Could Cowboys' Micah Parsons become NFL's highest-paid defender?

FRISCO — Cowboys safety Jaylon Kearse may not have the master’s degree in business that team owner Jerry Jones brandishes or decades of high-stakes negotiation experience. When it comes, however, to someday paying hybrid linebacker Micah Parsons, Kearse may be on to something.
His approach is simple and to the point.
And certain to work.
“Give him the checkbook,” Kearse said Monday with a smile. “Just give him the checkbook and let him write his number down and then let him cash the check. We have a lot of pivotal players in our defense, myself included. But that’s one that it will be tough, extremely tough, to duplicate the things he does for our defense. So, I’d give him the check and say, ‘Just write your number down.’”
This summer, the Cowboys signed three players to a contract extension and increased another’s pay to end a holdout. Other potential extensions, including to quarterback Dak Prescott and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, loom. As dollar signs fly, the franchise plans for Parsons and the mammoth price tag he is certain to command.
Parsons becomes eligible for an extension after the 2023 season. That gives him at least one more year to demonstrate his historic value, beginning Sunday against the New York Giants.
“Just doing what I’m supposed to do,” Parsons said Monday of the opportunity ahead. “Just being a dominant player, being the best defensive player in the league, being the best player in the league in general and win us football games.”
When the Cowboys gave cornerback Trevon Diggs his five-year, $97 million extension in July, other cornerback contracts provided a reference point for the financial terms. Same for Malik Hooker at safety and Terence Steele at right tackle.
Parsons will be different.
Discussing whether Parsons should be paid like a defensive end or linebacker would shortchange his versatility and impact. The team is expected to pay Parsons like the NFL’s most impactful defensive player, an approach that would speed rush him past Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald’s annual contract value of $31.67 million, making Parsons the highest-paid defender in league history.
Money is not squarely the object.
“It’s the heart and the significance behind the money,” said Parsons, who finished second in AP Defensive Player of the Year voting in each of his first two NFL seasons. “What the money says. It’s something that I worked for and something that I earned.”
This weekend, Steele became the latest Cowboys player to receive a lucrative extension.
That helps bring Parsons’ situation to mind when teammates congregated in the locker room Monday for the first time. David Mulugheta, who negotiated Hooker’s contract, is Parsons’ agent. But teammates happily raised a hand to speak to Parsons’ value.
Steele played at Texas Tech with Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and saw how Mahomes relished competing in anything, from “trashketball” in the locker room — like basketball but a ball goes into a large laundry basket — to table tennis and other such activities.
“Micah is the same way,” Steele said. “He’s the ultimate competitor. In everything that he does, he’s competing. …He’s definitely earned it, his consistency of what he does, game in and game out.”
Parsons has numerical production.
In two seasons, he has recorded 149 tackles, 26 1/2 sacks, three forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries, including a fumble returned for a touchdown. According to Pro Football Focus, he has recorded a quarterback pressure on 20.8% of his rush attempts, the highest rate of any player with at least 300 rush attempts in that span. His 21 forced throwaways are also tied for the league lead.
Numbers capture only part of his impact.
His positional versatility imposes a mental stress point on offenses before each snap. Attention from blockers creates opportunities for teammates. This offseason, Parsons worked to become a smarter and more physical player, a process that included adding muscle, taking up boxing and picking the brain of former NFL offensive lineman Andrew Whitworth.
“Quarterback money,” Diggs said. “He definitely should get quarterback money. He deserves it. He’s a generational talent. He’s got too much talent. Nobody is like him. Like how a quarterback can change a whole team, he can change a whole defense, and he can ruin a play at any time. If you got that capability, you should get paid like it.”
Said quarterback Cooper Rush: “He’s been wrecking practice, as you guys have seen at training camp. I think we’re all excited not to go against him and to celebrate when he gets a sack.”
The Cowboys know what is ahead.
On Aug. 23, at a season kickoff event, Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones shared a stage with Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee DeMarcus Ware. Jones discussed the contract extensions the team hoped to complete.
He mentioned Steele. He mentioned Lamb. He couldn’t avoid mentioning someone else.
“Certainly,” Jones said, “we’ve got a monster coming in Micah Parsons.”
A blank check would do.
Big money
The NFL’s highest-paid defensive players, according to spotrac.com.
Average per year
Player Position Team Value
1. Aaron Donald DT LA Rams $31.7M
2. T.J. Watt OLB Pittsburgh $28M
3. Joey Bosa OLB LA Chargers $27M
4. Myles Garrett DE Cleveland $25M
5. Quinnen Williams DT NY Jets $24M
Total value
Player Position Team Value
1. Khalil Mack OLB LA Chargers $141M
2. Joey Bosa OLB LA Chargers $135M
3. Myles Garrett DE Cleveland $125M
4. Von Miller DE Buffalo $120M
5. T.J. Watt OLB Pittsburgh $112M