IN PHOTOS: Dak Prescott and girlfriend Sarah Jane Ramos recap "most magical" 2023

As Dak Prescott nears another milestone, he and his soon-to-be family of three are reflecting on the past.

The Dallas Cowboys starting quarterback continues to be vital for his team in his eighth season in the league, throwing for over 4,000 yards and 30 touchdowns against fewer than ten interceptions, putting them closer to another NFC East title.

He will also become a parent for the first time, as he will welcome a daughter with his girlfriend, Sarah Jane Ramos, sometime in 2024. Meanwhile, Ramos posted a collage on Instagram reflecting on the moments that they spent together in a "most magical" 2023:

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Columnist: Dak Prescott can change narratives surrounding him with Super Bowl run

There has been one recurring element in the Dak Prescott era: failure to reach the NFC Championship Game, a trait that he is said to have inherited from Tony Romo.

Over his eight seasons, his Cowboys have been eliminated in the Divisional Round in three of four playoff appearances, the last two against the San Francisco 49ers. Both of them involved last-second mishaps: mismanaging the game clock in 2021-22, then running a poor trick play in 2022-23.

But a career-first deep playoff run can dramatically change perspectives surrounding him, as the New York Post's Mark Cannizzaro stressed in a Saturday column:

"No quarterback in the NFL is scrutinized with the level of intensity Dak Prescott is year after year... Much of it has to do with the talent Prescott has around him. All of those things raise the expectation level for him.

"No top-level quarterback in the league has the chance to change the narrative to his career in a more dramatic way than Prescott, whose reputation is seemingly always on flux. A big run this January and possibly into February could change the way (he) is perceived forever."

And as the 2024-25 looms, such an accomplishment would also be a vital weapon that Prescott can use the next time he begins contract negotiations. For context, he is set to begin the final phase of a four-year, $160-million extension that he signed back in 2021.