Micah Parsons

Cowboys To Classify Micah Parsons As DE On Fifth-Year Option

11:19am: The Cowboys may not have made a final decision on Parsons’ positional designation, but the Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Clarence Hill indicates a D-end classification will draw a grievance from the defender’s camp. This may end up being a footnote, with Hill adding a Parsons extension is expected to come together over the next year. In the long-running saga of edge rusher positions factoring into salaries, a Parsons grievance would be a notable development.

8:46am: Many instances have come about during the franchise tag era of teams classifying edge rushers as linebackers as opposed to defensive ends, as the former designation saves a bit of money under the tag formula. Grievances have stemmed from these decisions, with compromises being reached on some occasions. The script may flip in Dallas.

This year’s franchise tag and fifth-year option numbers produced a higher linebacker salary compared to defensive ends. The LB tag comes in at $24MM, while the D-end number is $21.32MM. This will pertain to the Cowboys, who have refused in the past to label Micah Parsons a full-on defensive end despite the team regularly lining up the star defender at that spot.

While the Cowboys will make one of the easiest fifth-year option calls in history by exercising Parsons’ 2025 guarantee, the Dallas Morning News’ Michael Gehlken notes the team will classify Parsons as a defensive end when picking up the option.

Drafted as a linebacker, Parsons made the move to regular edge rusher fairly early in his career. But the Cowboys had previously pushed back on labeling the 2021 No. 11 overall pick a DE. The team would, however, stand to have a clear runway to label Parsons a DE due to the fast-rising star playing the bulk of his snaps at the position. Parsons played 87.8% of his defensive snaps on the D-line last season. With the Cowboys using a 4-3 scheme, this would not fall under the typical 4-3/3-4 dispute that commonly comes up regarding edge rushers’ tag or option numbers. Because Parsons has three original-ballot Pro Bowl nods on his resume, his fifth-year option doubles as the franchise tag number.

As of now, it would be unlikely Parsons plays the 2025 season on his option. The Cowboys found a dominant defender with that No. 11 pick three years ago, and the Penn State product is on a clear path toward the Hall of Fame. He will command a top-market extension. The option number could play a part in the team’s extension approach, which would introduce a new wrinkle in a process that usually plays out with teams preferring to label an edge rusher as a linebacker for financial purposes.

Since the 2011 draft began the option era, the Cowboys have extended four players (Tyron Smith, Travis Frederick, Zack Martin, Ezekiel Elliott) before they played a season on the fifth-year number. Smith, Frederick and Elliott signed new deals before their fourth seasons. Morris Claiborne and Byron Jones are the only Cowboys to play out a fifth-year option, doing so when it was guaranteed for injury only. Both left in free agency the following offseason. The Cowboys would surely use the franchise tag on Parsons in 2026 if his extension talks were to encounter a snag.

It will be interesting to see if Parsons follows Elliott’s playbook and forces the issue this offseason, though his February stance would not indicate as such yet. Players had more options regarding holdouts before the 2020 CBA changed the service-time requirement in an effort to prevent holdouts, leading to the hold-in tactic as a regular option during negotiations. The Cowboys would have Parsons attached to just a $2.99MM base salary if he is not extended this season.

While most teams wait until Year 5 to extend first-round picks, the Cowboys have made exceptions in the past. However, the team has a big-ticket CeeDee Lamb extension to negotiate this offseason, along with a potential Dak Prescott re-up. It is possible a Parsons move will be tabled to 2025, which would put the ball in the dominant sack artist’s court.

Micah Parsons Not Actively Pursuing Cowboys Extension

The 2024 offseason will require a number of key financial decisions involving the Cowboys’ nucleus. Top of the list in that respect is a new deal for quarterback Dak Prescott, but wideout CeeDee Lamb and edge rusher Micah Parsons are also eligible for monster extensions of their own.

Lamb was drafted in 2020, one year before Parsons. The former is on the books for $17.99MM in 2024 on his fifth-year option, but Parsons will no doubt have his option picked up this spring. That move will keep him in place through the 2025 campaign. As a result, Lamb represents a more pressing order of business for Dallas.

