In the third preseason game this past summer, Seattle Seahawks DE Cliff Avril came flying past the Dallas Cowboys’ offensive line to sack QB Tony Romo, setting in motion an improbably series of events.

Romo broke his back on the play, leading to fourth-round draft pick Dak Prescott, a former Mississippi State Bulldog, taking over.

The rest, as they say, is history. Prescott led Dallas to a 13-3 regular season record and the No. 1 overall seed in the NFC playoffs. Now, the Cowboys’ job is seemingly his to lose and Romo will likely be traded this offseason.

Though he set in motion a series of events that changed the landscape of the NFL, Avril told the Star-Telegram that he doesn’t want to be known as the guy who launched Prescott’s career, no matter how impressive the rookie was in 2016:

“I don’t ever want to injury somebody and put somebody else in there,” Avril said. “But Dak took full advantage of the opportunity. He has been killing it ever since.”

As Avril and Prescott work together as NFC teammates ahead of Sunday’s Pro Bowl, though, the Seattle star said it’s hard not to love what the Dallas rookie brings to the table:

“Just talking to him the last couple of days you can see why he has been so successful,” Avril said. “He’s a lot more mature than you expect him to be. His passion for winning is crazy. It’s cool to see. It’s cool to be around him. It’s cool to hear how he thinks. He is like Russell as you can see the passion they both have for winning and that’s going to continue to get better. I can see him doing great things in this league.”

Being compared to Russell Wilson is high praise for the former Mississippi State star. Though Dallas’s postseason run ended before it had a chance to start this season, Prescott and his teammates figure to be battling for NFC titles for the next few seasons.