Cowboys Stephen Jones on Dak & Zeke Party: 'No More Of That'
FRISCO - The party-hosting and party-going habits of Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott are over, says their boss, Dallas Cowboys CEO Stephen Jones.
"We've certainly communicated with Dak and Zeke,'' Jones said Tuesday on 105.3 The Fan's "K&C Masterpiece.'' "I think they're certainly aware now of how sensitive these situations are and I don't think you'll be seeing that anymore.''
According to a report, Prescott held a birthday party at his home for one of his friends, ignoring Texas Governor Greg Abbott's executive order which says that all people in the state "shall avoid gatherings of groups of more than 10 people." The report - denied by (an anonymous) "source close to Prescott,'' according to one news outlet - stated that Prescott had more than 30 people in his home during the COVID-19 pandemic.
We have weighed in on the subject of Prescott's party, and of the Prescott and Elliott's workout with former Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant, trying to emphasis that their public profiles should reflect behavior to demonstrate to Cowboys fans how to be responsible during this time at home ... but instead, they have now on multiple occasions done the complete opposite.
Former Dallas Cowboys defensive end Marcus Spears also called out Prescott on Monday on ESPN's 'Get Up', saying, "It's just dumb and it's totally disrespectful with what we have going on right now in this country."
Local law-enforcement officials showed up at the home and reported that they could not verify any wrong-doing. That doesn't quite pass the smell test here (as near as we can tell, a violation can bring a penalty of $1,000 fine and up to 180 days in jail or both), but that's not the point. Nor is it the point that other football players, other athletes, other citizens, are also violating the guidelines - so no, the Cowboys aren't being "picked on.'' (We might suggest that the police inaction indicates the exact opposite of that.)
And one more thing, as we suggest that this is mostly an age-old issue of young men (especially wealthy and athletic ones) thinking they're indestructible: Zeke is Nike-level-aware of the virus concerns here, as witnessed by his recent Instagram post, which reads, “If you ever dreamed of playing for millions around the world, now is your chance,” the post read. “Play inside, play for the world.”
The players seemed, on some level, to understand before Stephen Jones' remarks. The Cowboys boss is now on-record to insist they get it now.