Parsons acknowledged as much during a recent appearance on NFL Network’s Super Bowl Live. As a result, he is not aggressively pursuing an extension, one which will likely put him at or near the top of the pecking order among edge rushers. Lamb, too, will not come cheap on his second contract; he has publicly stated a desire to become the NFL’s highest-paid receiver.

Lamb posted single-season franchise records for both receptions (135) and yards (1,749) in 2023, scoring a career-high 14 total touchdowns along the way. The 24-year-old earned a first-team All-Pro nod along with a third career Pro Bowl invite as a result, and he could command an AAV at or near Tyreek Hill‘s market-setting $30MM on his next pact. Negotiations on that front will likely take precedence over talks with Parsons, though the latter is amenable to hammering out a deal in the near future.

“If they’re ready to talk about a deal and get a deal done, I’ll be super excited,” Parsons said. “You know I’m ready to be [with the] Cowboys for life, this is the team I wanted to be with, this is the team I want to win a championship with.”

Parsons has racked up 40.5 sacks in his three seasons with the Cowboys, posting at least 13 in each campaign. That consistency has earned the former Defensive Rookie of the Year a number of accolades (three total All-Pro honors, three Pro Bowl nods) and upped his market value. A new Parsons contract will not kick in until 2026, by which time the edge market may have seen further growth from what has already taken place. Nick Bosa received the league’s largest deal for a non-quarterback in September, inking a $34MM-per-year 49ers extension with $122.5MM guaranteed.

Parsons will no doubt be aiming for a pact similar or larger in value to Bosa’s when the time comes to work out a mega-extension. That time will likely not come this offseason, though, or at least not until the Prescott and Lamb situations gain more clarity. In any case, developments on the Parsons front will be worth monitoring given his importance to Dallas’ defense.

Cowboys To Move Leighton Vander Esch To IR

OCTOBER 12: The Cowboys will follow through on the expected transaction. Vander Esch is heading to IR, McCarthy confirmed Thursday. Expected to be out at least a month with a neck strain, Vander Esch will rehab while off the team’s 53-man roster.

OCTOBER 9: Leighton Vander Esch‘s history with neck trouble affected him during his rookie-contract years in Dallas and impacted his potential for a lucrative extension. Months after re-signing with the team on a two-year deal, the veteran linebacker has run into another neck issue.

A collision with teammate Micah Parsons in the second half of the Cowboys’ loss to the 49ers is expected to lead to a Vander Esch absence. The Cowboys are likely to move the former first-round pick to IR, Mike McCarthy said Monday (via ESPN’s Todd Archer). Vander Esch is expected to miss four to six weeks with a neck strain, according to the Dallas Morning News’ Calvin Watkins.

An IR move would sideline Vander Esch until at least Week 11; the Cowboys have their bye in Week 6. Vander Esch, 27, saw neck injuries sidetrack his career. The first of those came in 2019, when the 2018 first-rounder missed seven games. He then missed three because of neck trouble last season.

The Cowboys gave Vander Esch a two-year, $8MM deal in March. He played the 2022 season on a one-year, $2MM pact. After a breakthrough rookie season, this did not appear the path Vander Esch’s career would go. The Boise State product soared to second-team All-Pro honors after a 140-tackle season that included two interceptions and seven passes defensed. Vander Esch played a lead role in Dallas rallying back to win the NFC East in 2018, but he fell off the extension radar due to injuries.

Dallas declined his fifth-year option in 2021, and while the parties have since agreed to two more contracts, neither checks in as an especially lucrative deal for the once-promising prospect. Still, Vander Esch rallied back in 2022 and logged his most defensive snaps (746) since his impact rookie year. While the Cowboys disbanded their multiyear LVE-Jaylon Smith pair two years ago, they have still kept the younger linebacker in their plans. For the time being, however, Vander Esch will drift out of the picture.

