Prescott cites his history with ownership and is upbeat Micah Parsons will remain with Cowboys

OXNARD, Calif. (AP) — Having dealt with Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones in multiple rounds of high-profile contract negotiations, quarterback Dak Prescott has played the proverbial game and lived to tell about it.

His own experience is why Prescott remains confident star defensive end Micah Parsons will be a Cowboy for this season and beyond.

“No, not necessarily,” Prescott said Thursday when asked if his mind ever goes to a place where Parsons might not be his teammate following the two-time All-Pro pass rusher’s public trade request. “I think if I wouldn’t have been in his shoes and have watched other guys be in his shoes and get rewarded, maybe. But I feel like it was last year, I’ve got faith in Jones and the team, as I do in Micah and his team. So that’s who I am, and that’s what I’m going to continue to believe and be optimistic. And 11’s a Cowboy.”

Jones’ willingness to let contract disputes play out in public adds a different dimension to an already emotional situation, as Prescott found out in 2020, when he played on the franchise tag after being unable to reach an agreement on a contract extension, and in 2021 and last year as a free agent when long-term deals were reached.

Prescott admitted it was hard not to take things personally in his dealings with Jones and executive vice president of personnel Stephen Jones, but as soon as a contract was finalized, everything was put aside.

“It’s when the business gets done,” Prescott said. “And, honestly, not this past one, but the first one, there was some tension between me and the Jones, going back to 2020. I’m playing on the franchise tag, I break my ankle, and I say tension is more so, like, we just weren’t talking. Honestly, there’d be times I’d see them, I’m gonna go this other way, right?

“And then you get a phone call, hey, your agent calls you, we got the deal done. This, this, and that, you know, you celebrate. And then you get a call right after that from Jerry.”

In addition to his own history, Prescott has seen numerous current and former teammates go through similar circumstances, including wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, running back Ezekiel Elliott and guard Zack Martin.

“That’s what happens in business, is people get emotional, and people make it personal at times,” Prescott said. “But when that deal happens, like, we can make it go away. Because the tension wasn’t personal to begin with.”

What seems to be causing trouble between Jerry Jones and Parsons is the exact nature of talks between the two during the spring.

Prescott held direct conversations with both Jones last year but made it a point never to discuss numbers, leaving that to his agent instead. Prescott ultimately got his latest contract, a four-year deal that made him the highest paid player in NFL history, hours before the 2024 season opener.

“Honestly, I don’t know if I do re-sign if I don’t have those conversations,” Prescott said. “And it was much more than it was the numbers, so that’s why those conversations were needed.”

Having been where Parsons is now, Prescott hopes there will be a resolution soon that pleases both sides.

“And I can say it from experience, that it’s just frustrating, and I hate that he’s going through it,” Prescott said. “But, as I’ve told him, keep handling things the way that you are, and I believe he should be paid.”

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Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott runs the ball during a training camp scrimmage against the Los Angeles Rams, Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025, in Oxnard, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

The White House and a bipartisan group of governors are pressuring the operator of the mid-Atlantic power grid to take urgent steps to boost energy supply and curb price hikes, holding a Friday event aimed at addressing a rising concern among voters about the enormous amount of power used for artificial intelligence ahead of elections later this year.

The White House said its National Energy Dominance Council and the governors of several states, including Pennsylvania, Ohio and Virginia, want to try to compel PJM Interconnection to hold a power auction for tech companies to bid on contracts to build new power plants,

The Trump administration and governors will sign a statement of principles toward that end Friday. The plan was first reported by Bloomberg.

“Ensuring the American people have reliable and affordable electricity is one of President Trump’s top priorities, and this would deliver much-needed, long-term relief to the mid-Atlantic region," said Taylor Rogers, a White House spokeswoman.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is expected to be at the White House, a person familiar with Shapiro’s plans said, speaking on condition of anonymity ahead of the announcement. Shapiro, a Democrat, made his participation in Friday’s event contingent on including a provision to extend a limit on wholesale electricity price increases for the region’s consumers, the person said.

But the operator of the grid won't be there. “PJM was not invited. Therefore we would not attend,” said spokesperson Jeff Shields.

It was not immediately clear whether President Donald Trump would attend the event, which was not listed on his public schedule.

Trump and the governors are under pressure to insulate consumers and businesses alike from the costs of feeding Big Tech’s energy-hungry data centers. Meanwhile, more Americans are falling behind on their electricity bills.

Consumer advocates say ratepayers in the mid-Atlantic electricity grid — which encompasses all or parts of 13 states stretching from New Jersey to Illinois, as well as Washington, D.C. — are already paying billions of dollars in higher bills to underwrite the cost to supply power to data centers, some of them built, some not.

However, they also say that the billions of dollars that consumers are paying isn’t resulting in the construction of new power plants necessary to meet the rising demand.

Pivotal contests in November will be decided by communities that are home to fast-rising electric bills or fights over who’s footing the bill for the data centers that underpin the explosion in demand for artificial intelligence. In parts of the country, data centers are coming online faster than power plants can be built and connected to the grid.

Electricity costs were a key issue in last year's elections for governor in New Jersey and Virginia, a data center hotspot, and in Georgia, where Democrats ousted two Republican incumbents for seats on the state’s utility regulatory commission. Voters in New Jersey, Virginia, California and New York City all cited economic concerns as the top issue, as Democrats and Republicans gird for a debate over affordability in the intensifying midterm battle to control Congress.

Gas and electric utilities sought or won rate increases of more that $34 billion in the first three quarters of 2025, consumer advocacy organization PowerLines reported. That was more than double the same period a year earlier.

Meta's Stanton Springs Data Center is seen Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Newton County, East of Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)