A once-proud franchise again finds itself in familiar territory, but familiarity doesn't always equal harmony. There aren't many NFL or Dallas Cowboys fans who haven't heard the story, but just in case said fan exists, here's a synopsis.
Micah Parsons, in just four NFL seasons, has established himself as one of the elite talents at his position and has found his way onto the Pro Bowl roster after each campaign. The fifth-year option on his rookie deal was exercised on April 24, but past that, there are no guarantees about his football future.
Oh, he'll be playing somewhere, of that we're certain. The question is this. Will he be playing for the Cowboys or another NFL franchise?
"If Micah is dug in, kudos to you, bro. Hate to see you go. I would love for you be a Dallas Cowboy as long as possible because you're a phenomenal player, but at some point, Jerry and Stephen (Jones) is going to mess with the wrong one and they're going to stand on business for real and not show up to play games."
Those were the words of ESPN NFL analyst Marcus Spears during a recent episode of NFL Live. He, by the way, is a former Cowboy who is still a Dallas fan. He continued, mentioning an NBA parallel that Dallas sports fans may be familiar with.
"Now, everybody [says], 'Money is going to fix it and eventually he'll break.' Maybe that'll be the case. Maybe Micah Parsons is doing this for a negotiating tactic, but if he's not, I'm telling y'all right now, I'm in Dallas. These fans acted a fool with the Dallas Mavericks when Luka Doncic was let go because they thought that was the face of their franchise."
To his credit, Micah has played the role of a good soldier. He hasn't held out. He has been present for mandatory minicamp and training camp, but recently, his patience has worn thin.
He has requested a trade from the only NFL team he has ever played for. His teammates have come to his defense, several of them changing their social media avatars to a photo including his likeness.
"This is an inflection point for the Dallas Cowboys, their business practices and how they've been doing things if this young man decides, 'I'm gonna be the one player that doesn't go with the regular rigmarole and accept a contract and go back and play with the Cowboys. I'm gonna request a trade and stand on it until they make a move to move me out of the way.'"
This is quickly disintegrating into an ugly standoff between player and organization. The Jones family reportedly wants Parsons to accept a deal he agreed to verbally during a previous conversation. We'll see what happens, but here's what we can guarantee. Nothing is going to change if things continue as they are currently transpiring.
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