The team is looking into a veteran addition, per the Dallas Morning News’ Michael Gehlken. Dan Quinn also offered an interesting potential solution for a Vander Esch absence. The third-year Dallas DC said an extended hiatus could lead to Micah Parsons spending more time at linebacker, The Athletic’s Jon Machota tweets. Drafted as a linebacker, Parsons quickly graduated to pass-rushing star. The Cowboys have refrained from labeling the impact defender a pure defensive end, but Parsons spends most of his time rushing from the edge.

A move back to the second level would be an interesting development for this defense, given the value Parsons has generated up front. The Penn State product did play more ILB as a rookie, and the Cowboys will soon be thinner at that position. Dallas also is much deeper along its D-line, rostering the likes of Dorance Armstrong, Dante Fowler and Sam Williams as auxiliary edge rushers. Conversely, the team has an issue at linebacker.

Opting not to re-sign Anthony Barr, the Cowboys moved 2022 Day 3 draftee Damone Clark into their starting lineup. They drafted Demarvion Overshown in Round 3 but lost the rookie to a torn ACL this summer. The team waived Jabril Cox in August. Dallas rosters just one more ILB on its 53-man roster, second-year UDFA Markquese Bell. The team will need to add at that position soon.

In addition to Vander Esch’s setback, the Cowboys lost veteran special-teamer C.J. Goodwin — likely for the rest of the season. Goodwin suffered a torn pectoral muscle, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. The Cowboys re-signed Goodwin in March, giving him a veteran-minimum deal. Goodwin, 33, has been with the Cowboys since 2018.

Cowboys’ Micah Parsons To Play More Versatile Role In 2023?

Micah Parsons has established himself as one of the league’s most productive defenders during his first two years in the NFL. The two-time Cowboys All-Pro has also shown a intriguing degree of versatility with respect to his alignments, something which could be taken a step further this season.

Parsons was drafted as an inside linebacker following his college career, but he quickly showed an ability to be a disruptive force off the edge. That led to the expectation that a full-time position switch to defensive end could be coming, but head coach Mike McCarthy made it clear last offseason that Parsons would instead remain a movable chess piece on Dallas’ defense.

The 2021 Defensive Rookie of the Year logged 738 snaps along the defensive line last season, per PFF, adding 737 as a stand-up outside linebacker. Parsons’ 13.5 sacks showed how effective he can be in those alignments and earned him a top-10 finish in MVP voting. Instances in which he handled other duties (including in coverage) could lead to an even more varied workload moving forward.

“Just playing chess, being able to move around,” Parsons said, via Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning News“I think that’s the special ability that I have or I want to incorporate. We’re doing a lot of special things. I don’t want to give a lot away right now. But it’s going to be a really cool year. I’m probably going to play eight positions this year.”

While that figure may be on the high side, both the Penn State alum and defensive coordinator Dan Quinn acknowledged that training camp will be used as a testing ground to determine where Parsons can line up in different situations. He will still spend considerable time as an edge rusher, of course, meaning his endeavor to increase his playing weight will be one of significance.

Parsons is aiming to bring himself to 255 pounds (after spending last season at 245) to be better equipped to handle life at the line of scrimmage, but also to preserve what could be a very highly decorated career. By the time the season starts, he will likely have bulked up and the Cowboys will have spent time during the summer devising more unique ways to deploy him.

Cowboys Rumors: Parsons, Draft, Ball, Smith

Cowboys defensive star Micah Parsons has not been in attendance for voluntary workouts in Dallas thus far. According to Calvin Watkins of The Dallas Morning News, this has nothing to do with any issues in his relationship with the team and is actually in service of the team.

Parsons has reportedly been in Austin attempting to bulk up in preparation for more playing time at defensive end. One of the NFL’s more versatile athletes, Parsons played mostly in the box as a rookie before spending the majority of his time last year on the line. At 245 pounds last year, Dallas staff felt he needed to add some muscle in order to better handle routine double-teams.

