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'Micah wanted to be a Cowboy': agent explains split, sets table for George Pickens talks
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- 'Micah wanted to be a Cowboy': agent explains split, sets table for George Pickens talks
As Cowboys fans and the football world try to go back and piece together exactly what happened that led the best defensive player in football to suddenly wind up in a Packers uniform, things have quickly turned into a game of he-said-he-said.
And what the agent at the center of it all says is that his client, Micah Parsons , wanted to stay put in Dallas ... and that the media has gotten wrong much of the story that led to his falling out with Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.
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Appearing on ESPN's First Take on Tuesday, agent David Mulugheta of Athletes First spoke candidly about the Parsons/Cowboys split, as well as how it could potentially impact talks between the team and another of his high-profile clients, wide receiver George Pickens .
"I think the most important thing is that Micah wanted to be a Cowboy. He grew up cheering for the Cowboys," Mulugheta said on-air. "He wanted to be a Cowboy. And we did everything we could for him to remain a Cowboy. We reached out."
That flies in the face of the version of events as told by Cowboys ownership. According to a comprehensive timeline of events compiled by ESPN, Parsons and Jones met in mid-March (though who actually requested the meeting is even a point of contention) and came away with the general framework of a new deal, despite Mulugheta not being present.
The exact terms discussed remain unclear, but ESPN's source claims it was for "more guaranteed money than the $136 million Parsons would get from Green Bay , albeit spread across a five-year extension, not the four-year extension the Packers worked out." The source put the number at "north of $150 million."
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But Mulugheta says that meeting was never about making a formal agreement.
"I'm not sure if there was a miscommunication there by the time Micah walked out," the agent explained , "but at no time did Micah believe he was negotiating a contract."
The spring and summer dragged on, amazingly, with no direct conversations taking place between the two sides and both sides digging in on their position. Jones maintained that the contract was in place, waiting for Parsons to simply sign it with no further haggling. Parsons argued that his agent needed to be involved to actually finalize the terms. Jones countered that the agent was a distant third party in any such negotiation and seemed intent on locking Mulugheta out of the process.
Per Mulugheta on Tuesday, "We try to keep the negotiations out of the media, but in this case, so much information has been put out there that we wanted to just address a couple of things. But as far as Micah was concerned, he wanted to be a Cowboy. We did everything we could. And sometimes you've got to be careful with what you read in the media, as far as what was offered to Micah, the guarantees that were offered, the APY that was offered.
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There's so much that goes into an NFL contract. If you look at many of these contracts that the Cowboys have done over the past few years and the recent ones, the guarantees don't stretch much further than the first new year. If you look at Micah's current deal, he has guarantees into four years from now. So again, there are certain things that have been put out in the media to make it look as though Micah turned down a fair or a great deal, but that's simply not the case."
The four-year, $188 million deal Parsons signed with Green Bay includes $120 million fully guaranteed at signing and $136 million in total guarantees. It makes him the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history.
The total collapse of communication between the Cowboys organization, one of its superstar players, and his top-ranked agent could have serious ramifications going forward, with players who had a front-row seat for how the Jones family operated in their dealings with Parsons. Mulugheta in particular represents several other Cowboys players, perhaps most notably, Pickens.
The wide receiver was acquired by Dallas in a trade with Pittsburgh in early May and will himself be a free agent after the 2025 season. Though he has not yet played a snap for the Cowboys, Pickens is already expected to be one of the most sought-after free agents next offseason, and what he does on the field in Dallas this year will almost certainly help set his price tag.
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Whether that price will be paid by Dallas for services beyond this season remains to be seen, but Mulugheta says the Parsons episode will have no bearing on any negotiations.
"There's nothing personal here," the agent explained. "It's a business transaction as far as the contract is concerned. So if George Pickens does what we expect him to do, which is be one of the best receivers in the NFL this year, we'll have those conversations with the Cowboys. And if they're open to having that dialogue with us and negotiating a long-term deal, then we'd love for George Pickens to be a star with a star on his helmet. But if that's not the case, then obviously we'll see what else is out there for him. But again, this is not going to affect any negotiations moving forward for us."
But as was mentioned often during the Parsons saga, it takes two to have a phone call, and the Cowboys appeared to be unwilling to talk to Mulugheta... or, in Jones's case, even bother to learn his name.
As for Jones reportedly trying to cut him out of the negotiations process with Parsons and apparently refusing to engage in talks with official player representatives, Mulugheta says that the issue may be one that the NFL players union examines before it happens again, either with Cowboys and Pickens, or with any other team and player.
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"My expectation is that the NFLPA, that's what they're there for, to protect players' rights. So I would assume that they would want to look into this."
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Micah Parsons' agent on Cowboys split, sets table for Pickens talks
