The Dallas Cowboys handled their two pressing contract situations, it just took them an extremely long time. Wide receiver CeeDee Lamb and quarterback Dak Prescott took two extremely different approaches to their ordeals. The former, set to play on the team-controlled, fifth-year option of his rookie contract, had little leverage. The latter, entering the final season of his four-year extension that included both a no-trade and a no-tag clause, had all of it.
So Lamb held out all offseason, missing OTAs, minicamps and training camp while Prescott led each of those as the engrained franchise quarterback. Both were finally compensated with top-of-market deals before Week 1. Now star defender Micah Parsons is on the horizon; and he recognizes his turn will likely wait until 2025, but which of the two paths he takes is still unknown.
Parsons is entering his Year 4; and as a first-round pick the club has exercised the fifth-year option to lock him in for next season as well. Whether or not he chooses to employ the same tactic as Lamb and hold out until a deal is done, he’s still spinning the situation forward to focus on this season.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport is reporting Parsons is “content” to wait until next offseason to work on his blockbuster deal.
With three All-Pro designations in his first three seasons, Parsons is on pace to be one of the best pass rushers in NFL history on his current trajectory. His 40.5 sacks through his first three seasons is the fourth-highest official total in league history, and Reggie White already had a couple years of professional experience before starting his NFL career with 52. Only Derrick Thomas’ 43.5 and Aldon Smith’s 42 truly rank above Parsons’ total.
In other words, he’s going to break the bank in the same way Lamb and Prescott did.
The Jaguars’ Josh Allen and the Giants’ Brian Burns signed deals this year for around $28.2 million average salary. The 49ers Nick Bosa is currently in the clear compared to other edge rushers, inking a five-year, $170 million deal last summer worth $34 million a season. Parsons is going to outdistance them all when his new deal is secured; it just likely won’t be during the season.