Micah Parsons' Cowboys Contract Leverage Vs. Jerry Jones: Emmitt Smith 2.0?

All throughout the contract saga between Micah Parsons and the Dallas Cowboys, countless people have asked what is Micah's leverage in these discussions?

Well, we might have just found out.

With Parsons under contract for the 2025 season, plus two franchise tags if the Cowboys want to use them, as Jerry Jones said, they have three years to get this done. Now, we know that's not the case because the franchise isn't going to go through this circus again in 12 months if Micah doesn't get signed ... right?

That brings us to Week 1 against the Philadelphia Eagles and Parsons' leverage.

105.3 The Fan's Shan Shariff thinks Micah's leverage is all on Jerry and how far the owner is willing to go.

"Is Jerry Jones willing to decimate his defense, get embarrassed by Saquon [Barkley] and the defending champs?" Shariff said. "Is he willing to decimate his defense to take this negotiation further? That's their leverage."

We have all seen the stats when Micah is on the field and when he isn't, and what that does to the defense, and if there is one team where you can't afford not to have all of your stars playing, particularly for the Cowboys, it's against the Eagles.

Are we heading for another Emmitt Smith situation?

Remember 1993, when the defending Super Bowl champion Cowboys started 0-2 while Emmitt sat out while embroiled in a contract dispute?

Smith's absence, and the Cowboys' record, caused Charles Haley to infamously swing his helmet into a wall in the Texas Stadium locker room. (Haley now tells the story as if the helmet almost hit Jones, which is a bit of an exaggeration.)

And suddenly, Jerry signed his NFL rushing champion.

Fast-forward to a scenario in which Parsons sits out games, the Cowboys get curb-stomped by the Eagles in Week 1 and New York Giants in Week 2 at AT&T Stadium (goodness me, imagine that), and to deal with the embarrassment of starting the year in such poor fashion, before Jerry finally caves?

That's nightmare fuel.

We are about to see how far Jerry is willing to go in this contract saga, and right now, he's willing to let it hurt the team on the field, which has already happened because Parsons won't be available for an entire 60+ snaps against the Eagles.

Micah's leverage might have just been revealed. Let's see if Jerry buckles.