It is August, and Jerry Jones has begun almost an annual ritual of negotiating with himself. As was the case last year, 2021, and many times before, Cowboys training camp largely has been overshadowed by the contract holdout of a star player-a situation that could have been easily avoided had it not been for Jones’s own tendency toward self-sabotage. Some families just go down to Cape for a vacation.
Jerry Jones said the Cowboys couldn’t afford Derrick Henry in his last year’s interview. But this year, the spotlight shines upon the defensive end, Micah Parsons, a four-time Pro Bowler during his four years, 26 years of age, already entering the fifth and final year of his rookie contract without a new one, and who publicly requested a trade last Friday.
Parsons expressed that he had hoped to negotiate a contract extension after his third year, which ended with him being a three-time All-Pro. However, the Cowboys were not interested at that time. Parsons professed that the escalation of negotiations was initially planned for after last season, but, adhering to the counsel of his agent, David Mulugheta, he instead waited for other top-tier defensive ends, like Maxx Crosby, Myles Garrett, and T.J. Watt, to reset the market through their contracts.
Wise advice, indeed: all three have since inked deals which, upon their signing, made the players the highest-paid non-quarterback NFL athletes, and as a result, they pushed the threshold for an outright record-breaking free-agent deal into the low $40 million. Crosby’s deal is three years for $35.5 million per season, Garrett’s is four years for $40 million per season, and Watt’s, completed a fortnight ago, is for three years at $41 million per season.
Despite the latest controversy, Micah Parsons leads Maxx Crosby, Myles Garrett, and T.J. Watt in sacks at 52.5 and leads Garrett and Watt (and tied with Crosby) in pressures at 330 over the past four years, counting from his rookie campaign. There really should be nothing that could logically prevent Parsons from boosting these record-breaking contracts, which is why this matter almost seems to be straightforward.