NFL Training Camps Kick Off With Holdouts, Big Paydays Looming

NFL training camps are opening this week with several lingering high-priced contract disputes and uncertainties between teams and players.

Cowboys defensive end Micah Parsons is entering his fifth season, set to earn $24 million in the final year of his rookie contract, which is far below market value for one of the best pass rushers in the league. 

Parsons, 26, isn’t expected to hold out, as Dallas prepares for the 2025 season in Oxnard, Calif., as the franchise annually does. But if and when he does sign a new deal, he’s expected to become the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL—a mark that has been set anew by several players this offseason.

Last week, Steelers edge rusher T.J. Watt surpassed Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase ($40.25 million new-money average annual salary) by signing a three-year, $123 million contract with $108 million fully guaranteed, which has an average annual value of $41 million in new money.

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.

Cat Fight in Cincy?

The Bengals are dealing with two contract situations that could drag on through training camp and even into the season.

Cincinnati defensive end Trey Hendrickson is set to make $16 million this season, but he has said he won’t play without a new deal. Hendrickson, 30, isn’t expected to reset the market like Watt and Parsons, but is widely believed to be worthy of a much more lucrative salary this year.

Hendrickson’s contract situation has been a topic dating back to the NFL Scouting Combine in February, when Cincinnati director of player personnel Duke Tobin indicated the pass rusher’s new deal would come after extensions for Chase and fellow receiver Tee Higgins.

Meanwhile, rookie defensive end Shemar Stewart, the 17th pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, did not report to training camp over the weekend, and he remains the lone first-rounder not signed to his new team.

Stewart’s draft position slotted him into a four-year, $18.94 million contract, but he remains at an impasse with the Bengals over the team’s desire to include language that could void his guaranteed money under certain circumstances.