OXNARD, Calif. – All eyes have and will continue to be on Micah Parsons. If that's the case, then make sure and pay attention to the walk-throughs and practices because that's where Brian Schottenheimer expects his star pass-rusher to be.
In his first solo press conference of training camp Tuesday, Schottenheimer said he expects Parsons to participate in the first practice, which will be without pads.
"The biggest thing for me right now is that he's here," Schottenheimer said. The coach added that Parsons would likely do mainly individual drills and some of the walk-through sessions.
The pads won't come on until Sunday and that might be a different story regarding Parsons' availability but as far now, he is expected to be doing the same as everyone else.
Parsons' contract situation went to another level on Monday at the introductory press conference with Jerry Jones, who said he has not spoken to Parsons' agent about a new deal. He also talked about the risks involved in paying players these high-dollar contracts. It's likely that Parsons would demand a contract to pay him north of $40 million per season, which would make him the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history.
As for now, Parsons is in the final year of his five-year contract and is counting over $21 million on the salary cap. If a deal is not reached by the end of the season, the Cowboys always have the option of giving him the franchise tag.
Parsons has 52.5 career sacks in his first four years, earning four straight Pro Bowls and four All-Pro selections. He's one of seven players in NFL history to record over 50 sacks in his first four seasons.
