FRISCO, Texas — Quarterback Dak Prescott is the future of the Dallas Cowboys. A $160 million contract ensures that, and sets the table for what's to come for this organization.
"Eagerness, excitement, anxiousness to give this organization and the Jones family everything that they invested in," Prescott said to open his press conference on Wednesday. "And that's a Super Bowl, and that's to go win."
But that kind of contract comes with pressure. There's just no way around it.
With that much money wrapped up in one player, and the likelihood of necessary future sacrifices due to the salary cap, Prescott has a tremendous amount of weight on his shoulders.
He's ready for it.
"Pressure is privilege," Prescott said. "And I'm privileged to have it. I'm privileged that this organization, they believe in me, they put their faith in me."
It was a two-year negotiation between Prescott and the Cowboys. Some say he gambled. If he did, he won.
"Most anything that I've ever been involved in, that ended up being special, I overpaid for," Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said.
And Dak Prescott is special.
"I'm insulted when people say I gambled, because you get out what you put into something," Prescott said. "And I've given so much, and I'm going to continue to give."
The most poignant moment of the last 48 hours, though, was the one shared by Dak Prescott's brother Tad. The two brothers embraced in a hug, just moments after he got the call that the deal was done.
But that hug had nothing to do with money.
"That moment was truly about my mom and my brother," Prescott said. "Overcome with emotions, excitement. And I felt my mom and my brother as much as I do now. And I told Tad, 'Hey, they're here.' This is for all of us."
How healthy is Prescott? Well, he walked out on stage.
"I thought about jogging out here, and jumping up on the stage," Prescott said to a laughing atrium at The Star. "But I don't know if y'all are ready for that."
Whatever comes of the pressure on his shoulders, Prescott is ready take on the next chapter, here in Dallas.
"This is my home, I'm not leaving," Prescott said. "I'm a Cowboy. And this is only the beginning."