After much “will he, won’t he,” Dallas Cowboys edge rusher Micah Parsons has reported to the Star in Frisco for the team’s mandatory minicamp on Tuesday, according to multiple reports. Parsons, who skipped out on OTAs despite appearing at the facility off and on, is in line for a contract extension after his third season in the league.
Though he’s looking for an early contract extension, there are other players in the building – namely Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb – who have priority. Prescott enters the 2024 season on the final year of his contract while Lamb, who is holding out during minicamp, is set to play on his fifth-year option.
Mandatory minicamp is the first team activity of the offseason that players are expected to show up for. Lamb is facing fines of up to $100,000 for skipping out. The fine, however, pales in comparison to the millions of dollars he’s hoping to receive with a contract extension.
Parsons is coming off a 2023 season that was arguably the best season of his career. The 24-year-old defender registered 64 tackles, 18 tackles for loss and 14 sacks. His production in 2023 led to him to earning another Pro Bowl nod and an All-Pro Second-Team honor.
Parsons ‘missed opportunities’ while away from team
Parsons returned to the Star last Wednesday after spending most of the Cowboys’ offseason program away from the team doing personal workouts. Even in his return, he didn’t practice. The former first-round pick arrived in Frisco for his media obligations like photographing headshots and recording pre-game animations. Still, he didn’t stick around to hit the field with his teammates.
Though McCarthy has been supportive of Parsons’ time away, like during his overseas trip to China and Japan, the skipper admitted Thursday that the defender is missing opportunities to work, especially with new defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer.
“Micah looks to be in really good shape, but you know, it’s a new defense, so we’ve got work to do,” McCarthy said. “He’s engaged. We’ll be ready when it’s time. I have confidence in him.”
“I think anytime you have a chance to be together it’s an opportunity to improve whether it’s in the mental realm, the physical realm, which is limited obviously at this time of year, and the emotional connection and so forth. It’s a long year,” he added. “Training camp is really the heightened focus for all of that, but yeah, it’s definitely an opportunity that’s been missed.”
Parsons, who won the league’s Defensive Rookie of the Year award in 2021, has led the Cowboys defense in sacks in each of the last three seasons. His total is now 40.5 as he enters Year 4. Dallas has already exercised their option on the fifth year of his rookie contract. They’ll owe him $21.3 million in 2025.
The post Micah Parsons reports for Cowboys mandatory minicamp appeared first on On3.