Cowboys' Stephen Jones Talks Micah Parsons Contract Extension, Has No 'Crystal Ball'

Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones has no idea when contract extensions will get done with Micah Parsons stating he has no "crystal ball."

“I’ve never been one to crystal ball when contracts get done,” Jones told SiriusXM’s Mad Dog Sports Radio channel Monday (h/t Charean Williams of PFT). “I mean, you can be close, you think you’re right around the corner, and then they get pushed out and there’s extenuating circumstances as to why they or their agent don’t want to pull the trigger. So, you know, that’s just a work in progress.”

Parsons became eligible for a contract extension following the 2023 season and now enters the final year of his rookie deal, set to earn $24 million on his fifth-year option.

“It’s never easy to comment on them, because you really don’t know where you are until both sides are ready to go,” Jones continued. “But obviously our goal is to –- and we have visited at times with Micah — and our goal is to get him here. And I think Micah wants to be a Cowboy, and we want him to be a Cowboy long term.”

While the Cowboys have shown no urgency in extending him ahead of training camp, his brother, Terrence Parsons Jr., made it clear on social media that Micah will not hold out from participating.

Despite the uncertainty surrounding Parsons’ future, the linebacker — who has recorded at least 12 sacks in each of his first three NFL seasons — is expected to command a historic deal in the range of $45 million per year, according to Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport.

The Cowboys have a history of dragging their feet when it comes to extending their stars, with ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler highlighting several other drawn-out negotiations in recent years.

"They are budgeting for that," Fowler said. "They want to keep Parsons long term. They do have a penchant for signing their star players, it just takes a little while. Last year, Dak Prescott didn't get his deal done until Sept. 8, right before the season; CeeDee Lamb late August. So, they could certainly draw this out, but they know what the price tag is, $35-40 million per year, for a player of his caliber."

Despite the delay, a deal is widely expected to get done, as the Cowboys are unlikely to risk entering the season without one of the league’s premier defenders.