Dallas Cowboys defensive end Micah Parsons at training camp at the River Ridge Fields Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Micah Parsons, Cowboys contract talks now personal, 'further away' than before

Originally posted on Dallas Cowboys on SI
By Josh Sanchez | Last updated Jul 29, 2025 1:53 PM ET

The contract negotiations between the Dallas Cowboys and superstar Micah Parsons appear to have taken a turn for the worse. Parsons has acted in good faith throughout the offseason program, but Jerry Jones has dragged his feet throughout the process.

To kick off training camp, Jones appeared to take an unnecessary shot at Parsons for missing time due to injury.

Cowboys nepo-EVP Stephen Jones then chimed in with a head-scratching comment of his own, saying Parsons "needs to want to be paid," like a player would not want to ink a deal that would make him the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL.

The Jones family has handled the entire situation wrong, and now things have gotten personal. ESPN's Adam Schefter went as far as to say the the situation is "not a negotiation right now" and the two sides are "further away" from a deal than they were earlier this year.

"I would say right now we are further away from a deal in late July, early August than we were in late March, early April," Schefter said, per Blogging the Boys. "The two sides have gone backwards, not forwards. I don't think they're speaking very much these days if at all... but this negotiation, when it was a negotiation, has gone sideways. It's not a negotiation right now."

He went on to compare the Parsons negotiations with last year's sagas involving CeeDee Lamb and Dak Prescott, but this one is different.

"This sounds a little bit more personal from both sides," Schefter said. "It sounds like Dallas is upset with the fact it felt like it was getting closer to a deal, and that deal went sideways. And I think Micah Parsons feels like this deal should have been done.

"I don't think Micah's real happy with them. I don't think they're real happy with him. I don't think anybody's real happy with anybody and I don't think there's a deal that's being discussed right now, not to mention being close."

It's a troubling update from one of the league's top insiders, and it's disappointing that the situation even got to this point. Parsons has done his part for the past few months and has consistently showed up and been involved in OTAs, minicamp, and training camp.

Parsons is there to help his teammates, now it's up for the team's front office to do their part.

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

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