Three-time All-Pro pass rusher Micah Parsons put together a dominant performance in Week 1, racking up a sack and 11 quarterback pressures -- tied for the most in the NFL in Week 1 with Detroit Lions edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson entering "Monday Night Football" -- against the Cleveland Browns in a 33-17 road win.
He also took part in the high-end watch requests for Cowboys three-time Pro Bowl quarterback Dak Prescott after he became the highest-paid in NFL history upon signing a four-year, $240 million contract extension. Now that both Prescott and 2023 First-Team All-Pro wide receiver CeeDee Lamb (four years, $136 million) have been extended, Parsons would be the logical player next Cowboys player to receive a megadeal. The 25-year-old and Pro Football Hall of Famer Reggie White are the only players with at least 13 sacks in each of their first three seasons, and Parsons led the NFL in numerous pass rush categories in 2023. He paced the league in quarterback pressures (103), quarterback pressure rate (21.8%) and pass rush win rate (35.3%) -- when a defender beats his block in less than 2.5 seconds.
Parsons addressed his future with Dallas now that he is extension eligible since he has completed three NFL seasons.
"A lot of fans are worried about me. I know I'm going to be a Cowboy," Parsons said on his podcast "The Edge with Micah Parsons" on Monday. "There's nothing like Cowboy Nation. The love is very mutual. As for me, I'm just focused on winning games. I want to win those big games. I want to win those playoff games. Get to the Super Bowl. For me the contract is not really what I'm worried about. It's just me being the best player I can be for my guys, my teammates. If a contract, something like that happens further up, then that happens. But right now we going to focus on just trying to be legendary. Be great and bring championships back to Dallas because that's what the most important thing is."
Given the pattern established with Prescott and Lamb, Jerry and Stephen Jones will likely extend Parsons long-term after another public, drawn out negotiation.
