ESPN's Bill Barnwell doesn't believe Micah Parsons is going to actually be traded away from the Dallas Cowboys.
He wrote in a new story Tuesday that this reminds him of Myles Garrett and the Cleveland Browns in the spring. Garrett requested a trade, only to stay in town with a new, shiny, record-setting contract.
"Dallas fans have every right to be terrified of their local team trading away a star player after the Luka Doncic fiasco, but this is hardly the first time the Cowboys have pushed a negotiation to its breaking point before getting a contract done with a star player," Barnwell writes. "In fact, it seems difficult for them to conduct their business in any other way in terms of recent negotiations."
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In this context, Barnwell goes on to break down what he thinks Parsons will get paid.
His projection: Four years for $172 million, which is a record-setting $43 million a year to top all non-QBs in NFL history.
"When Parsons signs his deal, whether that comes with the Cowboys or somebody else, it'll top (T.J.) Watt's average salary -- and not by a few pennies," Barnwell writes. "The most likely contract is a four-year deal for $172 million, with a record average salary of $43 million per season. With Parsons' $24 million salary for 2025 already guaranteed, that would come out to five years and $196 million, for an average of just over $39 million per year."
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The process of waiting on the Parsons deal has cost the Cowboys a lot of money, too.
"Nobody, not even the Cowboys, can pretend to construct a scenario where Parsons was anything less than the highest-paid edge rusher in league history," Barnwell writes. "The only question was whether Parsons would be topping (Nick) Bosa's deal or moving past somebody else's. When the Cowboys neglected to get Parsons's deal finished in 2024, other teams made deals that left the Cowboys behind."
But in the end, Dallas fans would much rather see Parsons on their team than in any other uniform.
It's up to Jerry Jones to help get this deal over the line, for whatever record-setting number the two sides arrive at.
A trade is a nightmare scenario for the Cowboys, one that is even more costly than whatever Parsons will get paid.
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