

Welcome to the Friday edition of the Pick Six newsletter!
If you hate preseason football, then I have some fantastic news for you today: The preseason is about to be over. The final weekend is here, and after Saturday, there will be no more games and we’ll be going full steam ahead into the regular season.
The only downside to the preseason being over is that we’re going to have roughly two weeks to burn until the start of the regular season. My guess is that we’ll be spending those entire two weeks talking about all the drama going on between the Cowboys and Micah Parsons. Speaking of the drama in Dallas, that’s what we’re going to start things off with today.
As always, here’s your daily reminder to tell all your friends to sign up for the newsletter. To get them signed up, all you have to do is click here. Let’s get to the rundown.
1. Micah Parsons drama continues: Jerry Jones blames Parsons’ agent for lack of deal
The Cowboys will be playing their 2025 opener in less than two weeks and although the game is just 13 days away, it doesn’t seem like the Cowboys are getting any closer to getting a deal done with Micah Parsons. As a matter of fact, they might have actually gotten even farther apart.
Here’s the latest on the situation:
- Jerry Jones pins blame on Parsons’ agent. During an appearance on Michael Irvin’s podcast, the Cowboys owner offered a few more details about a face-to-face meeting that he had with Parsons back in March. According to Jerry, he hammered out a deal with his star player, but then Parsons’ agent, David Mulugheta, blew it up. “When we wanted to send the details to the agent, the agent told us to stick it up our ass,” Jones said. Classic Jerry.
- Why Jerry hasn’t been willing to go back to the negotiation table with Mulugheta. From Jones’ point of view, he doesn’t need to talk with Mulugheta because the contract has already been negotiated and that happened during his March meeting with Parsons. “We had our agreements on term, amount, guarantees and everything. We were gonna send it over to the agent,” Jones said. “The agent said, ‘Don’t bother because we’ve got all that to negotiate.’ Well, I’d already negotiated that. I’d already moved off my mark on several areas. The issue, very frankly, is we’ve had the negotiation in my mind.”
- How Parsons is reacting to all of this. Parsons has deleted all mentions of the Cowboys from his social media pages, which is the trendy way of letting someone know you’re not happy with them. His bio on X used to mention the Cowboys, but now it says “TBD.”
I’ve been convinced for the entire offseason that Parsons would sign a deal a few days before the opener, but things are so bitter between the two sides that it’s certainly possible they don’t get a new contract done. If you want to read more about Jerry’s full comments, we’ve got those here.
2. Thursday night recap: Jaxson Dart shines, Steelers first-round pick carted off field
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There were two preseason games played last night, so let’s go ahead and take a look at one key takeaway for each team that played.
Steelers 19-10 over Panthers
- Steelers: Derrick Harmon carted off field. The Steelers’ first-round pick was carted off the field in the first half after suffering a knee injury (You can see the play here). Harmon had tears in his eyes as he was being taken to the locker room, so it appeared that the injury might be serious. However, he was able to walk out onto the field in street clothes to watch the second half, so it might not be as serious as it looked. After the game, Mike Tomlin said that it was a sprain, but didn’t offer any details on the severity. “Derrick Harmon’s got a knee sprain of some description. He’s being evaluated,” Tomlin said.
- Panthers: Rookie kicker hits two kicks. The Panthers kept most of their starters on the bench, but they do have one battle that’s still raging on and that’s at kicker. The competition is between rookie Ryan Fitzgerald and Matthew Wright. Fitzgerald was the only one who attempted a kick on Thursday night: He hit one field goal (43) and one extra point. The guess here is that Fitzgerald probably ends up winning the job.
- Giants: Jaxson Dart shines again. The rookie quarterback wasn’t perfect, but he made some huge plays for the Giants. Although he struggled some with his accuracy — completing just 50% of his passes — he threw for 81 yards, including a 50-yards pass to Gunner Olszewski. Dart also had a 23-yard scramble. Dart closed out his night by throwing a 7-yard TD to Greg Dulcich. Dart went 32-for-47 during the preseason for 372 passing yards and three touchdowns with zero interceptions. He also rushed for 52 yards and a TD. Dart did have a concussion scare in the game, but he was later cleared after briefly going into concussion protocol.
- Patriots: Rookie kicker misses a field goal. The battle between rookie Andy Borregales and John Parker Romo is going down to the wire and Borregales didn’t help himself on Thursday night. The rookie kicker went 1 of 2 on field goal attempts with his make coming from 30 and his miss coming from 49. Borregales finishes the preseason with two missed kicks while Parker Romo didn’t miss any.
If you want to check out the full preseason schedule for the weekend, we’ve got that here.
3. Under-the-radar rookies who could be difference-makers in 2025
When it comes to the rookie class of 2025, most of the talk has revolved around the players taken in the first round, but there are plenty of other players in the class who could end up having a huge rookie year in the NFL.
With that in mind, Chris Trapasso came up with a list of several under-the-radar rookies who you should keep your eye on this year:
- Rams WR Konata Mumpfield (Round 7, 242nd overall pick). We know Sean McVay and Co. are unafraid to insert lower-drafted players into sizable roles in Los Angeles, and the seventh-rounder from Pittsburgh could very well be in line to see the fourth-most targets on this Rams team in 2025. Now, given that Puka Nacua and Davante Adams are distinctly ahead of everyone else in the receiving pecking order, who knows how many targets will be left over for Mumpfield and the other receiving options in L.A., but as a seventh-round pick, it’d be an accomplishment to see considerable run as a rookie.
