Micah Parsons’ agent clears air on Jerry Jones, alleged handshake agreement on contract with Cowboys

In March, star EDGE Micah Parsons and Cowboys owner Jerry Jones reportedly came to a verbal agreement on a revamped contract that would’ve been worth $40.5 million per year. That number would’ve made Parsons the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL at the time.

Alas, Jones grew unhappy when Parsons wanted his agent David Mulugheta to speak with the organization before signing anything official. From that point, Jones and the Cowboys refused to negotiate with Parsons any further despite the three-time All-Pro expressing his frustration.

The divide between the two parties reached its boiling point in August when Parsons requested a trade. On Aug. 28, Parsons was traded to the Green Bay Packers. During an appearance on First Take, Mulugheta revealed he didn’t expect the Cowboys to refuse to come to the negotiation table.

“That was the part, for ourselves, that was the most confusing,” Mulugheta said. “I understand Jerry’s always gonna do what’s best for the Cowboys, and we get that, right? His job to do what’s best for the team and put them in the best situation to win. In this situation, once Micah asked for his representation to be involved, we assumed that that would go like any other negotiation, and they would reach out, or they would allow me to reach out and commence negotiation.

“I’m not sure how this turned the way it did. We were open to negotiate. We reached out numerous times to Adam Prasifka there, who does their contracts. I reached out to [Cowboys executive vice president] Stephen Jones as well, and asked him to start negotiations. But, for some reason, coming out of that conversation, Jerry believed that he had reached an agreement and he was not open to negotiating any further.”

In exchange for Parsons, the Cowboys received defensive tackle Kenny Clark and two first-round draft picks (2026 and 2027). Parsons agreed to a four-year, $188 million contract with the Packers. The contract includes $120 million fully guaranteed at signing and $136 million in total guarantees.

With the deal, Parsons is now the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL. Steelers linebacker TJ Watt previously owned that title, earning $41 million per year.

Micah Parsons is only the second player in NFL history to record 12 sacks in each of his four seasons in the league. The former Penn State standout tallied 43 tackles, 12 sacks and two forced fumbles last season despite missing four games due to injury.

On Sept. 7, the Packers will square off against the Detroit Lions in their season opener at 4:25 p.m. ET. The game will air live on CBS.