CeeDee Lamb got paid on Aug. 26. Dak Prescott secured his bag just hours before Dallas' regular-season opener on Sunday. Next up for the Cowboys: Micah Parsons?
The two-time All-Pro linebacker is in the fourth season of his rookie contract and has one year left on his deal after Dallas picked up his fifth-year option in April, the biggest no-brainer decision in an offseason of tough ones.
Parsons is a sure thing in the Cowboys' front seven and will likely be paid at or near the top of the defender charts when his time comes; the top-paid defensive player is currently 49ers pass rusher Nick Bosa at $34 million per year. Many analysts think Parsons is worthy of a record-setting pact now, but the three-time Pro Bowler said on Tuesday that he still has more to prove before he cashes in.
"For me, I just want to prove to the front office that I'm the best player, and I can do it consistently at an all-time high," Parsons said on GMFB: Overtime. "I think I've been doing that pretty much, but I really want to prove my value. I want to get (Cowboys owner) Jerry (Jones) a couple wins. I kinda just want to maximize my value so that they see we've got to keep this guy. This guy is great in the locker room, and he wants to be part of this team, and he cares about winning."
Through three seasons and one game, Parsons has already staked his claim to a new deal. In 51 regular-season games, the 2021 first-round pick has 217 combined tackles, 94 QB hits, 52 tackles for loss and 41.5 sacks; only three players have more sacks in that span (Bosa, Myles Garrett, T.J. Watt, in ascending order).
Parsons, who is owed just $5.4 million this season and $21.3 million in 2025, added that he wants to be seen as the Dak Prescott of Dallas' defense before he gets paid like him.
"One thing I haven't done is be the best player on and off the field consistently," he explained. "I think that's something that I wanted to prove to the front office and to my teammates, that I could be the best player, that leader that they're looking for to carry this team to win a championship. I think that's that mission factor that I want to show these guys that I can be. ... Just like how we know Dak can be a leader and we know Dak can do all these great things, I kinda want to do that for us defensively."
Parsons and the Cowboys defense are off to a good start in that respect.
Dallas was dominant in its 33-17 beatdown of the Browns in Week 1, logging six sacks and two interceptions against Deshaun Watson, just the fourth time in the last quarter-century that a Cowboys defense has produced those numbers. Parsons himself earned a game-high nine QB pressures, five QB hits and a sack in 63 snaps and 46 pass rushers, per Next Gen Stats.
In his first game playing under new defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer, Parsons looked at home all over the front. The pass rusher mostly played from the edge (52 snaps) but also lined up at defensive tackle on nine plays and inside linebacker for two. That multiplicity and freedom under Zimmer is exciting Parsons.
"I really like it because Mike just gave me the free will," the Cowboys star said. "It's also the discipline factor of he's making other people learn different positions too and we practiced it in camp, which allows me to do this. It starts with the simple factor of me wanting to do it and Mike creating ideas for me to do it. He allows me just to range and go over the guard. Sometimes, he don't even call it. Sometimes, he's just like, 'I trust you to do what you want.' He calls a front, he's like, 'You said it. You make it. You get the guys lined up.' He's giving me this free will to say, 'Hey, if they're coming out in this formation, you do that, you can go into there.' He's giving me a lot of free reign that I feel like I haven't had over the last couple years, and the fact that we've got kinda like this trust factor … I really like it a lot."
Deal or no deal, Parsons and the Cowboys (1-0) will try to keep the good times rolling next Sunday in their home opener against the Saints.
