Jerry Jones and the Cowboys are up to their old tricks. Linebacker Micah Parsons is awaiting a contract extension as he enters the fifth-year option of his deal at above $20 million for this season. But the Cowboys being Cowboys are yet to put anything on the table and are playing the waiting game. They did it with running back Ezekiel Elliott. They did it with receiver CeeDee Lamb and even quarterback Dak Prescott. History, it seems is repeating itself with Parsons. But while Jerry Jones likes to operate at his own pace when it comes to these negotiations, on this occasion, he might be jolted into action following two big deals back to back.

The highest-paid non-QBs this season are changing every minute. Last week, Raiders‘ Maxx Crosby was on top of the list. The DE landed a three-year extension worth $106.5 million, including $91.5 million guaranteed, with the Las Vegas Raiders. If that average of $35.5 million per year was not enough to give Jerry Jones sleepless nights, Myles Garrett’s massive extension with Cleveland, despite publicly requesting a trade, will give him nightmares.

The Browns signed Garrett to a record-breaking contract extension that averages $40 million per season and includes $123.5 million in guaranteed money. While this deal is a win-win for the franchise and the player, its ripple effects will be reaching far and wide, shaking the foundations of the front office in Dallas. Parsons may not be on the level of Garrett yet, but the deal could mean his next contract could be in the same region and perhaps slightly more than what Crosby has in Las Vegas.

Maxx Crosby’s sorted, Garrett is sorted, but Micah Parsons remains partying in Dubai with Justin Fields (also freshly sorted). So when will the Cowboys give Parsons his due? Parsons, for one, doesn’t want a big contract but the recent deals involving his fellow DEs mean he would not be taking a lowball offer either. So where does it leave Dallas? Well, as much as the fans would like the franchise to retain him, the possibility of a trade looms. That is what Mike Florio is suggesting at least. The PFT host dropped by the Rich Eisen Show after free agency had the NFL’s audience’s eyes balling out. Talking about Parson’s possible new contract, Florio says that if Parsons demands more than $40 million a year, then the Cowboys will have a decision to make.

“There have been a couple of Sunday Splash reports suggesting that maybe the Cowboys will eventually decide to trade Parsons. Shan Shariff from 105.3 The Fan in Dallas, the Cowboys’ flagship station, said last April, based on talking to four people in the building, Micah’s act was wearing thin on the Cowboys. You just got to wonder if Parsons’ number starts creeping above 40 million a year, do they consider kind of a kind of a Herschel Walker trade?” Florio pointed out.

So while Garrett’s big contract extension could provide some leeway to Parsons, it could very well backfire.

Jones might decide that if Parsons’s demand is too much, he would rather trade him than spend big, and repeat the infamous Herschel Walker-type trade. To jog your memory, the Cowboys traded their top RB, Herschel Walker, to the Vikings in 1989. In return, they got five players and six draft picks. The players that the Cowboys got were LB Jesse Solomon, DB Isiac Holt, RB Darrin Nelson, LB David Howard, and DE Alex Stewart. The picks turned into players such as Emmitt Smith, Russell Maryland, Kevin Smith, and Darren Woodson. This allowed them to build the roster that won them three Super Bowls in the later years. While last month Parson said that “there’s definitely a plan in place” for his new contract, Florio isn’t dismissing the possibility of a trade.“The problem nowadays, though, is what you get in trade and what they have to pay the player—that’s tied together. So the more they have to pay the player, the less they’re going to want to give you. But still, a trade is on the table, I think, it can’t be out of the question until the Cowboys do a deal with Micah Parsons. And we know how the Cowboys like to do business—they drag their feet and drag their feet and drag their feet until the last minute. Meanwhile, the price for Parsons keeps going up and up and up,” he mentioned.

Seeing Garrett’s big contract might give Jones an indication that if he plans to keep Parsons, he will have to fork out a similar deal. Parsons wants to stay in Dallas and now he has a number he may put on the table.

The league is increasing the salary cap every year, and teams are spending more and more to build a team that can bring them the Lombardi. The players are, well, you can say, bathing in money, signing million-dollar contracts. Myles Garrett was tired of losing, so he requested a trade from the team. But they managed to keep him on the roster by offering him a deal that Garrett could not refuse. So, will the Cowboys have to go down the same route? Could Parsons use the trade tool to get what he wants? It doesn’t appear so. The linebacker made that much clear.

“No, I don’t plan on following suit. As long as, you know, I get a deal done, I think I’ll be pretty happy,” he told Zach Gelb on Sunday about whether he will make a move similar to Garrett’s. In fact, in December Parsons made it clear that he doesn’t want to be the highest-paid defensive player in the league and would rather see Dallas build a strong team around him.

“It would be nice to be surrounded by good players,” Parsons said. “Players that will help me win championships, I’ll say that. To me, having $40 million and being chipped every play and slid into three, four people, that doesn’t sound too fun to me.” We are not sure whether his stance has changed following two blockbuster deals, but the Cowboys won’t be resting easy unless the situation is sorted out.

Perhaps it’s time for Parsons to take a flight back from Dubai and sort out his contract first. Meanwhile, the Cowboys have also lost one of their defensive linemen to the Giants.

Chauncey Golston signs with John Mara’s team

The Iowa alum, Chauncey, entered free agency as Jerry Jones and the management did not give him or his manager any call. Translation: the Cowboys did not care much about whether he stayed or left. Well, as long as they have DeMarcus Lawrence and Micah Parsons on the D-line, they won’t care much. So, the Giants picked Golston off the free market, signing a three-year deal worth $19.5 million with him.

The 27-year-old posted his career highs last season with Dallas. Chauncey recorded 56 tackles with 5.5 sacks in 2024. The DE also defended five passes, showing he has incredibly strong hands and awareness. But all that does not matter now. Golston’s performance must not have been eye-catching enough for Dallas, but it was for the Giants. Thanks to his career-high numbers, the DE landed a new team on the very first day of free agency. So now, Chauncey will be donning the Giants blue for 2025.

Well, now Dallas better giddy-up and find a replacement for Golston. The team already has so much to figure out, and by letting good players go, they are just adding to their troubles. But then again, are the Cowboys even the Cowboys if they don’t do Cowboys things?