Dallas Cowboys S Donovan Wilson, EDGE Micah Parsons, and S Malik Hooker watch from the sidelines at training camp. Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Micah Parsons' locker room placement shows Cowboys' leadership plan

Originally posted on Dallas Cowboys on SI
By Randy Gurzi | Last updated Aug 14, 2025 10:35 AM ET

Believe it or not, a lot of planning goes into an NFL locker room. Dallas Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer understands this, since he made a significant change as soon as he took over the job.

Schottenheimer’s primary move was putting defensive end Micah Parsons next to quarterback Dak Prescott.

It’s not just the Cowboys who use the locker room to their advantage as ESPN’s Marc Raimondi recently broke down the strategy for several teams. In Dallas, it’s all about getting the best players on the same page.

"Two of our best players, put them together," Schottenheimer said.

"There's also other things we're doing in there where guys are competing every day in different things that we've kind of put in there, but just they can challenge each other in a good way. ... There's a method to the madness."

Parsons is currently in a contract dispute with the Cowboys, which has his status for Week 1 undecided.

Despite this, Schottenheimer still sees him as a leader, and clearly has plans for him to stay in such a role. It makes sense given the impact he can have on a game, plus Parsons is one of the more passionate players on the team.

Now, we just need Jerry Jones to do his part.