Dallas Cowboys outside linebacker Micah Parsons celebrates a sack in the second quarter against the Washington Commanders. Tim Heitman-Imagn Images

Micah Parsons' contract, salary projection after TJ Watt extension skyrockets

Originally posted on Dallas Cowboys on SI
By Josh Sanchez | Last updated Jul 18, 2025 7:15 AM ET

The Dallas Cowboys watched the price tag for Micah Parsons go even higher this week when the Pittsburgh Steelers agreed to a contract extension with star edge rusher T.J. Watt.

Watt signed a record-setting three-year, $123 million extension with $108 million guaranteed for an average annual salary of $41 million. The deal makesWatt the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL.

Now, the Cowboys will have to top that deal to keep Parsons, which means his annual average salary continues to rise, and Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk shared his thoughts on how high it could go.

According to Florio, "Our guess is it’ll be closer to $45 million, if not more than that."

"He’s well younger than the edge rushers who have gotten to the $40 million mark (Watt and Myles Garrett). And, again, the longer the Cowboys wait, the more expensive the final deal likely will be," Florio added.

"It’s actually good for the Cowboys and Parsons that Watt’s deal was done. Parsons and his agents may have wanted to wait for Watt before doing a deal. Even though Parsons might exceed Watt and Garrett by a significant margin, the Watt deal remained a key data point for Parsons."

Last season, Parsons totaled 12 sacks and 43 tackles. By hitting the double-digit mark, Parsons joined an exclusive club of NFL legends to record at least 10 sacks in each of their first four seasons. The other three players were Pro Football Hall of Famers Dwight Freeney, Derrick Thomas, and Reggie White.

It's time for Jerry Jones to stop playing games. Jerry needs to hurry up and get a deal done before the Cincinnati Bengals extend Trey Hendrickson and raise the price for the prized defensive star even more.

This article first appeared on Dallas Cowboys on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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