Cowboys news: Dak Prescott’s agent didn’t take kindly to Russell Wilson’s agent floating a Dallas trade

Dak Prescott megadeal with Cowboys: Agent Todd France has sharp message for agent of Russell Wilson - Patrik Walker, CBS Sports

Now that the deal is done, Dak’s agent is sounding off on something that bothered him.

In January 2019, Dak Prescott defeated Russell Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC wild-card round. Fast forward to March 2021 and Prescott’s agent, Todd France, is doing the Ric Flair strut in front of Wilson’s agent, Mark Rodgers, after a key winter victory. It’s not difficult to ascertain why the former would do a bat flip aimed at the Pacific Northwest, not long after coming to terms with the Dallas Cowboys on a four-year, $160 million contract for his client that not only includes record-setting numbers, but also needed cap relief for the club.

After all, it was Rodgers who made it clear while Wilson hadn’t requested a trade from the Seahawks, the no-trade clause would be waived for one of only four teams — the Cowboys being one of them. But once Prescott’s deal was officially in the books on Wednesday, the usually silent France had some choice words for Rodgers and what he viewed as dirty tactics.

“There’s so many things wrong with it, I guess, on different levels,” said France to Adam Schein on his CBS Sports show “Time to Schein.”

Translation: France could’ve done without Rodgers possibly disrupting what he had worked for three years to achieve.

And, what’s more, was France’s ability to achieve something in Dallas that seemingly the Seahawks have been allergic to: Prescott will have a voice in building the roster.

Dallas Cowboys’ belief in Dak Prescott: ‘We got it right’ - Todd Archer, ESPN

It’s not just on the field, Prescott brings it off the field.

The Cowboys have witnessed Prescott’s intangibles going back to the 2016 Senior Bowl when they coached against him. They have seen it every day since he took over for an injured Tony Romo as a rookie. They have seen him play better than just about anyone could have assumed, even though it has not been perfect.

The reaction to the signing internally has been unanimous. Players have tweeted their enthusiasm, and those behind the scenes — from the athletic training room to the video department to the equipment staff — have the same feelings.

“What is so special about him is with all the success he has had on and off the field, he is still first and foremost one of the guys,” All-Pro right guard Zack Martin told ESPN.com. “It’s one thing to be a vocal leader as the quarterback, but he backs it up with how he works and prepares throughout the year. He takes the time to get to know his teammates and understands that no one’s job is too small. He’s everything you want in a quarterback, a teammate and a friend.”

Wednesday’s news conference announcing the contract was in the middle of the afternoon because Prescott, 27, had to go through his rehab work in the morning first. He wasn’t going to skip a session. He wasn’t going to let his teammates think he was slipping.

If there is a celebration of the deal, it will be small and intimate with family and friends. Too much work remains to get healthy and to improve as a quarterback.

With Dak’s Deal, Staubach’s QB Advice Rings True - Rob Phillips, The Mothership

Jerry loves him some Roger Staubach.

Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones has never forgotten the quarterback advice he got from arguably the greatest quarterback in team history.

“‘Get somebody at quarterback that the players will follow. That’s the biggest thing of all,’” Jones recalls Staubach telling him years ago. “I’ve had that in my mind for the last five, six years.

And that’s been loud and clear.”

Dak Prescott has fit that description as well as any quarterback in the league over the last five years. It’s a big reason, beyond Prescott’s physical ability, that the Cowboys felt comfortable giving him easily the largest contract in franchise history this week: four years worth over $160 million.

Cowboys legend Michael Irvin recently said on ESPN that Prescott’s leadership draws comparisons to Bucs Super Bowl champion and future Hall of Famer Tom Brady because both are the “heart and soul” of their respective teams.

Spagnola: Just Maybe We Are Back To The Future - Mickey Spagnola, The Mothership

Dak brought up the Super Bowl in his press conference, which is how he will really be measured.

Why, this is Dak’s opening statement after Jerry’s introduction.

“Overwhelmed with so many different emotions right now, from love, from support, from the faith that has just been instilled in me by an amazing organization. From the support that Mr. Jones talked about that so many people came in on my behalf and spoke of. Eagerness, excitement, anxiousness to give this organization and the Jones Family everything that they invested in, and that’s a Super Bowl. And that’s to go win.”

So for those out there thinking they’ve been cute ever since this four-year, $160 million deal has been announced, trying to say Dak winning a Super Bowl, as if he can do that all by himself, is the only way he can qualifying receiving such riches, otherwise the deal is a failure, forget about it. Dak’s always been immune to that sort of artificial pressure.

“Pressure is privilege,” said Dak, brushing off the question the way he has so many blitzing linebackers. “And I am privileged to have it. I am privileged that this organization believes in me. They put their faith in me. If you know me, you know who I am. I walk every day with faith and what I believe in. My expectations are so high. My expectations in myself are higher than anybody’s out there.

“All this contract does is raise those expectations for everyone else. I think higher expectations create higher results. I am all for it. I am excited. It’s a privilege to have this pressure. I am just excited to go out there and do what I can.”

And don’t think invoking Super Bowl into the discussion just moments after signing this deal was a slip of the tongue. Dak doesn’t do verbal slips. He knows what he’s saying.

“It’s behind me,” Dak said of the lengthy negotiations. “If anything, that is what it’s more about, free head space. Get that behind me. I don’t have to dodge y’alls questions or hide from y’all on that point. I can just move forward and worry about winning a Super Bowl.”

The pandemic cost us face time with Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. He’s back, and his Jerry-isms are, too. - David Moore, DMN

Everybody in the media is glad to have Jerry Jones back, there’s nothing like a Jerry press conference.

Part of answer on why negotiations took so long — “When I bought the Cowboys, apart from a lot of other things that were being said, it was very commonly said what an idiot I was for paying for what I paid for the Cowboys. That’s not an exaggeration. It was firmly there.

“Well, I really got screwed.’’

On portrayal that Prescott won these negotiations — “I will tell you this, if there’s a human breathing that I’ve ever met that I’m proud took advantage of me financially, I’m proud it’s the one sitting to the right.’’

Part of response to how Cowboys will fix defense (don’t ask) — “Those nuances that we’ve heard about, the debate about Dak, and I’ve said this all along, I’d kill somebody if they put me through what guys go through in the draft when they look at their backgrounds and check every neighbor, every friend they ever had. I’d shoot somebody if they did that to me.

“Dak gets that kind of scrutiny.”

Did insight into where the salary cap is going allow Jones to complete this deal? — “Financially, I like where we are.

“As you all know, if they just opened the books and let everybody spend what they wanted to spend, you know who would be the leader in the pack there. So that’s not the way it works. We got some guys who are circumcising the fly, so to speak.

“The bottom line is we got it down, we really do.”

A little shoutout to L.P. Ladouceur.

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