Dallas Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer has dealt with the potential trade of linebacker Micah Parsons in the past 24 hours since the star player’s social media statement on Friday.
Parsons requested a trade via social media amid a contract standoff and no on-field participation at training camp. Schottenheimer had only one more thing to say about the matter on Saturday.
“I’m not going to continue to talk about Micah’s contract situation,” Schottenheimer told reporters on Saturday.
Parsons officially asked co-owner Stephen Jones to be traded, and the fifth-year star from Penn State thanked the fan base and wrote that he “wanted to be here” in his social media post. The Cowboys took Parsons with the No. 12 pick in the 2021 draft, and he became a star amid three All-Pro awards and four Pro Bowl appearances.
Parsons has 256 career tackles, 52.5 sacks, nine pass deflections, nine forced fumbles, and a defensive touchdown in 63 games over his first four seasons. He has a four-year, $17 million rookie deal, and the fifth-year option pays him $24 million.
However, that’s well below his estimated market value of $37.9 million. Spotrac projects him to earn a four-year, $151 million deal.
Parsons’ contract drama has lingered throughout the offseason, and things now could come to a head with preseason games around the corner and the regular season only weeks away.
2 AFC Teams Have Money to Throw at Micah Parsons
GettyThe Cowboys can ill afford to lose a defensive force such as linebacker Micah Parsons.
With Parsons potentially on the trade block amid his request, many teams could line up to make a deal with the Cowboys — though it will take a king’s ransom and hefty salary cap space. Teams with the best remaining salary cap space include the New England Patriots at $59.99 million, Detroit Lions at $15.1 million, San Francisco 49ers at $47.64 million, Las Vegas Raiders at $38.23 million, and Arizona Cardinals at $37.89 million.
Three of those top-five teams play in the NFC, and two are legitimate playoff contenders. The Patriots or Raiders could fork out the money Parsons is looking for, and the Cowboys would be unlikely to see him come playoff time as neither AFC team is a serious threat to make the Super Bowl.
That said, Schottenheimer has to prepare for the prospect of life without Parsons on the field, which could significantly hinder the Cowboys’ playoff hopes. Dallas has a 2-3 record without Parsons on the field during his career.
Jerry Jones Attempts to Quell Micah Parsons Trade Speculation
Cowboys co-owner Jerry Jones has tried to quell the fan base’s emotions over a potential Parsons trade. Jones told reporters on Saturday it’s not something to “lose any sleep” about, and he doubled down on the Cowboys not trading Parsons.
“I think the world of Micah,” Jones said via ESPN’s Todd Archer. “That’s just the part of negotiation. I don’t really place that with any seriousness.”
Jones has dealt with numerous contract standoffs in his 36 years as Cowboys owner. That includes recent deals for quarterback Dak Prescott and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, but neither turned into trade requests in the process.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Cowboys Coach Brian Schottenheimer Has 1 More Thing to Say About Micah Parsons Trade Request appeared first on Heavy Sports.