The Cowboys stand at 5-8 heading into today's game against the Panthers, and in the words of executive Stephen Jones, they're just "trying to win a game." It has been that kind of season for Dallas, one destined to end in disappointment no matter how the final four games of the regular season go.
Which is why the team's brass will spend the offseason examining how they got there and what led them down this frustrating path. Of note: Jerry Jones, Stephen Jones, vice president of player personnel Will McClay and other members of the team's brass will explore the effects that signing big-money, high-profile, top-of-position players has on their rest of their roster.
"To me, it would be irresponsible if every year you don't look at the full body of work and the big picture and how those guys fit into that big picture," Stephen Jones told NFL.com at the conclusion of NFL's December League Meeting in Las Colinas, Texas, on Wednesday, "and how we want to think about our team in terms of the big picture going forward."
With a potential blockbuster contract extension for star defender Micah Parsons looming, this study could get extremely interesting.
The season began with the record-setting contract for Dak Prescott, which made him the highest-paid quarterback in the NFL per year. He will be watching from the sidelines Sunday following hamstring surgery that ended his season in November.
CeeDee Lamb also got his blockbuster deal this offseason and is one of the highest-paid receivers, ranking third in the league in catches and yards. But the Prescott injury highlighted the issue. Zack Martin, a top-five highest paid guard, also is out for the year due to an ankle injury and could retire after the season. Cornerback Trevon Diggs, who got a huge extension in 2023, is expected to undergo season-ending knee surgery after dealing with injury in 2024, according to NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero.
All of which has led the internal research to ignite. In other words, would the Cowboys be better off signing a stronger middle class or upper-middle class of players rather than the high-end ones?
"I think that's a balancing act that you always got to look at," Jones said on Wednesday. "Especially when your good, good players get hurt and are not on the field. It totally magnifies the issue if you lose guys like Dak, and Diggs misses games, Zack Martin misses games and it's going to magnify something like that. You're going to say 'God, are we smart having this much money tied in to the top five to 10 players?' "
As it stands now, Dallas has more than $20 million projected in salary cap space for 2025, per Over The Cap, not including the potential that Martin retires and other things that could alter the number.
That question brings us to the Parsons matter -- the elephant in the room.
Parsons has been clear since the beginning that he doesn't want to go anywhere else. He told NFL Network on the red carpet for this past February's NFL Honors, “I hope I'm a Cowboy for life.” And whenever asked since, he's offered a strong version of those intentions.
But Parsons is also entering the last year of his rookie deal in 2025, a fifth-year option worth more than $24 million. He patiently waited for Prescott and Lamb to get paid. This offseason, it’s his turn.
Asked if the thinking will be altered when it's Parsons' turn to negotiate a potential deal given the stress big contracts can put on an organization, Jones said, "Yeah that'll all be things we'll consider."
"Obviously we're totally all in on Dak and CeeDee," Jones told NFL.com, "but after that, then you still shape things, including Micah. But Micah's a great player. You don't do well in this league letting guys like Micah, usually, leave the house."
If Parsons was, in fact, available via trade, he would be the most high-profile defensive player to be on the block since the Raiders sent Khalil Mack to the Bears for a package that included two first-round picks and more back in 2018.
Specifically, Jones was asked, could Parsons could be traded?
"We love Micah," Jones said. "I can't imagine there's a scenario where he's not wearing a star on his helmet."
