Micah Parsons: Cowboys are 'top team in the NFC'

Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons made it very clear on Thursday that he expects his team to contend for the conference title this season. A few days into training camp, Parsons compared the Cowboys to other top NFC teams, pointing out how other teams have lost key talent while Dallas has not.

“I think we are the top team in the NFC. No one can beat you except yourself,” Parsons said on 105.3 The Fan. “You look at our game last year, that’s a game we could have won. We beat ourselves with mistakes and things like that. I think we are the top team when you talk about numbers and experience – guys we got back.

“I think we’re the only team that gained players. We didn’t lose a (former Eagle and now 49ers’ defensive tackle) Javon Hargrave, and then draft somebody. We have everybody across the board. When you talked about years playing together – years of experience – I think we’re up there to be that better team.”

The Eagles lost several key contributors on top of Hargrave this offseason, including safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson and linebacker T.J. Edwards. The 49ers, which beat the Cowboys in consecutive postseasons, lost defensive tackle Hassan Ridgeway, cornerback Emanuel Mosely and right tackle Mike McGlinchey.

Meanwhile, notable names no longer with the Cowboys from last season are TE Dalton Schultz, WR Noah Brown, OL Connor McGovern, DT Carlos Watkins and RB Ezekiel Elliott. They were all significant contributors for Dallas last season – but not irreplaceable in the eyes of the front office.

Cowboys boost roster with multiple offseason additions

The Cowboys were active from the jump in free agency, however. They signed safety Donovan Wilson, linebacker Leighton Vander Esch, DE Dante Fowler, tackle Johnathan Hankins and franchise-tagged Tony Pollard to keep them off the free agency market.

Jerry Jones and his front office also executed trades that sent two 2023 fifth-round picks out of Dallas in exchange for former Texans wideout Brandin Cooks and former Colts cornerback Stephon Gilmore.

Dallas also signed outside free agents this offseason, picking up running back Ronald Jones, offensive lineman Chuma Edoga and long snapper Trent Sieg.

Because of the team’s work in free agency and with the draft, along with the players and coaches carried over from 2022, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is feeling like 2023 could be the year for Dallas.

“Well, I certainly think, and came to camp with the idea in mind, that if we can have the kind of camp we want to have, that we can have a team that can compete for the top spot,” Jones said to the media on report day in Oxnard. “I don’t want to understate that. There’s a lot of work to be done. We’re going to play a lot of young players. Look at the defense, Dak (Prescott), we have a chance to be a contender.”