So, Parsons’s absence is not contract related in any way. He says he’s added about seven pounds and doesn’t intend to surpass 255 in his career. Parsons also claimed earlier that he would be in attendance for Organized Team Activities set to start in two weeks. His absence shouldn’t worry too many as he’s determined to come back stronger and even more dangerous.

Here are a few more rumors concerning the Cowboys:

  • There was reportedly another option on the table for the Cowboys when they used the 26th overall pick to select Michigan defensive tackle Mazi Smith in the first round of this year’s draft. According to David Moore of The Dallas Morning News, Dallas heavily considered using the pick to draft Syracuse offensive guard Matthew Bergeron, who would go on to be selected by Atlanta 12 picks later. Bergeron fit their needs due to the departure of starting guard Connor McGovern to Buffalo. They did address the offensive line later in the draft and likely still will with undrafted free agents, but many expect last year’s first rounder, Tyler Smith, to bounce into a guard spot with the healthy returns of Tyron Smith and Terence Steele, covering the role.
  • Another piece of the offensive line, Josh Ball will have some new expectations this year, according to ESPN’s Todd Archer. After Ball saw extremely limited time in his first two years, mostly at tackle, head coach Mike McCarthy has stated that Ball will be asked to play on the interior this season, as well. This is perhaps another potential solution to the loss of McGovern, or it could just be a backup plan after seeing all the offensive line injuries from last season.
  • Mostly known for his career in San Francisco but last known on the field as a Cowboy, Aldon Smith recently received an update to his off-field situation. Last we heard, the troubled defender had been arrested on a felony charge of DUI causing injury, adding to the litany of issues that had resulted in a four-year suspension from the NFL. Now, according to TMZ, Smith’s arrest has led to a 12-month sentence in jail, likely ending any far-reaching hopes of a return to the NFL.

Cowboys Not Moving Micah Parsons To DE

After winning Defensive Rookie of the Year honors, Micah Parsons is expected to have another highly productive campaign in 2022. Given his prowess rushing the passer, some thought he would be in line for a full-time positional switch from middle linebacker to defensive end. In an interview with the team’s website, head coach Mike McCarthy said that won’t be happening. 

[RELATED: Parsons Played 2021 Season On Injured Knee]

“That’s a very fair question” McCarthy said, referring to suggestions Parsons line up on the edge permanently. “But we’ve made it clear: we want him moving around.”

Drafted 12th overall as the consensus top linebacker, Parsons acquitted himself quite well at the position during his time there. Early on in the season, though, he switched to DE after an injury to DeMarcus Lawrence left the Cowboys thin on edge rushers. Regardless of where he lined up on the field, the Penn State alum put up impressive numbers all year.

Parsons totalled 84 tackles, 13 sacks and 20 tackles for loss across 16 games played; as a result, he was recognized with not only the DRoY award, but also Pro Bowl and All-Pro nods. As McCarthy himself noted, however, those sack totals were split between his time at either position. His overall ability to not only rush the passer, but also defend the run and drop into coverage clearly has the team eyeing more of a ‘Swiss Army-knife’ type of role for him.

The Cowboys ultimately lost Randy Gregory in free agency, and later signed Dante Fowler to help replace him. Even if they add pass-rushing help in the draft later this month, Parsons will likely still have plenty of snaps on the edge moving forward. Barring a repeat of last season’s injuries, though, he will also spend significant time in his more natural position.

Micah Parsons Played 2021 Season With Knee Injury

The Cowboys’ original plan with the No. 10 pick of the 2021 draft was to select either South Carolina cornerback Jaycee Horn or Alabama cornerback Patrick Surtain II. Of course, both of those players were off the board by the time Dallas was on the clock, so the club traded down and ultimately landed Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons, despite its existing LB depth.

