Cowboys offer infuriating update on Micah Parsons' future

Another disappointing season, underwhelming free agency period, another offseason with avoidable contract disputes. The Dallas Cowboys are doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. This time, All-Pro linebacker Micah Parsons is taking his turn at the negotiating table.

During an appearance on “Mad Dog Sports Radio,” Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones provided a vague update on Parsons’ impending contract extension.

“I've never been one to crystal ball when contracts get done,” Jones said, per The Athletic’s Jon Machota. “You can be close, you think you're right around the corner, and then they get pushed out and there's extenuating circumstances as to why they or their agent don't wanna pull the trigger. So, that's just a work in progress. It's never easy to comment on them because you really don't know where you are until both sides are ready to go. But obviously our goal is to, and we have visited at times with Micah, and our goal is to get him here. And I think Micah wants to be a Cowboy, and we want him to be a Cowboy long term.”

All signs indicate Cowboys will drag out Micah Parsons’ contract talks

While the Cowboys may drag their feet, a deal is almost guaranteed to get done at some point before Dallas travels to face the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 1. Last offseason, the Cowboys waited until the eleventh hour to sign quarterback Dak Prescott and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb to long-term deals. Lamb signed a four-year, $136 million contract extension near the end of the preseason in August, while Prescott signed a four-year, $240 million contract extension just hours before Dallas’ regular-season opener in September.

Parsons is currently set to play the 2025 season under the fifth-year option of his rookie contract, which would earn him a fully guaranteed salary of $24 million. However, it’s incredibly unlikely that he’ll play on that figure — especially since his new deal is expected to make him the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history. That title is currently held by Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase, who signed a four-year, $161 million contract extension in March. 

The longer Dallas waits, the more expensive Parsons could get. If any other player replaces Chase as the highest-paid non-quarterback, the price tag for Parsons will surely rise as well.

Earlier this month, Clarence Hill Jr. of All City DLLS reported that "there has been no movement forward" regarding a potential contract extension. That could mean that these negotiations will drag on throughout the offseason. Parsons said in April that he wouldn’t sit out of training camp in order to avoid a slow start to the 2025 season, per The Dallas Morning News.

Since being selected with the No. 12 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, Parsons has piled up numerous individual accolades and awards. The 26-year-old was named the 2021 NFL Rookie of the Year and earned two first-team All-Pro selections, a second-team All-Pro selection and four Pro Bowl nods in his four professional seasons.