- Ravens DT Aeneas Peebles (Round 6, 210th overall pick): Nnamdi Madubuike is the interior anchor in Baltimore. He needs help collapsing the pocket from the inside. And Peebles, a sixth-round pick, can be that secondary rusher the Ravens have been looking for next to Madubuike for a while now.
You can check out Trapasso’s full list of under-the-radar rookies here.
4. Non-first-round rookie quarterbacks who could end up starting at least one game in 2025
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There were a total of 13 quarterbacks selected during the 2025 NFL Draft and we know that at least one of them (Cameron Ward) will be starting in Week 1. That number could double if Tyler Shough wins the starting job in New Orleans.
By the end of the year, that number could get even bigger, which got us wondering: How many rookie quarterbacks will end up starting at least one game this year? Garrett Podell ranked every non-first-round rookie based on their chance of starting a game this year.
Shough is the top name on his list, so we’re going to check out the next three spots in Garrett’s ranking.
2. Seahawks QB Jalen Milroe (Round 3, 92nd overall pick). Seattle is clearly intrigued by his potential that comes with his elite physical traits: the Seahawks are starting Milroe and playing him for the entirety of their preseason finale against the Packers. Another reason is new starting quarterback Sam Darnold’s questionable fit with his new offensive line. He crumbled down the stretch of the Minnesota Vikings‘ 2024 season while struggling to deal with being pressured 49 times between the Week 18 finale against the Lions and the NFC wild card game against the Rams.
3. Browns QB Shedeur Sanders (Round 5, 144th overall pick).
4. Browns QB Dillon Gabriel (Round 3, 94th overall). Yes, Shedeur Sanders is technically listed behind Dillon Gabriel on the team’s official depth chart. However, Sanders (14 for 23 passing for 138 yards and two touchdowns at the Carolina Panthers) has well outplayed Gabriel (13 for 18 passing for 143 yards and an interception at the Philadelphia Eagles) thus far in the preseason.
5. Colts QB Riley Leonard (Round 6, 189th overall). The Colts’ starting QB job was won by Daniel Jones. There’s a very good chance Jones disappoints, and then the Colts are forced to turn back toward 2023 fourth overall pick Anthony Richardson. The former top five pick happens to be injury prone, which leaves the somewhat realistic scenario in which the Colts turn to Leonard at some point in the second half of the season after Jones disappoints and Richardson exits with yet another injury.
Garrett ranked a total of 11 quarterbacks and you can see his full list here.
5. Breaking the bank: NFL players on track to become the highest paid at their position
If this Micah Parsons deal ever gets done, there’s a good chance that it’s going to make the Cowboys star the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history. With the big pay day coming up, that got Cody Benjamin wondering who else could be in line for a big raise.
Cody decided to take a look at each position to see who the next player will likely be to land a record-setting contract:
- RB: Jahmyr Gibbs (Lions). Not every running back can command top dollar these days, but the ones who do possess multipurpose explosiveness. Gibbs has it in spades. Yes, he’s split touches with David Montgomery to start his career. But few backs can match his sheer electricity in open space. He quietly approached 2,000 yards from scrimmage in Year 2.
- TE: Brock Bowers (Raiders). One year after Sam LaPorta had an instant impact as the Lions’ top tight end, Bowers followed suit with an even more prolific rookie campaign in Las Vegas. This is an aging position with vets like George Kittle and Travis Kelce pacing the market. Bowers already represents the future, fresh off a rookie-record 112 catches for the Raiders.
If you want to know who else might soon break the bank, you can check out Cody’s full story here.
6. Extra points: Vikings eyeing Adam Thielen
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It was a busy 24 hours in the NFL, and since it’s nearly impossible to keep track of everything that happened, I went ahead and put together a roundup for you.
- Vikings looking to reunite with Adam Thielen. With Jordan Addison set to serve a three-game suspension to start the season, the Vikings are thin at receiver so they’ll be looking to make a trade and one name they’re closely watching is Thielen. According to ESPN, the Vikings have inquired about his availability (Full details here). If the Panthers are open to a trade, this is a deal that could get done soon.
- 49ers make trade for Brian Robinson Jr. The Commanders running back is headed west after the 49ers made a deal to acquire him on Friday. According to NFL Media, the 49ers are sending a sixth-round pick back to Washington to make the deal happen. If you want the full story on the trade, we’ve got that here.
- Browns set to use three different quarterbacks. Joe Flacco will be making his preseason debut on Saturday against the Rams. Coach Kevin Stefanski wants him to get some action before the team’s opener against the Bengals. Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel are also expected to play Saturday, so it’s a game that certainly could be worth watching.
- Matthew Stafford won’t commit to playing in Week 1. Stafford waited until the final practice of training camp, but he finally did talked to the media and it happened Thursday. The Rams QB was asked directly if he’ll be playing in Week 1 against the Texans and he ducked the question. “I’m not going to answer questions like that,” Stafford said. You can read more of his comments here.
- Panthers right tackle gets hefty extension. Taylor Moton will be sticking around Carolina for at least two more seasons after agreeing to a two-year, $44 million extension on Friday. The deal includes $40 million in guarantees, according to NFL.com. Moton is going into his ninth NFL season, which have all been spent with the Panthers.
- Lamar Jackson avoids serious injury. The Ravens QB had his foot stepped on during practice on Wednesday, which caused him to miss practice on Thursday. When the injury happened, coach John Harbaugh was worried enough that he started praying about Jackson’s health. “It was a big relief,” Harbaugh said, via ESPN. “I told the guys, ‘Prayers do get answered.’ I was praying.” With a preseason game on Saturday, the Ravens are done practicing this week, so it will certainly be interesting to see if Jackson is able to take the field when Baltimore practices next week.
This news was originally published on this post .
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