All Parsons did was put together a remarkable rookie campaign in which he posted 13 sacks, 20 tackles for loss, and 30 quarterback hits while playing both linebacker and defensive end (just one game into the season, the Cowboys were forced to move Parsons to DE due to a DeMarcus Lawrence injury and Randy Gregory‘s placement on the reserve/COVID-19 list). His efforts earned him NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year honors, and he became the first player to ever win that award by unanimous vote. He also finished second to Steelers edge defender T.J. Watt in NFL Defensive Player of the Year voting.

On top of all that, Parsons hyperextended his knee during a joint practice with the Rams in August, and he played the entire 2021 season while suffering the effects of that injury. “It was at a point where I was like, ‘I’m in a position battle,'” Parsons said. “‘I’m going against Jaylon (Smith). The first game is coming up soon.’ I was like, ‘This is the worst time for this to happen'” (via Jon Machota of The Athletic (subscription required)).

Parsons added, “[i]t’s something that just kept lingering. When you hyperextend something, it needs rest. But I was like, ‘I can’t take no rest.’ The whole season I kept rehabbing, rehabbing, rehabbing so that way I could play in the games.” The 22-year-old also noted that while medication helped, he was in significant pain after games.

A fully-healthy 2022 campaign, along with natural progression and development, might allow Parsons to secure a DPOY nod next year; he will certainly be on the shortlist of favorites heading into the season. But the Cowboys will need to supplement their LB corps just the same. That above-referenced depth at the position is no longer a reality, with Leighton Vander Esch and Keanu Neal set for free agency and with Smith having been released in October.

Fellow LB Jabril Cox, a 2021 fourth-rounder, appeared in seven games last season — primarily in a special teams role — before suffering a torn ACL, which could put the start of his 2022 season in jeopardy.

NFL COVID-19 List Updates: 1/12/22

Today’s updates for the reserve/COVID-19 and practice squad/COVID-19 lists:

Arizona Cardinals

  • Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: TE Maxx Williams (remains on IR)

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Dallas Cowboys

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Kansas City Chiefs

  • Placed on practice squad/COVID-19 list: TE Mark Vital

New England Patriots

San Francisco 49ers

  • Restored from practice squad/COVID-19 list: QB Tyler Bray

Seattle Seahawks

Washington Football Team

  • Restored from practice squad/COVID-19 list: DT David Bada

NFL COVID-19 List Updates: 1/4/22-1/5/22

Here are Tuesday and Wednesday’s activations from and placements on the reserve/COVID-19 lists:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

  • Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: TE Jared Cook, LB Damon Lloyd (remains on IR)

Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

Cowboys Place Micah Parsons On Reserve/COVID-19 List

Micah Parsons landed on the Cowboys’ reserve/COVID-19 list Wednesday due to a positive test. With this news coming four days before the Cowboys’ recently rescheduled Week 18 matchup, Parsons’ regular season is likely over.

The NFL slid the Cowboys’ regular-season-ending Eagles matchup to Saturday. Even with the NFL’s revised protocols, Parsons will likely not be in uniform again until his team’s playoff opener. Week 18 stands to be Parsons’ first absence this season.

While the Cowboys’ Week 17 loss prevented them from vying for the NFC’s No. 1 seed, the NFC East champions could still obtain the conference’s Nos. 2 or 3 seeds. However, they would need to win and see the Rams and Buccaneers lose to move up. A win and a Rams loss to the 49ers would vault the Cowboys to the No. 3 slot. The Bucs are less likely to drop, having opened as 9.5-point home favorites against the Panthers.

As for Parsons, he has likely sewn up the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Year honor. The Penn State product has been a revelation for the Cowboys, registering 13 sacks and an NFL-leading 20 tackles for loss while playing both linebacker and defensive end. No rookie has won Defensive Player of the Year acclaim since Lawrence Taylor in 1981. Oddsmakers peg sack leader T.J. Watt as the favorite for that award. Parsons, who has helped the Cowboys vault from 28th to seventh in scoring defense from 2020 to this season, has the second-best odds for the award.

The Cowboys will have a bit more help at linebacker in Philadelphia. They activated Keanu Neal from their virus list Wednesday. Neal missed Week 17 due to COVID-19.