Dak Prescott can now add tattoo artist to his resume. After getting a massive tattoo Saturday that covers almost his entire right leg, the Cowboys quarterback inked “DAK” on the inside right wrist of tattoo artist Andres Ortega.
“He did it like a professional,” Ortega said. “This was his first tattoo. It was so cool. I was like, ‘What the f—, he knows how to do it?’ He did it so perfect. Dak looked like a complete tattoo artist. It’s crazy.”
Advertisement
Ortega, 32, spent 40 minutes on a video call with The Athletic on Wednesday, showing off his new shop, Onder Ink, in Glendale, Ariz. Several printed photos used to design the mural on Prescott’s leg were sitting on a couch inside the shop. The plan is to frame them and display them in the office. Ortega also had two Dallas Cowboys hats signed by Prescott sitting on a shelf and an empty frame for a jersey he’s going to get signed by Prescott.
Includes Michael Jordan jumpman logo and Kobe Bryant mamba logo pic.twitter.com/7lTykm5qIN
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) March 22, 2023
Ortega and three other artists, Romero, Sarahi and TB, flew to Dallas last Friday. They arrived at Prescott’s North Texas home Saturday and began the process around 1 p.m. About 10 hours later, with four artists working at the same time, Prescott’s leg was finished.
“He’s really respectful,” Ortega said. “We went to his house, and he made food for us. So cool. … He’s rich and famous, but he’s really, really humble. Really cool dude.”
The images included the downtown Dallas skyline; a Pegasus in honor of his late mother, Peggy Prescott; a moose in honor of his late brother, Jace Prescott; the Air Jordan Jumpman logo; a Kobe Bryant mamba logo; an image of Muhammad Ali; poker cards; a Zippo lighter with Marilyn Monroe’s image on the front; Daffy Duck pointing to the sky like Prescott does after scoring a touchdown; an image of a Black hand shaking hands with a White hand; and a sign that reads, “Pine Creek Estates,” the mobile home community where Prescott lived as a child.
“He’s got a big leg,” Ortega said. “Big, big leg. Huge leg.”
Prescott got the idea after seeing the mural Ortega completed last month on the back of Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb. Up to this point, Ortega’s best marketing has been Instagram and word of mouth. Lamb was intrigued by what he saw on Instagram, so he sent Ortega a direct message. He has also worked with NFL stars like Saints safety Tyrann Mathieu, Cardinals linebacker Isaiah Simmons, Bengals wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins and new Browns wide receiver Elijah Moore.
Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb recently had a significant amount of ink added to his back
(Photos: Andres Ortega on Instagram https://t.co/6pGxN2vHOa) pic.twitter.com/NRwG5jT7WV
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) February 23, 2023
Lamb visited Ortega when the Super Bowl was in Glendale last month. They discussed some possibilities and scheduled a time at Lamb’s home. Ortega needed about an hour on his iPad to design what Lamb wanted. He then printed out the images and began stenciling them on Lamb’s back. Eight hours later, the four artists were done. The mural includes an image of Kobe Bryant, a crucifix, a Spartan head, a snake, the words “My Story Isn’t Over,” a crown and an Interstate 45 sign. They also added some work to Lamb’s left leg.
Advertisement
“It’s hard doing it with one person,” Ortega said. “Four people make it a lot easier. … That’s why everyone wants it done like that, because they don’t want the pain back-to-back days or (to) take three or four years to finish a full sleeve. They want to get it once and that’s it.”
Ortega’s Instagram post of Lamb’s mural received more than 10,000 likes, leading to a significant increase in business. His schedule is now so loaded with requests that he likely won’t open his shop to walk-in clients until late in the year.
“I like to work,” he said. “So when we do a tattoo, I don’t like just playing around. I want to work.”
His current record for the longest tattoo is 15 hours. While that sounds like a long time for a client, Ortega says professional athletes rarely have an issue with it.
“They move a little, but they know what to expect,” he said. “They’re young. All the athletes have so much energy. They’re healthy. They have a lot of vitamins in the body, so it’s not that much pain. … It’s hard to mess it up because everything is stenciled. You put it on and just follow it.”
Prescott was so pleased with the work done by Ortega and his co-workers that he now wants something on his back like Lamb. But that piece likely won’t be done at Prescott’s home. The plan is to set up a trip to the Bahamas.
“Go with the team and go to a place that’s peaceful,” Ortega said. “Relax. Watch the water. Quiet. Just listen to the ocean.”
His list of Cowboys clients continues to grow. Running back Tony Pollard and cornerback Trevon Diggs are also scheduled to get work done soon.
“I’m going to be a Cowboys fan now, I swear,” Ortega said.
He bought his first tattoo gun 10 years ago and has been tattooing professionally for the past eight years. In 2016, Mathieu became his first NFL client.
“I never expected this,” Ortega said. “I just try to take opportunities. I never thought I would be so busy. I never thought I would be tattooing stars like CeeDee Lamb and Dak Prescott. It was my hobby. I started just for fun.”
Advertisement
Ortega, a native of Mexico, moved to Arizona when he was 17. As a child, he’d often draw tattoos with a pen on classmates’ arms for extra lunch money. He makes a lot more now. When asked how much it would cost to walk into his shop and get something similar to what Prescott had done to his leg, Ortega estimated about $20,000. And that’s not including all the extra costs — like airfare, hotel, food and other expenses — that come with traveling to a client.
But Ortega also said he would not duplicate a tattoo he has already done for another client. He has received several requests for some of the same work he did on Lamb’s back, but he has refused.
“It’s a blessing,” Ortega said. “I really care about the opportunities and the trust (from clients) that they believe in me.
“I literally can’t believe this is happening to me. I never expected to be popular doing tattoos. I try to do my job and work. That’s it.”
(Photo of Dak Prescott: Julio Aguilar / Getty Images)
ncG1vNJzZmismJqutbTLnquim16YvK57k2xqcWllbXxzfJFsZmlrX2eAcLDApGSpqpWosLDA02armqykpLxurdGtoKysXw%3D%3D