The excitement surrounding the start of Dallas Cowboys training camp is always watered down by the team's introductory press conference. As expected, Micah Parsons' contract was the focal talking point for Jerry Jones, Stephen Jones and Brian Schottenheimer.
Per usual, Jones did most of the talking and danced around questions and failed to address the urgency of getting a deal done while other star pass rushers ink lucrative extensions.
Jones inexplicably brought up Parsons' high-ankle sprain from last season. It was the first injury Parsons suffered since he was drafted in 2021. He missed four games, but the 82-year-old is of the mindset that Parsons missed six games.
"Just because we sign him doesn't mean we are going to have him. He missed six games last year," Jones said.
Cowboys' Jerry Jones gets basic Micah Parsons fact wrong in training camp press conference
Jones taking a press conference off the rails? Cowboys football is officially back.
All jokes aside, it is highly alarming that Jones does not know how many games Parsons missed last season. The two-time All-Pro pushed to get back as early as possible. The general recovery timeline for high-ankle sprains is 4-6 weeks. Some cases take 6-8 weeks. Parsons made it back in four.
It should be noted, too, that Brian Schottenheimer was in the midst of talking about the possibility of Parsons holding in until a deal gets done. The question wasn't even directed at Jones. He chimed in with this asinine comment. He clearly had an agenda to push.
Parsons has done everything right this offseason. He was in and out of the building during OTAs, but reported for mandatory minicamp and even jumped in a few drills despite "not practicing" because of his contract. He has showed tremendous leadership by reporting for training camp. And yet, Jones felt the need to insult him.
Jones' remark almost reads like, "Even if we sign him there is no guarantee he plays the entire time, look what happened last year!"
It would be an out-of-pocket statement if Parsons has missed time throughout his career. The fact it was Parsons' first injury makes it so much more noisome. He has been remarkably durable despite being an undersized pass rusher.
Dak Prescott learned a long time ago to ignore what Jones says whenever he steps behind a microphone. It would behoove Parsons to take the same approach. While we don't envision this throwing a wrench into Parsons and Jones' relationship, it isn't likely to get contract talks off the ground.