Around noon on Saturday, Dak Prescott decided it was time to let the world know that he will be becoming a girl dad in the near future.
The Dallas Cowboys quarterback shared the news on his Instagram account. He and girlfriend Sarah Jane Ramos are expecting a baby girl in early March.
Cowboys QB Dak Prescott is going to be a father pic.twitter.com/MFeMWUClrr
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) November 25, 2023
“We’ve known for a long time what we were going to be having,” Prescott said Monday. “Just to be honest and candid, I wasn’t waiting for any particular time. … It hasn’t necessarily been a secret, but more than anything, for me, it’s about protecting her and just understanding fans can be fans. There’s no reason for them to be bothering her, for her to get the nasty messages that people want to send me that I deserve and no one else does. I think that’s part of it. I think ultimately, the main reason was she was tired of hiding it in pictures, I guess. Now, the bump is a little bit too big and hard to hide.”
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Prescott, who turned 30 in July, declined to share the name they have picked for his first child.
“Super exciting,” Prescott said. “I actually wanted a girl. Part of it I think was not to get excited for a boy. No, I did want a girl. I do. I’m blessed. Thankful. Everyone knows what my mom means to me. Being able to raise a little girl, I’m excited for the challenges. It’s not going to be easy, especially being my daughter or being a Prescott, but I’m looking forward to every bit about it.”
Cowboys QB Dak Prescott on having a daughter due in March: “Super, super blessed to have that responsibility but at the same time have that opportunity to start a family and bring a child into this world. I know what my mom means to me and, in a sense, have that feeling in a… pic.twitter.com/iHUFxHcGUX
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) November 27, 2023
It’s interesting how this news came during a time when Prescott is playing arguably the best ball of his eight-year NFL career. Since losing to the San Francisco 49ers, 42-10, in Week 5, Prescott has bounced back with six strong performances. The Cowboys are 5-1 during that stretch while Prescott has thrown for 312 yards per game and completed more than 70 percent of his passes, totaling 18 touchdown passes to only two interceptions.
“It’s the dad strength,” Prescott said, “that’s why I’m playing that way.”
Prescott was also quick to point out that he tells himself, “I haven’t done s—” yet. Dallas’ eight wins in 11 games this season have all come to teams with losing records. That changes over the next five games, beginning with the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday night at AT&T Stadium. The Seahawks, Philadelphia Eagles, Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins and Detroit Lions are all at least .500. Their combined record is 38-18.
“The teams we’ve played, the records haven’t been great,” Prescott said. “But I can promise you everybody that we play, we do get their best shot. Not to say that I think everybody else does that, but when you play the Dallas Cowboys, I can promise you the other teams, it’s a little bit bigger than some of the games that they play, that comes from people around the league. They always talk about it. Free agents that come in, they mention it. So we’re getting people’s best shots.
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“Now, as we move forward with teams with better records, we’re still going to get their best shots. So, it’s important for us to continue to grow and build on what we’ve done and understand that yeah, we’ve won some games. We’ve won some games in a tough league. But at the end of the day, it’s about the next game, and right now a good Seattle team is coming in.”
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Prescott’s strong play has led to him being mentioned among the favorites for NFL MVP. According to the latest odds on BetMGM, Prescott is tied for fourth with Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa at +800. Eagles QB Jalen Hurts is the favorite at +140, followed by Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes at +350 and Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson at +500.
“It means I’m playing well,” Prescott said. “Simple as that. Not really (that important). I’m about one goal and it’s a big team goal and I know if my name’s in there that means we’re playing well, so that’s great. But at the end of the day we’re just trying to build. I mean being eight years into this thing, it’s about building and building and making sure we’re getting better and better each and every week and getting hot right when we need to be.”
That goal is for the Cowboys to be playing in Las Vegas on Feb. 11 in Super Bowl LVIII, roughly a month before Prescott officially becomes a father.
Cowboys LB/DE Micah Parsons knows a little bit about what Prescott is about to go through. Parsons’ daughter was born in January, two days before Dallas’ 31-14 wild-card playoff win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
His best advice for Prescott?
“Have that guest room ready,” Parsons joked. “I love my daughter to death but when she sleeps with me and she’s waking up at 3, 4 in the morning wanting that bottle, have that guest room ready. Set everything up in the guest room. Do what you have to do. You just gotta make sure you have that extra bedroom ready because there’s going to be a lot of sleepless nights and your days off aren’t really days off any more. Be very, very prepared.”
(Photo: Kevin Sabitus / Getty Images)
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