FRISCO, Texas – Cowboys All-Pro defensive end Micah Parsons stayed true to his word on Tuesday, attending the first day of the team's minicamp as he awaits a contract extension in Dallas.
Parsons didn't participate in any activities on the field, and instead observed and gave pointers to his teammates, until Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones came over and had a conversation with Parsons for about 30 minutes.
"We were talking about how my offseason's been, the training I've been putting in, he told me I looked pretty good so I got excited about that," Parsons said of the conversation.
"[Jones] asked me about the trip I just went on, it was a pretty good conversation. And then obviously, just stepping up and being a leader, how much he appreciates that I'm here, that means a lot to me."
The two didn't speak about Parsons' extension, but in the past, the leadership aspect of Parsons' game has been one of the things that Jones has been looking for before offering him the deal, and it seems that Parsons is making a big effort to prove that he can step up in that department.
He hopes that that effort is being noticed, and the two sides can come to an agreement before the team heads to Oxnard for training camp.
"I'm pretty hopeful," Parsons said. "I'm still hanging tight, I understand it's up to [Jerry Jones] and he gives the green light on everything, so hopefully something's done by next month."
If Parsons doesn't have a deal done by training camp, he said he would still be with the team in Oxnard. Would he be on the practice field?
"We'll see, time will tell." Parsons said.
Jones is in full control of the timetable on this deal. The matter of Parsons being extended is more of a matter of when, not if. Parsons understands the business aspect of football and will continue to uphold his end of the bargain by showing up for minicamp and even training camp come July.
"He gives the green light, he's the owner, he's pretty much what it takes to get anything done anywhere around here, so it's up to him," Parsons said. "But like I said I'm going to still keep playing football. I'm going to keep showing up and preparing like any other year."
Despite not having crossed the finish line yet and there being natural frustrations that could come with that, Parsons and Jones have the same end goal in mind, and want to be able to get to that finish line in a timely manner, but not hurry things.
"Some people like to take their time more than others, you know what I mean?" Parsons said. "You can't rush the process, [Jerry Jones] wants the deal to go as cleanly as possible, I want the deal to go as cleanly as possible, so it's just about getting it done as cleanly and quickly as possible."
In the meantime, Parsons will continue to do what he did at practice on Tuesday and be around his teammates for drills, and pick up more and more of new defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus' scheme.
"I think it's important, just building the knowledge of the defense to understanding what Flus and them are trying to do," Parsons said. "Very dynamic scheme and I'm pretty excited about it, just going through a couple installs and a couple of plays with the guys."
Just because Parsons isn't on the field participating doesn't mean he can't impact his teammates and help build them up to ensure the entire room has success.
"Just being vocal, understanding what looks right," Parsons said. "They're going through the drills and guys ask me; 'How'd I look?', just simple things, 'How's my footwork?', it's not always the major things that make football great, it's always the small details, the footwork, the positioning, the angles, things like that I think I can contribute."
