The Dallas Cowboys did not accomplish what they set out to in 2024—far from it. Not only did they fail on the field, finishing 7-10 for their worst record since the COVID season in 2020. But their front office (cough, Jerry Jones, cough, cough) also bungled the preceding offseason. By waiting until the last minute, they had to pay a premium for Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb’s mega-deals, seemingly leaving their third superstar, Micah Parsons, out in the cold.
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Despite the rest of the team crumbling down around him, Parsons still had a solid 2024 campaign off the edge for Dallas. He put up 12.0 sacks, including five games of 1.5+ sacks in his final nine appearances following his return from mid-season injury. He’s one of the best players at a prime age (25) and a premium position (edge).
Despite Jerry Jones’ shaky track record as a GM, Parsons has been somewhat positive about the potential for an early extension. While he said last week that there is “a plan in place”, he also said there has been “no progress yet”. Make of that what you will.
“Oh, it’s good, you know? It was good. I really have a lot of respect for Jerry. We have great conversations all the time. There’s definitely a plan in place, but we’ll just see how everything plays out. There’s been no progress yet, but I’m pretty confident that something will happen, so we’ll see,” said the star linebacker.
You don’t often hear players speak that glowingly about Jerry Jones. But when someone is aiming for the biggest contract for a defender in NFL history, it makes sense to butter up the guy who’s going to hand it out. Both sides have been adamant about wanting to get a deal done—the only questions are when and for how much.
Cowboys must learn from previous mistakes and get the deal done ASAP
The Cowboys aren’t in an ideal salary cap situation right now, largely due to Jones’ hesitation on the two major deals last year. Those delays likely cost the team several million per year on those contracts. But let’s not beat a dead horse.
Entering the 2025 offseason, the Cowboys have the 7th-fewest cap space available in the NFL, as they currently sit approximately $2.4 million over the cap.
Part of that is because Micah Parsons’ $25 million 5th-year option (which makes him the 5th-highest-paid player at his position) is already on the books. They’ve got him for 2025 at least. That also means that they could actually save some money on his cap hit in 2025 (and they need to save some money right now) by signing him to a back-loaded extension.
We can pretty much guarantee that Parsons will want a deal that makes him the highest-paid defender ever. He’s one of two players in NFL history (Reggie White) to record 12+ sacks in each of his first four seasons. He’s also 5th in sacks (52.5), TFLs (63), and QB hits (112) since he entered the league.
Nick Bosa—who is ahead of Parsons in all three above categories—currently holds the honor of highest-paid defender, thanks to the five-year, $170 million deal he signed in 2023. That would mean the Cowboys would have to give Parsons at least $34 million a year to match Bosa. If not $35 million to eclipse him.
But here’s the rub. Two other guys ahead of him on that sack list since 2021—Myles Garrett and T.J. Watt—could also sign lucrative extensions this offseason. With both Garrett and Watt boasting Defensive Player of the Year awards and production as consistent as Parsons, they will likely also want to be made the highest-paid defenders in football.
Who should be paid the most on a new extension in 2025? pic.twitter.com/stqRhkl7j6
— Bob Sacamano (@dremurray3) February 19, 2025
Other elite pass rushers like Maxx Crosby and Trey Hendrickson are also in line for big new deals. It could be a feeding frenzy in the edge rusher market. The most likely scenario is that whichever team signs their player last, will have to pay the most.
As we saw last year, the earlier you get your deal done, the less you pay as a front office. The Cowboys ended up shelling out record sums to Lamb and Prescott last summer for just that reason. Surely, Jones will have learned his lesson?
The smartest thing to do would be to sign Parsons to a deal that makes him the highest-paid defender in football—right away. He’s among the elite in the game, and he has been doing it with next-to-no help for most of his career. A four-year deal worth $140 million should do the trick, and the Cowboys could save a ton of money on the cap (over $10 million) by transferring about $50 million of the deal into a signing bonus, much like they did with Prescott’s last year.
Parsons has been vocal about getting a deal done early
Not knowing the status of your two most important offensive players until days (Lamb got his done 13 days before Dallas’ Week 1 game) or even hours (Prescott’s was done the morning of Opening Day) before your season is about to kick off is not a recipe for success. Micah Parsons knows that.
That’s why he’s been pushing since early December to ensure an extension gets done as soon as possible: so he can lock in this offseason.
“I’m going to try and work with them as much as possible to help them attack free agency. I want to be back with this team. This offseason, I want to be here. I want to get these guys right. I want to take big steps, so hopefully it can be done sooner than later so we can attack the offseason.”
When asked whether he would try and push negotiations up to a $40 million a year figure, Parsons impressed by advocating for a more holistic team approach. But don’t get him twisted. He still wants to be compensated as he deserves. He just doesn’t need to break the bank, as that money could go to other players that could make his life easier on the field.
“It would be nice to be surrounded by good players,’ Parsons told reporters in December. “Players that will help me win championships, I’ll say that. To me, having $40 million and being chipped every play and slid into three, four people, that doesn’t sound too fun to me. So, to me, it’s about keeping people that can make a difference and obviously we’re going to get Sam [Williams] back, some players back. We’ll see how it breaks down, but I want to keep as many guys as possible. They will make the cap work, I don’t know.”
Micah Parsons is an absolute dog on the gridiron. But it’s clear that he has the right attitude as well. He wants to be in Dallas. He wants to win in Dallas. And he’s willing to make sacrifices to make that happen.
If they’re going to reach Parsons’ lofty goals, the Cowboys need to find more guys with Parsons’ elite mix of talent, mental toughness, and drive. Easier said than done, though.
