer in the market for a veteran.

According to Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram — who compared Jones to Kanye West and owes me for spraying this coffee all over my screen — Jones said he doesn’t want to jump to conclusions but was pleased with the way Prescott played against the Rams.

“He is a long way from Canton, a long way from Canton,” Jones said. “But it was certainly a great start. It was just good to see the coaching staff and everybody get behind the promise of what he might be able to be as a player. Certainly the way he and [Jameill] Showers played, I wouldn’t consider a backup quarterback situation at all. I wouldn’t want to, by any way, deter the progress and the excitement that he can bring to the building of the team and the future.”

While Jones admitted he didn’t want to get too far ahead of himself, Prescott was practically perfect against the Rams, completing 10-of-12 passes for 139 yards and two touchdowns, with a quarterback rating of 154.5. Jones said that was an extension of what the team had seen in practice and meetings.

“What was impressive to me is how our team and how our sideline responded with what he was doing on the field,” Jones said. “I felt good about it, of course. I was just tickled to see the promise of what he might evolve into. Everybody on that sideline knew that was in front of 90,000 people. Everything now is about where he goes from here. That’s what it’s all about. That gave you the indication that he can continue that arrow going up.”

It would help the Cowboys in many ways if they accidentally found a reliable fallback option, after failing to sign one in free agency or get the guy they wanted in the draft. The fact their own fourth-rounder turned out this way is, at the moment, a pleasant surprise.