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Through his time with the Dallas Cowboys, Micah Parsons routinely empahsized that he hoped to play for the franchise for his entire NFL career.
Ultimately, Parsons didn’t even make it to a second contract with the team, as he was traded following a contentious contract dispute between he and team owner Jerry Jones.
Dallas sent Parsons to the Green Bay Packers in exchance for defensive tackle Kenny Clark and a pair of first-round picks, and Parsons then signed a four-year, $188 million contract extension with the Packers that made him the highest-paid edge rusher in the league at the time.
However, we never actually found out what the Cowboys were offering Parsons that made him unhappy…until now.
Small Contract Details Kept Micah Parsons From Re-Signing With The Dallas Cowboys
Parsons recently appeared on the Mohr Stories podcast with comedian Jay Mohr and discussed a number of topics, including his exit from Dallas.
At one point, Mohr specifically asked Parsons what went wrong during negotiations, at which point the superstar pass rusher went into detail about the negotiations.
According to Parsons, Jones told him that he needed to take a team-friendly deal to stay in Dallas. At which point, Parsons said that he wanted to be the highest-paid player at his position, though he didn’t care about how much.
“I have to do it for not just me, but the rest of the league,” Parsons said of his reasoning. “You’ve got guys like (Aidan) Hutchinson coming after, Will Anderson. I could completely throw off the whole market. You’ve got to think about guys that are after you and the future of the league when you’re doing these negotiations.”
Parsons then made it clear to Jones that his agent, David Mulugheta, had to clear the contract before he would sign anything.
He then told Mohr that the Cowboys offered him a deal in the area of five years, $200 million. However, Mulugheta told him not to take it due to the structure of the contract and when his money would become guaranteed.
Ultimately, Parsons said that he felt Jones wanted power and control of him that he was not willing to concede.
Perhaps things worked out best for both sides. The Cowboys used one of the two picks it received from Green Bay to help acquire star defensive tackle Quinnen Williams from the Jets, while they used the other to acquire defensive end Malachi Lawrence in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Parsons, meanwhile, notched 12.5 sacks for the Packers and was yet again named first-team All-Pro before tearing his ACL late in the season.
So, who got the better side of the deal? Let us know in the comments below.