The NFL player who is widely seen as next in line to become the league’s highest-paid non-quarterback may be losing momentum toward reaching that goal anytime soon.
Hours after The Athletic reported that the star Cowboys defensive end was “considering drastic measures,” Parsons posted a note to social media detailing the nature of negotiations with the team, and finally saying he had requested a trade.
“I no longer want to be here. I no longer want to be subjected to close door negotiations without my agent present. I no longer want shots taken at me while laying it on the line,” Parsons wrote.
Thank you Dallas 🦁👑 🙏🏾! I pic.twitter.com/EUnEj9uRUt
— Micah Parsons (@MicahhParsons11) August 1, 2025
Parsons, 26, is entering his fifth season, set to earn $24 million in the final year of his rookie contract. He has been seeking a new deal that most insiders believe will surpass the three-year, $123 million pact Steelers edge rusher T.J. Watt recently signed, which has an average annual value of $41 million in new money and made Watt the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL.
Amid contract negotiations, Parsons opted not to hold out or so far sit out of any practices at training camp. Parsons said in his note that he had spoken directly with Cowboys owner Jerry Jones over multiple days in March, and that his contract came up, but a deal was not done and he asked Jones to contact his agent. However, when Parsons’s agent, David Mulugheta, pushed back and attempted to negotiate further, Dallas declined to engage with him.
Parsons says the team has still refused to talk to Mulugheta about his contract.
Cowboys receiver CeeDee Lamb, who had a contentious negotiation of his own last year, posted this on X/Twitter shortly after Parsons’s note: “Never fails dawg. Just pay the man, what you owe em. No need for the extra curricular.”
A record deal for Parsons would give the Cowboys the highest-paid quarterback and non-quarterback in the NFL, as the four-year, $240 million extension Dak Prescott signed last year still carries the league’s highest average annual salary in new money at $60 million per year.
Khalil Mack is the last premier edge rusher who was traded in his mid-20s. He was dealt by the Raiders to the Bears in 2018 for two first-round picks, a third-round pick, and a sixth-round pick, and he signed what was then the richest contract ever for a defensive player: six years, $141 million.
