Micah Parsons attending Dallas Cowboys minicamp just got way better after latest insight from head coach Brian Schottenheimer

"Why did I think that would be the first question?" Dallas Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer joked to reporters on the first day of mandatory minicamp. 

He was talking about inquiries on whether or not Micah Parsons and Trevon Diggs were in attendance for the required phase of the offseason kicking off Tuesday. Schottenheimer confirmed they did show up for minicamp.

Parsons showing up was expected after the star defender confirmed on social media he'd show up last week. However, what caught everyone's attention was Schottenheimer's confirmation that he would indeed practice. 

"(Parsons) will be out there on the field doing some stuff," Schottenheimer told reporters. 

The update is an important one as many fans and media members speculated he could show up and not practice while he awaits a new deal. Parsons practicing shows how genuine his message about leading the locker room really is. Most NFL players in his position—a position that could turn him into the highest-paid non-quarterback in league history—don't show up to minicamp. 

Case in point, T.J. Watt isn't reporting to the Pittsburgh Steelers minicamp. Neither is Trey Hendrickson with the Cincinnati Bengals. That's not to say they're wrong for skipping it but it says volumes about Parsons. 

"It just shows you that he's serious about what we've talked about, which is developing that leadership mentality, the mindset to be a guy that we can count on, not just the fourth quarter when he's got to make a big sack or get pressure on the quarterback," Schottenheimer said. "He's doing the things he's supposed to do." 

So far, Parsons has kept his word. He's been around. The pressure is on the Cowboys' front office as we get closer and closer to training camp, where his attendance is far from guaranteed. 

"I’m preparing as if I will be on the field the first week of camp!" Parsons posted on X last week. "But it’s in the owner’s hands."