Cowboys 'tone-deaf' handling of Micah Parsons ripped by ex-NFL exec

The Dallas Cowboys' very public mishandling of the Micah Parsons contract situation has generated plenty of buzz around the league, with NFL analysts consistently sounding off on Jerry Jones and the front office.

Parsons requested a trade from the team after contract talks stalled, though the Cowboys have no plans to move him at this time.

This week, former NFL executive Louis Riddick appeared on ESPN's First Take to share his thoughts on the situation, and he did not hold back.

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Riddick ripped the Cowboys for "tone-deaf" and "ridiculous" approach.

Dallas Cowboys defensive end Micah Parsons looks on before the game against the Baltimore Ravens | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

"Their talking like, 'poor us. Why are you picking on us? We're just doing business like everyone else.' No you're not," Riddick said.

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"No other team in the NFL has an owner who now is holding it against the player - the fact that he had a private conversation with him and thought that they had a deal, and were trying to bypass the agent, and now they're going to engage in this petty behavior... because they thought they had a deal with the player - no other owner does that!"

"No other team in the NFL has an owner who now is holding [contract negotiations] against the player."

—@LRiddickESPN on the Cowboys being "tone-deaf" in their justification of Micah Parsons negotiations ✍️ pic.twitter.com/Lu25OHOMgl
— First Take (@FirstTake) August 20, 2025

He continued, "That's just ridiculous... When they talk about the salary cap, 'there's only so much money to go around, we can't pay everyone,' understand, you're managing the salary cap. You're the ones choosing to write contracts the way in which you are, the timing which you do, that puts you at a deficit every single time... We're just talking about it - because they're so unique, and so dysfunctional."

There is no denying the Cowboys front office has been dysfunctional and handled the situation poorly.

If Jones would have simply called Parsons' agent David Mulugheta to work out the details of the deal it would be done by now. Instead, Jones is refusing to stray from his stance that Parsons is under contract and there is no urgency.

There is still time for things to change, but the clock is ticking.

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