By now, the chants have become part of the backdrop in Oxnard: “Pay Micah!” over and over again, rising from the fence line like a chorus Jones has learned to tune out. But as training camp picks up steam, so does the tension. Because once again, Jerry Jones is playing the long game with his best player caught in the middle.
Jones, the Cowboys’ ever-calculating owner and de facto general manager, is no stranger to dragging his feet when it comes to star extensions. His latest episode of negotiating tenacity features Parsons, arguably the best edge-rusher in the league, whose contract extension talks have dragged on through the offseason.
Parsons, who’s been eligible for an extension since the offseason began, made it clear last year he wanted to get something done early. Back then, the top of the edge rusher market sat below $40 million a year. And after T.J. Watt’s latest deal? That number is at $41 million and climbing. Micah has said what he needed to: “If they don’t want me here, they don’t want me here. – I’m gonna do what I have to do to perform at the highest level. But if this is the end, this is the end.”
On the Unsportsmanlike show, Jeff Darlington shared his surprise that it has already taken so long to reach a conclusion. As Darlington puts it, “he doesn’t seem to understand that the longer you wait, the more you pay. It happens with every single player.”
If Jones had made a deal back when Micah had asked, he would have received about $35 million annually. However, that benchmark is now long gone, with newer, larger deals. As Darlington further adds, “His price on Micah Parsons has gone up, I think, probably like $7 million a year now after TJ Watt got his deal. It’s just going to keep going.”
Are we wrong to think Micah Parsons and the Dallas Cowboys are going to get a deal done? @JeffDarlington | @EvCoRadio https://t.co/iSG5wSn0cg pic.twitter.com/izkk8qOlk4
— UNSPORTSMANLIKE Radio (@UnSportsESPN) July 28, 2025
Jones has a pattern of slow-playing superstar deals. Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb went through similar drawn-out processes, generating headlines (and frustration) before ultimately landing their big extensions. For Chris Canty, this latest saga of Micah Parsons’ contract seems more like a marketing scheme than a negotiation. The fan chants continue to keep the Cowboys in the national spotlight, even if in a negative light.
But this balancing act is double-edged. Each week of delay gives other teams time to set the bar higher, pushing up Parsons’ eventual contract. The chants from the crowd also signal a growing impatience from the Cowboys’ faithful. And most importantly, even if Parsons still maintains his professionalism, his public frustration clearly reflects a chill between the team’s best defender and its management.
Ultimately, the stalemate appears to be a front office focused on dominating the news cycle rather than securing its premier talent. The goal, as Canty adds, is “just to continue to generate headlines, even though we all know how the movie ends, which is them getting the deal done.” Even if the deal remains inevitable, the franchise’s strategy is now being openly questioned by analysts, fans, and Parsons himself. Unless Jones pivots quickly, the Cowboys risk paying even more (and squandering the trust of their stars and supporters) in exchange for little more than fleeting headlines. But Jerry Jones, for one, is not doing anything to placate the chants. If anything, his answers remain calculated; pointed even, in the face of rising price tags.
Jerry Jones’ downplaying the “Pay Micah” cries
When Cowboys legend Charles Haley took to the stage to hype up Jerry Jones, the crowd wasn’t buying it. The chants became harder to ignore, even when Jones tried to shift the attention to George Pickens’ iconic trade to Dallas. When asked about the chants, Jerry’s son Stephen Jones provided very little comfort, skirting around the problem. “It doesn’t change anything. We want to pay Micah too. He’s gotta want to be paid.” But when it came down to the man himself, Jerry had a different approach.
INGLEWOOD, CA – AUGUST 11: Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones talks to media before the NFL, American Football Herren, USA preseason game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Los Angeles Rams on August 11, 2024, at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, CA.Photo by Jordon Kelly/Icon Sportswire NFL: AUG 11 Preseason Cowboys at Rams EDITORIAL USE ONLY Icon240811005
Speaking about the chants, Jones noted on Sunday that this wasn’t the first time he’s heard something like that. Last year, when CeeDee Lamb was holding out for his deal, the chants were louder. But Micah Parsons is still showing up, still all-in with the franchise. So the volume from the crowds is considerably low. As Jones put it, “I heart it light, but not compared to how I heard them say ‘Pay Lamb.’ That was a faint little sound compared to the way they were hollering last year, ‘Pay Lamb.’… Whoever’s not in, you can count on a few hollering that. But it was a big loud chant last year on Lamb.” Jones also justified waiting till the last moment for a deal to go through. He added a lot can happen during the length of a contract; even referencing a player getting hit by a car.
Last season, after Dak Prescott signed his historic QB deal, the tide shifted midway through the season. Prescott notably suffered a season-ending hamstring injury in Week 9, so Jones’ waiting game could stem from getting burnt after paying a premium in the past. For now, the Micah Parsons contract saga continues. And judging by history, Jones could very well wait until September to sign that check. But if he waits that long, how much more would he have to pay Parsons in the end?
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