Dallas Cowboys edge rusher Micah Parsons has requested a trade amid contentious contract negotiations with the team, he announced Friday.
The three-time All-Pro is entering the final year of his rookie contract and wants to become one of the highest-paid players in NFL history, but Parsons and the Cowboys have been unable to strike a deal after months of discussions.
“Yes I wanted to be here. I did everything I could to show that I wanted to be a Cowboy and wear the star on my helmet. I wanted to play in front of the best fans in sports and make this America’s team once again. The team my pops and I grew up cheering for way up in Harrisburg, PA. Unfortunately I no longer want to be here,” Parsons wrote on social media. “I no longer want to be held to closed-door negotiations without my agent present. I no longer want shots taken at me for getting injured while laying it on the line for the organization, our fans and my teammates. I no longer want narratives created and spread to the media about me.”
The Cowboys selected Parsons with the No. 12 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, and he instantly became one of the most fearsome edge rushers in the league. His 52.5 sacks are the fifth-most ever through a player’s first four seasons, and Parsons joins Reggie White as the only two players with at least 12 sacks in each of his first four years.
Micah Parsons, Cowboys deadlocked in contract extension talks, per report
Cody Nagel
Because of that historic production, and the fact that he’s still in his athletic prime, Parsons wants a historic payday. To this point, the Cowboys have been unwilling to meet his demands, and Jerry Jones has even taken a few public shots at his defensive superstar.
“Just because we sign him doesn’t mean we’re gonna have him. He was hurt six games last year. Seriously,” Jones said in July when asked about the contract standoff in July. (Parsons actually only missed four games.)
Parsons on Friday told his side of the story, detailing how he and the Cowboys have reached this point. He said he had his agent reach out to the team about an extension after the 2023 season “in hopes of getting a deal done early.” Parsons wrote that the team did not want to enter negotiations at that point and decided to revisit potential extension talks after the 2024 campaign. Even though he said his agent advised him to wait until other edge rushers received their own extensions, driving the price of his own up, Parsons said he didn’t care about other players. He wanted to secure himself “as a Cowboy long-term.”
“I knew I would be leaving money on the table but again I was OK with that. Again radio silence as far as my extension,” Parsons wrote.
Parsons met with Jones in March. It was a conversation Parsons said he thought would be “about leadership,” but quickly turned into contract talks. Things deteriorated from there, leading to Friday’s formal trade request.
“I engaged in a back and forth in regards to what I wanted from my contract, but at no point did I believe this was supposed to be a formal negotiation and I informed Mr. Jones afterward my agent would reach out thinking this would get things done,” Parsons wrote.
“But when my agent reached out and spoke to Adam [Prasifka] he was told the deal was pretty much already done. My agent of course told him that wasn’t the case and also reached out to Stephen Jones. Again the team decided to go silent. At that point we decided we would allow the team to reach out to us whenever they decided they wanted to talk. Yet still not a call, email or text to my agent about starting a negotiation.
“Up to today the team has not had a single conversation with my agent about a contract. Not one demand has been made by my agent about money, years or anything else. Still I stayed quiet but again after repeated shots at myself and all the narratives I have made a tough decision I no longer want to play for the Dallas Cowboys. My trade request has been submitted to Stephen Jones personally.”
As Cowboys training camp opened in Oxnard, California, fans met Jones with chants of, “Pay Micah!” In response, Jones said they were a “faint little sound” compared to the chants of “Pay Lamb” when CeeDee Lamb needed a new contract in 2024.
Up until this point, Parsons had publicly expressed his desire to remain with the Cowboys.
“I don’t know. We’ll see, we’ll see how long things take,” Parsons said last month. “There’s not really much movement, man. I want to be here. I’ve always stated I want to be here, but at the end of the day, they sign the checks like always. Let’s see if they want me to be here at the end of the day.”
Both Lamb and quarterback Dak Prescott recently expressed support for Parsons, saying they hoped he would get paid in the near future.
CBS Sports will update this breaking news story.