Parsons hopes Cowboys improve roster: 'I don't need $40M per year'

Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons is expected to sign a lucrative long-term contract in the upcoming offseason, but resetting the market among NFL defenders isn't a must for him.

"I don't need $40 million per year," Parsons said Thursday, according to Ed Werder of WFAA.

Instead, Parsons hopes the Cowboys can improve their roster and keep other starters on the team.

"It would just be nice to be surrounded by good players," Parsons added. "I mean, players that's going to help you win championships. ... To me, having $40 million and being chipped every play and hit with two, with three, four people, I don't think that sounds too fun to me. So, to me, it's about people that can keep making a difference."

Parsons is scheduled to make $21.4 million in 2025, the fifth year of his rookie deal.

San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa is currently the NFL's highest-paid defender with an average annual salary of $34 million. Parsons, who's signed through the 2025 campaign, is presumably in a position to top Bosa.

The 25-year-old Parsons has earned All-Pro berths and finished in the top three for the Defensive Player of the Year award each season since Dallas drafted him in the first round in 2021.

He said he'd love to sign an extension by March.

"I'm going to try and work with them as much as possible to help them attack free agency," Parsons added, according to ESPN's Todd Archer. "I want to be back with this team. This offseason, I want to be here. I want to get these guys right. I want to take big steps."

Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones is known for not rushing to extend the team's biggest stars. Dallas didn't reward quarterback Dak Prescott with a megadeal until September after negotiating all offseason, and All-Pro receiver CeeDee Lamb didn't sign his long-term contract until August.

Jones has been strongly criticized for the Cowboys' roster in what's been a disappointing 6-8 season for the team. Dallas didn't make any major acquisitions this past offseason despite glaring roster holes and being linked to several high-profile players, including Derrick Henry. Jones said in October that the running back-needy Cowboys couldn't have afforded Henry, who joined the Baltimore Ravens on a two-year, $16-million contract.

Dallas executive Stephen Jones recently said he can't imagine the team's future without Parsons.