“One of the worst-run teams": NFL analyst slams Cowboys front office for poor process and planning amid Micah Parsons' stalled contract

NFL analyst Sam Monson did not mince words when commenting on the Dallas Cowboys' front office operations, calling them "one of the worst-run teams" in the league. His criticism was aimed at their team-building philosophy, which comes at a time when contract talks with star defender Micah Parsons have reached the dead zone.

Monson made these remarks during Friday's episode of the "Check the Mic" podcast with co-host Steve Palazzolo. The discussion took place against the backdrop of the Cowboys' offseason moves and their handling of key player contracts.

"I mean, there's several, I guess, um, existentially you've got, like, this seems to be one of the worst run teams, process wise, like a lot of other teams," Monson said. "You can see what they're doing. You can construct a very good argument for doing it that way, even if it's not necessarily the way you would do it optimally. For Dallas, it's like it's difficult to make the case of what they're doing is not wrong."

This criticism aligns with recent reporting from Trevor Sikkema of Pro Football Focus. He gave the Cowboys a mediocre C+ grade for their offseason moves despite increased activity compared to last year. The grade reflected concerns about their offensive and defensive lines heading into the 2025 season.

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Cowboys' approach to player contracts draws scrutiny amid Micah Parsons's contract drama

Syndication: The Corpus Christi Caller Times (Credits: IMAGN)

Sam Monson's critique touches on a pattern of behavior that appears to be repeating with Micah Parsons, whose contract negotiations are "crawling along" according to Outkick.com. This mirrors previous situations where the team waited too long to sign stars, Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb.

"This is just not like, this isn't debatable, this is suboptimal. Definitely like, basically. Inarguably just the wrong approach in today's NFL and it's leading them into forcing players that probably don't belong at the spots," Monson added.

Despite the criticism, Cowboys COO and co-owner Stephen Jones expressed confidence about eventually signing Parsons.

"I don't comment on close or far away or any of that," Jones said (per Dallas Morning News). Those things, usually, when the right pieces, when the right things come together and everybody's ready to do a deal, then it happens. Certainly, we want Micah here. He knows we want him here. I think, ultimately, we'll get something done."

Parsons, who has collected 52.5 sacks in his first four seasons, is expected to surpass the $40.25 million per season that Ja'Marr Chase currently receives as the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL. Sources indicate that guaranteed money is the sticking point in negotiations. Parsons is reportedly aiming for $150 million in guarantees, significantly more than the $123.5 million Myles Garrett received.

The Cowboys did show more aggression this offseason, executing three trades for veterans and signing low-cost free agents. They also addressed their receiving corps by trading for George Pickens.