The Dallas Cowboys are hoping for a major bounce-back year in 2025. Last season, fresh off signing Dak Prescott to be the highest-paid quarterback in NFL history at an average annual value of $60 million, the season went awry after Prescott suffered an injury.
As a result, the team finished with just six wins on the year, a far cry from three consecutive 12-win seasons before that.
Unfortunately, the offseason hasn’t shown the vigor necessary to overcome a brutal 2024 season for the Cowboys. A few weaknesses continue to plague the roster. However, the biggest story of the summer from Dallas has been their reluctance to extend Micah Parsons.
As a result, his future with the team continues to get murkier by the day, leading one analyst to even suggest a potential replacement in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Could This Be the End of Micah Parsons on the Dallas Cowboys?
Taken in the first round of the 2021 draft, Parsons has very quickly solidified himself as one of the most destructive forces at the edge rusher spot and one of the best defenders in the league. A Pro Bowler in every season of his career, his status at the top of the league is set in stone.
Never tallying less than 12 sacks in a year, he is already up to 52.5 sacks through four years, with two All-Pro selections to his name as well. He is the heart and soul of the Cowboys’ defense, and his absence, even for four games in 2024, was felt across the board.
Dallas finished in the bottom 10 of the league on PFSN’s Defense+ metric. Unless they want a similar situation this year, Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones needs to cough up the big bucks for Parsons.
However, rather than giving him the extension he so clearly wants, Jones has instead gone on a different tangent altogether. After his comments questioning Parsons’ injury history and talent, what once felt like an inevitability has become a confusing situation for the Cowboys.
If the team cannot find common ground with Parsons, their 2025 season has all the potential to be another disaster. The latest mock draft from PFSN believes that could be the case, picking Dallas to draft with the 12th overall pick.
At the spot, Owain Jones believes the Cowboys might need to look for a replacement for their star edge rusher. As a result, his pick is Rueben Bain Jr. out of Miami. Missing a chunk of his sophomore campaign has removed him from people’s minds somewhat, but Bain is a truly terrifying prospect.
In his rookie season, he tallied 7.5 sacks and three forced fumbles. He was having an equally brilliant 2024 campaign with 3.5 sacks to his name before injuries sidelined him for four games.
“The Miami edge rusher is loaded with traits at 6’3” and 275 pounds and has impressive length and athleticism to be an impactful disruptor,” Jones wrote. The 2025 season is going to determine where he eventually ends up in the draft, but all signs point to a bounce-back year from the Miami star.
Rueben Bain Jr. broke onto the scene with 7.5 sacks, 13 TFLs, and 3 FFs as a true freshman. Less productive last year, but was nursing a calf injury.
Elite power, strength, leverage game — and the flashes of torso and ankle flexibility, like the one below, are super compelling. pic.twitter.com/j8S5IExEUy
— Ian Cummings (@IC_Draft) July 22, 2025
“He is expected to unleash his powerful, energetic pass rush as “the U” looks to make a playoff push,” Jones wrote. For the Cowboys’ sake, they need to get the Parsons situation under control and then make their pick in 2026.
But if the situation doesn’t get resolved, there might not be a lot of other options for Dallas other than trying to replace their best defender.
