Dak Prescott spoke about the passing of his older brother Jace for the first time during a video conference call with the media Wednesday. "He meant a lot to my family, meant a lot to me," Prescott said, per TMZ. "He's part of the reason I am a quarterback. When I was a little kid, he's the reason that I first started throwing the football."
Jace passed away unexpectedly at the age of 31 in April. The Prescott family has not publicly revealed the cause of death.
"It's been a tough year. It's been a tough year for me personally, it's been a tough year for my family, it's been a tough year for this country and this world, obviously," Prescott said. "It's all been tough." The Dallas Cowboys star quarterback had been embroiled in lengthy contract extension negotiations with the organization before the team opted to use the franchise tag on him last month. The decision was publicly criticized by Dak's brother Tad.
"I have a great family to count on, to lean on. Great supporters here, great teammates. Great coaches," Prescott continued. "People that helped me get through it. I know that I've just had the obligation to live on and carry on another legacy. So now it's not just my mother, but it's my brother as well. And I'll continue to do that in every walk of my life."
In June, Prescott pledged $1 million in an effort to "improve our police training and address systematic racism through education and advocacy in our country." Dak said he wanted to use his pledge to declare that "I'm here for the people to help create a better culture within our law enforcement so we can gain that trust."
