Dak Prescott sends message about Micah Parsons return ahead of Cowboys-Packers clash

Arguably the most discussed NFL-related topic heading into the final weekend of September involves Micah Parsons of the Green Bay Packers returning to the Dallas Cowboys' AT&T Stadium as a visiting player for the first time since Dallas traded him to Green Bay in late August. 

While speaking with reporters on Thursday, Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott reminded everybody that the upcoming "Sunday Night Football" clash isn't a "Dak versus Micah" showdown. 

Dak Prescott thinking about more than Micah Parsons

"Those are never the headlines and never can be," Prescott explained about his mindset, per Todd Archer of ESPN. "This is Dallas Cowboys versus the Green Bay Packers, and we've got to go get a win."

Pockets of NFL insiders are low on Dallas' chances of leaving Sunday's encounter with a victory. As of Friday morning, ESPN BET had the 1-2 Cowboys as 6.5-point home underdogs against a 2-1 Packers side that's coming off a shocking 13-10 loss at the Cleveland Browns last Sunday. 

Earlier in the week, Parsons acknowledged that possibly sacking his good friend on Sunday night could be a "painful" experience. Prescott offered a humorous reaction to that comment. 

Why Dak Prescott will have "fun" going against Micah Parsons

"I hope it's not [painful] for me," Prescott said. "And I hope he doesn't get to me, for one."

Prescott added that it will "definitely be fun" going up against a former teammate who previously couldn't hit or tackle him when the two were on the practice field. 

"Just getting to go out there and compete with a guy that's a good friend, that I've competed with in numbers of ways throughout this building, outside of this building. Yeah, just excited to go and have that matchup," Prescott continued. "But he's got five guys up front, plus tight ends and running backs that he's got to get through. Then we'll worry about if he can get to me."

Much has been made about the contract standoff that ultimately resulted in Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones trading Parsons to the Packers for two first-round draft picks and Pro Bowl defensive tackle Kenny Clark. It sounds like Prescott is doing his best to mentally move on from the transaction that resulted in a Defensive Player of the Year Award candidate being removed from the Dallas roster following the preseason. 

"Hey, you got to ask Jerry or Micah. To me, the closure happened when the trade happened," Prescott added about how Sunday's game will impact conversations about the trade. "I doubt it will be the closure. I doubt you'll be done with that. Someway, somehow it will get brought up again."