It goes without saying that 2020 was a challenging and tumultuous year for Dak Prescott.
The Dallas Cowboys quarterback battled depression, endured the death of his brother Jace and the disappointment of not getting the long-term contract he deserved.
And that was before he suffered a gruesome injury that raised questions about whether he would ever be the same player again, let alone ever get paid his full value.
But Prescott never got down and he never lost faith, making the tears of joy he shed with his father Nat on the phone late Monday afternoon all the more satisfying.
“We are blessed. We know we are blessed,” Nat Prescott said. “At one time we could have questioned it with our loss that we suffered, but again it brought us closer together as a family.” There were, he said, so many reasons to give up on faith. “But I know his grew stronger and through his growing stronger, mine got better. We are able to talk about it. There is nothing but elation, celebration and joy in my heart.”
For the Prescott family, it’s not just about the money — though the record-setting, four-year, $160 million contract will provide generational wealth — but also the journey and the realization of a dream that began when Prescott was in kindergarten.
“It meets all our dreams and then some,” Nat Prescott said. “The kid told me at age 5, wearing a Troy Aikman uniform when his brothers were playing Pop Warner football. He said ‘Pops, I’m going to be the quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys.’ Through God’s grace he spoke it into existence. The kid is a God send. He is that and more.”
The journey began in earnest when Prescott was drafted by the Cowboys in the fourth round in 2016. His immediate success as a player and leader, while outplaying his contract and draft position, made it reasonable to assume that the Cowboys would naturally reward him when it was time for him to get paid.
The process, however, wasn’t so clean. A compound fracture and dislocation five games into the 2020 season complicated matters even more.
And while Prescott never lost faith, his dad had questions and concerns.
“A couple of times I questioned, but it wasn’t for me to question,” Nat Prescott said. “Again, I was dealing with man. I was dealing with humans. I was dealing with [Cowboys owner] Jerry Jones, in particular. I couldn’t get a gauge either way.”
Nat Prescott recalled his son standing by Jones and the Cowboys during the social justice protests over the national anthem, subjecting himself to criticism in his own community.
“He stood on the Cowboys’ side when every Black man in the country was like, ‘what did he say or what did he do?’,” Nat Prescott recalled. “I told [Dak] every decision he makes dare there be a man step toward you for your decision.”
Nat Prescott said his son made it clear that he wanted to be with the Cowboys for life. He showed Jones respect. He gave his all on the field.
“So when it’s time to get paid he could look them in the eye as a man,” Nat Prescott said. “I have watched my kid do that. I have watched my kid go from a draft pick or a project. I thank God for people like [Cowboys Hall of Famer] Roger Staubach who I know made a personal call to Jerry and say, ‘Hey Jerry, don’t let this kid get away.’ ”
When Jones and the Cowboys finally heeded those words on Monday, Nat was on the phone with Dak and his brother Tad.
Prescott’s agent Todd France clicked in on the other line with the news of the contract.
“When he called back he was overjoyed, he was crying,” Nat Prescott said of his son. “Well deserved. Well earned. I can’t tell you the joy.”
