Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

6 Historic Dallas Cowboys Contract Holdouts Amidst the Micah Parsons Contract Extension Delay

Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Micah Parsons contract saga just isn’t coming to an end in Dallas. The Cowboys’ best defensive player wanted to start negotiations for his upcoming extension during the 2024 offseason.

This year, the 26-year-old has gone from attending OTAs and minicamp to holding in at the Cowboys training camp, to finally handing in an official trade request to the owners. But, nothing seems to be working as the situation remains at a standstill.

But this is nothing new to the Cowboys. Parsons is not the only player to have held out due to contract extensions not being done on time. So, with that, here is a look at some of the other Cowboys’ players who have travelled the same path before him.

"Jerry was perfect for what Dallas needed," @michaelirvin88 told @BreeAldridge on the blue carpet for the Netflix premiere of "America's Team: The Gambler and His Cowboys". Irvin then took a dig, "if he'd just get that Micah Parsons deal done." @CBSSportsTexas pic.twitter.com/S1b0oeIUqE
— CBS News Texas (@CBSNewsTexas) August 12, 2025

6 Famous Contract Holdouts in Cowboys History

Prior to Micah Parsons, there have been others who have held out because their contract extensions weren’t being handled as per their liking. Interestingly, all players in this list were offensive players, with three of the six being running backs.

Duane Thomas – Running back (1971)

Running back Duane Thomas created a unique situation wherein he was looking for a new contract just one year after his rookie season. The Cowboys went all the way to the Super Bowl that year, and Thomas led the league in rushing yards per attempt.

Following the success of his rookie season, he immediately demanded a reworked contract, which was uncharted territory back in the day. The Cowboys shipped him off to New England, but since he couldn’t get along with the coach, the Patriots requested that the league backtrack on the deal.

Thomas once again played for the Cowboys and helped them win Super Bowl VI, but that would be the end of his tenure in Dallas.

Emmitt Smith – Running back (1993)

The Cowboys were a strong unit and dominated the mid-90s with the likes of Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin, and running back Emmitt Smith. At the time, Smith was one of the top players at his position. To this day, he is still the league leader in rushing touchdowns with 164 and rushing yards with 18,355 to his name.

During the 1992 season, Smith became the first running back in the league to lead the league in rushing yards and to win the Super Bowl as well. His 1,713 rushing yards set a franchise record that year.

With all the accolades, Smith was looking for an improved contract and ended up missing the entire training camp. He even missed the first two games of the 1993 season, due to which the Cowboys started 0-2. Owner, Jerry Jones, finally gave in and signed his star player to a new contract.

The result, you may wonder? The Cowboys won 12 of their next 14 games on the back of Smith’s exceptional rushing ability, and Dallas successfully defended their Super Bowl, making it back-to-back wins.

Jerry Jones compares Micah Parsons' contract situation to Emmitt Smith's holdout in 1993 👀

(via USA Today) pic.twitter.com/C5bzvNOshd
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) August 4, 2025

Dez Bryant – Wide receiver (2015)

Wide receiver Dez Bryant played for the Cowboys from 2010 to 2017. During the 2015 season, Bryant came tantalizingly close to holding out as he threatened to do the same just a few days prior to the franchise tag deadline.

Bryant would have earned $12.8 million in the one year that was remaining on his contract, but both parties eventually agreed on a deal on deadline day, and he signed a 5-year deal worth $70 million. Unfortunately for him, though, the Cowboys released him after the 2017 season came to an end.

Ezekiel Elliott – Running back (2019)

Ezekiel Elliott is the third running back on this list. After coming into the league in 2016, Elliott won the rushing title as a rookie with 1,631 rushing yards. In 2018, he once again proved his worth, winning his second rushing title with 1,434 yards on the ground.

Much of Dallas’ success at the time rested on the broad shoulders of Elliott, and as a result, he negotiated for a better deal even though he still had two years left on his rookie contract. The 3-time Pro Bowler held out for the entirety of training camp and finally agreed to a new deal for $90 million.

Zack Martin – Guard (2023)

Guard Zack Martin played his entire career from 2014 to 2024 with the Dallas Cowboys. During that span, Martin was a 7-time First-team All-Pro and a 9-time Pro Bowler. It is safe to say that he deserved to be paid every penny of what he was looking for.

So, in 2023, Martin held out from training camp for a new contract until he was signed to a two-year deal worth $36.85 million, making him one of the highest-earning players at his position.

The #Cowboys and All-Pro guard Zack Martin have reached a deal for the standout to end his holdout and return to the team, per me and @MikeGarafolo. A common sense solution brings Martin back. pic.twitter.com/SOfbHR7rDm
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 14, 2023

CeeDee Lamb – Wide receiver (2024)

The latest player to hold out was CeeDee Lamb in 2024. Lamb had finished the 2023 season with 1,749 receiving yards, which was only second to Tyreek Hill’s 1799. He also led the league in receptions with 135 and added 12 touchdowns as well.

Lamb was instantly considered to be one of the top receivers in the league, going toe-to-toe with the likes of Hill, Justin Jefferson, A.J. Brown, and more. Understandably, he was looking for a new deal and ended up missing out on all offseason activities. The Cowboys finally signed him to a new contract in late August ahead of the regular season.

From The Insiders on @NFLNetwork: #Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb is officially a holdout. pic.twitter.com/3hxwYpq53v
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 24, 2024

One thing to note from all the previous holdouts is that the Cowboys have come through almost each time and signed new deals with their players, even if it was just days before the start of the new regular season.

This trend can still be taken in a positive light by Parsons and Cowboys fans, but until Dallas comes through with a worthy offer, there is no telling how far this saga will continue.

Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

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Devavrat Kulkarni

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I am a content writer for the NFL team, and joined The Playoffs after working with Sportskeeda and NFL Analysis as an NFL writer. After starting my professional career as a French-to-English translator, working as a content writer is a new adventure for me. I started out in the sports media field for two main reasons: my love for sports in general, especially the NFL, NBA, and Tennis, as well as my passion for writing. The best part of this job is that I get to write a variety of pieces with the freedom to explore content from various angles. It also enables me to stay up to date with the sporting world, which otherwise can be difficult to do in the day-to-day grind. In a world full of chaos, sports unite and entertain like nothing else!