Myles Garrett shook up the NFL by demanding a trade during Super Bowl week, putting Dallas Cowboys edge rusher Micah Parsons’ contract situation in the spotlight. Parsons, a four-year pro, is entering the final year of his rookie deal.
Then, Garrett stunned the football world again by signing a four-year, $204 million extension with the Cleveland Browns, averaging $40 million per season. NFL media members took to X to blast Cowboys owner Jerry Jones for delaying Parsons’ extension talks — potentially costing his team millions.
NFL Media and Former Players Call Out Jerry Jones Over Micah Parsons’ Contract
The Cowboys selected Parsons with the No. 12 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, and he has quickly become a face of the franchise. The edge rusher has made the Pro Bowl in each of his four seasons, earned First-Team All-Pro honors twice, and won Defensive Rookie of the Year.
Parsons recorded 12 sacks in 13 games last season and is set to make $24 million fully guaranteed in 2025 after Dallas picked up his fifth-year option. His impending contract extension has been a major offseason topic, and Parsons expressed excitement when the NFL announced a significant salary cap increase.
However, the Cowboys have yet to reach a deal, and Garrett’s extension has now reset the market for elite pass rushers. Jones has taken heat on X, with former players and NFL insiders criticizing him for “dragging out” Parsons’ contract talks.
When will Jerry Jones learn that he needs to stop negotiating against himself & start setting the market like Howie Roseman…rather than catching up.
— Chase Daniel (@ChaseDaniel) March 9, 2025
Former quarterback and co-host of “The Facility,” Chase Daniel, tweeted:
“When will Jerry Jones learn that he needs to stop negotiating against himself & start setting the market like Howie Roseman…rather than catching up.”
Roseman, the Philadelphia Eagles general manager, has aggressively negotiated contracts and most recently reset the running back market by signing Saquon Barkley to a massive extension.
Not to harp on the Bengals and Cowboys (again) but the Myles Garrett deal really hammers home why their approaches of dragging stuff out is the worst way to do things.
Two years ago they could have signed or traded Tee for 22M a year.
A year ago they could have done Chase for…
— Brett Kollmann (@BrettKollmann) March 9, 2025
“Not to harp on the Bengals and Cowboys (again), but the Myles Garrett deal really hammers home why their approach of dragging stuff out is the worst way to do things,” Brett Kollmann, host of “The Film Room,” said.
“Two years ago, they could have signed or traded Tee for $22M a year. A year ago, they could have done Chase for $35M a year. The Cowboys also could have done Micah for $35M. Now, 12 months later, both Micah and Chase will want $40M, and Tee will want $33-35M. And all that for what? So owners can play hardball?”
The Bengals have a reputation for being conservative with spending and recently allowed 2024 sack leader Trey Hendrickson to seek a trade, possibly to clear cap space for a Ja’Marr Chase extension.
Future Hall of Fame defensive end J.J. Watt agreed with Kollmann’s take.
Reward your players earlier and reap the benefits in the long run.
Dragging it out not only ends up costing more, it creates unnecessary tension.
The longer you wait, the higher the price. https://t.co/EX72OYWEh5
— JJ Watt (@JJWatt) March 9, 2025
“Reward your players earlier and reap the benefits in the long run. Dragging it out not only ends up costing more, it creates unnecessary tension. The longer you wait, the higher the price,” Watt tweeted.
Longtime NFL executive Mike Tannenbaum also weighed in, predicting how much more Parsons’ extension will cost now that Garrett’s deal has set the new market.
The Myles Garrett extension will cost the Cowboys a minimum of an additional $30mm with Micah Parsons’s extension; last year Nick Bosa’s average, as the highest paid DE was $34mm. On a 5 year extension for Parsons’ the Cowboys, by waiting a year, will be at least 6mm/yr.
— Mike Tannenbaum (@RealTannenbaum) March 9, 2025
The former New York Jets general manager tweeted:
“The Myles Garrett extension will cost the Cowboys a minimum of an additional $30M with Micah Parsons’ extension. Last year, Nick Bosa’s average, as the highest-paid DE, was $34M. On a five-year extension for Parsons, by waiting a year, the Cowboys will be paying at least $6M more per year.”
FOX Sports NFL insider Jordan Schultz took a different approach, suggesting that Dallas has been hesitant to reset the market for Parsons and that a trade isn’t entirely out of the question.
Sources: For weeks, there have been murmurs about whether the #Cowboys will actually give Micah Parsons a record-breaking contract — or if a trade could become a possibility. It still seems far-fetched, but with the market now at $40M per year, this situation is one to watch. pic.twitter.com/nOzQyeyJ5P
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) March 9, 2025
Schultz tweeted, “Sources: For weeks, there have been murmurs about whether the #Cowboys will actually give Micah Parsons a record-breaking contract—or if a trade could become a possibility. It still seems far-fetched, but with the market now at $40M per year, this situation is one to watch.”
Parsons should be thrilled about Garrett’s new deal — it means he’s about to get paid. As for Jones, he now faces two tough choices: pay Parsons more than $40 million per season or deal with the wrath of Cowboys fans demanding he sell the team.