The awkward situation brewing at training camp in Dallas looks like it’s only going to get worse as the days roll on.
The problem? Superstar defender Micah Parsons is due for a monster extension. Both Parsons and the Cowboys know this, though apparently their definitions of what qualifies as a “monster” extension are somewhat far apart.
While Parsons has shown up for training camp, the hold-in has already raised several red flags with both sides publicly posturing as a part of the negotiation dance. According to a new report from Dianna Russini at The Athletic, Parsons is ready to escalate things, as the Cowboys aren’t currently playing ball.
Per Russini, one of the reasons we’re stuck in this stalemate is that the Cowboys are refusing to negotiate with Parsons’s agent. The team’s side of the argument is that they were negotiating well with Parsons directly, and believed they had the framework of a deal in place in the spring.
“When Parsons’s agent pushed back and attempted to negotiate further, the Cowboys declined to engage with him and told the pass rusher to honor the agreement he had made,” wrote Russini.
This is just getting messy. The Cowboys are welcome to think that a deal was nearly in the bag while talking with Parsons directly, but if pen was never put to paper, well, there you go. This is what agents are for, and to say no thank you we would rather negotiate the contract with the guy whose job isn’t negotiating contracts is akin to a refusal to sit at the table at all.
As ESPN NFL reporter Dan Graziano put it on Friday morning, it feels pretty likely that Parsons is going to be with the Cowboys for the long haul, but it might take a while—even into the season perhaps—for the deal to come to fruition.
We’ve seen Jerry Jones play this song before, but the music has to stop eventually.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as New Report Details Just How Far Apart Micah Parsons, Cowboys Are in Contract Talks .