Getty/YouTube Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott opens up about how his older brother Jace Prescott, right, died by suicide.
Dak Prescott opened up about his older brother Jace Prescott’s death while sitting down for an interview with sports journalist Graham Bensinger. The Dallas Cowboys quarterback said of Jace Prescott, whose death was reported back in April, that he had taken his own life.
Dak Prescott, 27, grew up in Louisiana with his two older brothers, Tad and Jace Prescott, and sister, Natalie Prescott. Their mother, Peggy, died after a battle with colon cancer in November 2013, and Dak Prescott revealed that his brother continued to seriously struggle with their mom’s death.
On September 9, both Dak Prescott and Tad Prescott appeared on In Depth with Graham Bensinger, discussing what it was like at home after their mother got sick. “Jace at the time was finishing with school and was home, was with her and watched it,” said Dak Prescott, who at that time was away playing football at Mississippi State.
“She couldn’t necessarily hide it from Jace because he was there every day. He saw the times where she would have to spend probably 10-plus hours throwing up, this and that, and saw the medicine she had to take.
“And, almost, you can’t even put into the words the burden,” Prescott continued. “It’s something only Jace knew. And he didn’t necessarily share that. And Jace was never really much of a talker so when something like that was a huge burden on him, he didn’t know how to share it. He didn’t know how to be vulnerable about it.”
Dak Prescott Says Discovering Jace Prescott Died by Suicide in April Was ‘Some of the Worst News That I’ll Ever Get’
GettyDak Prescott opened up about his brother Jace Prescott’s death by suicide.
Back in April, a Dallas Cowboys spokesperson confirmed Jace Prescott’s death and put out the following statement to The Associated Press: “The loss of Tad and Dak’s brother is devastating. At this incredibly difficult time, the Prescott family asks only for prayers and respect for their privacy.”
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones told the media after wrapping up the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft, “Whatever we can do to help him get through this horrible time. When you are young – Dak is young, and his brother was young – death is really, really hard to understand, or just think about, or live with.”
On Wednesday, Dak Prescott said of his brother during his interview with Bensinger, “I’ll never get another hug in my life like the ones he gave.” Jace Prescott was five years older than Dak Prescott. “He was my best friend.”
Dak Prescott was asleep when his father woke him up to tell him about his brother’s death. It was “some of the worst news that I’ll ever get,” he said.
Prescott Says He Cried for 30 Minutes With His Dad & Friends After Learning of His Brother’s Death
“I wanted to ask ‘Why’ for so many reasons,” Prescott said to Bensinger during his interview, which served as the Season 11 premiere episode of In Depth. After learning of the devastating loss of his brother, Prescott said he cried for about 30 minutes with his father and friends. Now, he’s imploring to others the importance of being open with your feelings:
It showed me how vulnerable we have to be as humans. How open we have to be because [of] our adversity, our struggles, what we go through is always going to be too much for ourselves and maybe too much for even one or two people. But never too much for a community or never too much for the people and the family that you love. So we have to share those things.
If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, the toll-free National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can also speak with a trained crisis counselor 24/7 by texting HOME to 741741 to reach the Crisis Text Line. You can also contact NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) at 1-800-950-6264 or by texting NAMI to 741741.
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