The Dallas Cowboys owner has a nemesis hellbent on keeping him from reliving the glory days of the ‘90s. And that nemesis? Well, it’s Jerry Jones – the guy calling the shots as GM. Don’t get it twisted. Draft-n-Play Jerry is elite. Jones’ eye for talent is still sharp, and the Cowboys keep churning out homegrown stars. But when those stars get close to the end of their rookie deals? That’s when Contract Extension Jerry shows up. And while he’s great at making his players richer, he’s also great at making things harder for the team.

We’ve seen this movie before. Jerry’s habit of slow-playing negotiations usually leads to one thing: bigger, pricier deals later. Dak Prescott could’ve signed for $262.5 million over five years in 2023. Instead, he waited, and now he’s making $5 million more per year than any other QB. CeeDee Lamb was always going to reset the WR market. But waiting until the last minute tacked on an extra $4 million per year to his deal. Now, it’s Micah Parsons’ turn. The latest twist in Parsons’ contract saga just hit social media, and it’s messy.

NFL insider Ian Rapoport just dropped a video that spills the tea on what’s holding up Parsons’ extension. And let’s just say… Jerry might’ve fumbled this one, too. And here’s where things get wild. Jerry Jones might have tried to go around Parsons’ agent… and it backfired spectacularly. “Well, first of all, let’s talk about the number, because you see the $40 million for Miles Gary, you see the $41 million for T.J. Watt per year,” one insider explained. “I expect it to come in over. When this is all said and done, Micah Parsons likely is, almost certainly is, the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL, as he should be, and he has been content to wait.”

Parsons knows his worth. While other star pass rushers like Detroit‘s Aidan Hutchinson work on their deals, Parsons is playing the long game. But here’s where Jerry stepped in it: The Cowboys owner thought he had a done deal after talking directly to Parsons – no agent involved. Big mistake. “The Cowboys thought they had a deal, thought they had an agreement, talking just to the player, only for the player to leave, and talk to his agent and go, yeah, we don’t have anything,” the insider revealed. “It’s odd.”

Now we’re back to square one, with the Cowboys pushing for a long-term deal while Parsons’ agent David Mulugheta wants a shorter contract. A move that could let Parsons cash in even bigger down the road. “Term is a big deal for the Cowboys,” the insider stressed. “No doubt they’re going to want to do a long-term deal, whereas David Mulugheta and Micah Parsons are going to want to do a shorter-term deal, as they’ve done.”

Translation? This contract stare-down isn’t ending anytime soon.

Micah Parsons’ camp gains leverage from Jerry Jones’ misstep

If anyone thought this contract standoff couldn’t get messier, Jerry Jones proved them wrong with one press conference. As training camp opened in Oxnard, the Cowboys’ owner took what sounded like a veiled shot at his star. And the backlash was instant. “Just because we sign him, doesn’t mean we’re gonna have him. He was hurt six games last year, seriously,” Jones said, lumping Parsons in with Dak Prescott’s past injuries. “I remember signing a player for the highest paid at the position in the league, and he got knocked out two-thirds of the year… so there’s a lot of things you can think about.”

The problem? Parsons didn’t miss six games last year – he played all 17. And worse, the comment felt less like negotiation tactics and more like public skepticism about the very player Dallas wants to lock down. Unsurprisingly, the NFL world pounced. JJ Watt, never one to stay quiet, blasted Jones on X: “Anytime you can publicly take a dig at your star quarterback and your star pass rusher simultaneously, right before the season begins, you just gotta take it… Nothing makes guys want to fight for you more than hearing how upset you are that they got hurt while fighting for you.”

Parsons didn’t just notice – he retweeted it. A quiet but loaded move, signaling he’s not just listening to the noise; he’s amplifying it. Meanwhile, the market for elite pass rushers keeps climbing, with T.J. Watt resetting the bar at $41 million per year. Every day Parsons waits, his price tag grows, and Jerry’s comments only give him more leverage.

So now, the Cowboys aren’t just negotiating against Parsons’ camp. They’re fighting perception, too. And if Jones thought a little public pressure would speed things up, the opposite just happened: Micah’s camp now has proof that Dallas is overthinking the one thing they shouldn’t – whether their best defender is worth the risk. Spoiler: He is.