The Cowboys’ pattern of delaying big-ticket extensions is on display through the Micah Parsons talks, and the sides are not believed to be progressing. These negotiations also may not be animosity-free.
While Dallas took considerable heat for waiting on the CeeDee Lamb and Dak Prescott extensions — the latter not coming to pass until hours before the team’s opener — ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter views the Parsons talks as different in terms of hard feelings. Neither side is happy right now, to the point the veteran reporter noted during a Pat McAfee Show appearance these negotiations have slid backward.
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No conversations are ongoing, according to Schefter. That was not the case in the spring, when talks were at least unfolding. The Cowboys are not happy talks have gone sideways, while Schefter adds Parsons feels like this deal should be done. Parsons had long hoped for a resolution by training camp.
This report comes after a strange Stephen Jones comment that followed chants of “Pay Micah” at Cowboys camp. The Cowboys executive VP said (via The Athletic’s Jon Machota) the team wants to pay Parsons, but “he’s gotta want to be paid.”
Jones’ offering comes after Parsons fired multiple salvos at ownership’s penchant for delaying bigtime extensions. Parsons said his price would go up the longer these negotiations took, and the market has seen a near-full-on reset between Maxx Crosby‘s March extension and T.J. Watt‘s deal earlier this month. In between, Myles Garrett and Danielle Hunter cashed in. The EDGE ceiling has climbed from Nick Bosa‘s $34MM-AAV deal to Watt’s $41MM number over the past five months. While Trey Hendrickson‘s price may have changed due to the developments this offseason, Parsons has made no secret of the fact his has. Parsons said this month ownership was complicating these negotiations.
The Cowboys, of course, do not have a traditional GM. Jerry Jones has held that title since buying the team in 1989. This has caused headline avalanches, and the veteran owner said he has no plans of stepping down from that role anytime soon. Parsons and the Joneses have sparred about the deal this offseason, and the All-Pro looks to be engaging in a Jonathan Taylor-like de facto hold-in. Parsons is not practicing due to a back injury, but the Dallas Morning News’ Calvin Watkins reports he is not receiving on-field treatment like Trevon Diggs. This would appear to be a negotiating tactic, one Taylor used two summers ago as he completed a contentious negotiation.
Jerry Jones said he believed he and Parsons had deal parameters in place; Parsons confirmed that in June. The state of the union has since changed. Last week, Jones also reaffirmed a hesitancy in talking to agents, providing another complication in Dallas’ latest high-profile talks. Cowboys senior director of salary cap/player contracts Adam Prasifka has spoken with Parsons’ agent, David Mulugheta, per Watkins, who previously indicated no deal is close.
These negotiations have reinforced the Cowboys’ timing issue, as Parsons is undoubtedly shooting for a deal north of where Watt’s talks settled; Parsons is nearly five years younger than the Steelers dynamo. Team Parsons is also shooting for a four-year deal, per Watkins. Dallas caved on its usual longer-term structure to complete the Prescott and Lamb deals, but we heard earlier this offseason term length posed a problem in these talks. The sides still have more than a month until Week 1, but the negotiation is off track currently.