Micah Parsons would like to be traded. The 26-year-old defensive star made it abundantly clear that he no longer wants to play for the Dallas Cowboys amid an ongoing contract dispute.
He is directly contradicting his former self with the formal request.
Parsons, entering his fifth season in the NFL, averaged four tackles and 0.83 sacks per game over 63 regular season games from 2021-2024. However, his numbers do not fully reflect his dominance.
Micah Parson wants to be paid like the best defensive end in the NFL.
The four-time Pro Bowler, two-time First-Team All-Pro and former Defensive Rookie of the Year signed a four-year contract with the Cowboys when he was drafted with the No. 12 overall pick in 2021. His deal also included a fifth-year option for the team.
Dallas made the easy decision to pick up the fifth-year option on Parsons’ contract in April. Duh.
Even though Parsons will make just over $24 million for one additional season on his rookie contract, he wants to be paid like Myles Garrett, T.J. Watt and Maxx Crosby at around $40 million per year.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones entertained an informal negotiation with his star player in March but never involved his agent. They did not reach an agreement.
His trade request is hypocritical.
Micah Parsons issued a formal trade request via X on Friday. He “no longer wants to play for the Dallas Cowboys.” His trade request was formally submitted to Stephen Jones personally.
I understand the reason for this decision. Jerry Jones refused to pay his best player what the market suggests.
With that being said, Parsons’ decision to force his way out of Dallas is a direct contradiction of his former self. He called for college football players to honor their contracts in wake of the Nico Iamaleava saga at Tennessee.
“College football is a joke now,” he wrote on April 11. “Yall minds (sic) well just make college into a semi pro league! Actually hold players accountable to the contracts they sign!”
And yet, Micah Parsons is now the one who is not being held accountable to his contract. He essentially pulled the exact same move as Iamaleava.
Iamaleava wanted a new contract with the Vols and held out for more money. Tennessee eventually told him to move on so he entered the transfer portal.
Parsons wanted a new contract with the Cowboys and held out for money. Dallas refused to meet his demands so he demanded a trade and, effectively, entered his name into the NFL transfer portal.
What’s the difference?!
