Cowboys star Micah Parsons has requested a trade out of Dallas amid a contract dispute with the franchise.
The two-time All-Pro and four-time Pro Bowler took to social media to announce his trade request. He wrote “Thank you Dallas” and included a long message explaining his recent negotiations with the team, specifically with team owner Jerry Jones and COO and co-owner Stephen Jones.
“Yes I wanted to be here. I did everything I could to show that I wanted to be a Cowboy and wear the star on my helmet,” Parsons wrote in the post. “I wanted to play in front of the best fans in sports and make this Americas team once again. The team my pops and I grew up cheering for way up in Harrisburg, PA. Unfortunately I no longer want to be here. I no longer want to be held to close door negotiations without my agent present. I no longer want shots taken at me for getting injured while laying it on the line for the organization our fans and my teammates. I no longer want narratives created and spread to the media about me. …
“I stayed quiet, but again after repeated shots at myself and all the narratives, I have made a tough decision: I no longer wanted to play for the Dallas Cowboys. My trade request has been submitted to Stephen Jones personally.”
The Cowboys selected Parsons with the 12th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. He was a first-team All-Pro and the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in his first season, and he followed that up with a second straight first-team All-Pro selection in 2022. The 26-year-old has picked up at least 12 sacks and been named to the Pro Bowl in each of his first four NFL seasons.
Parsons is entering the final year of his contract, a $24.007 million fifth-year team option that the Cowboys picked up in April 2024. He has been vocal about wanting a new contract but said last week that there was “not really much movement” on a resolution.
Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb came to Parsons’ side after his teammate’s announcement, saying “Never fails dawg. Just pay the man, what you owe em. No need for the extra curricular.”
Never fails dawg.
Just pay the man, what you owe em. No need for the extra curricular 😒— CeeDee Lamb (@_CeeDeeThree) August 1, 2025
The Parsons drama comes a year after the Cowboys waited until the day of their season opener to announce a new deal with quarterback Dak Prescott that made him the NFL’s highest-paid player on an annual basis.
Defensive stars across the NFL have been getting paid this offseason. In July, the Pittsburgh Steelers made star linebacker T.J. Watt the league’s highest-paid defensive player with a reported three-year, $123 million deal. Watt passed the previous mark set by Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett, who signed a four-year deal worth $40 million annually.
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