2025 NFL contract dispute tracker: Predicting deals or trades for Cowboys’ Micah Parsons, Bills’ James Cook

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The 2025 NFL preseason is underway, and training camps are heating up as the regular season fast approaches. Several big names remain absent from their respective teams, however, at least in terms of fully uniformed satisfaction.

Buffalo Bills running back James Cook became the latest Pro Bowl talent to stage a “hold-in” this weekend, declining to practice while seeking a new contract from his team. His move, which included a deliberately evasive media session, followed a Dallas Cowboys bombshell just days earlier. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has since downplayed it, but star pass rusher Micah Parsons broadcast his dissatisfaction to the world on Friday, requesting a trade out of frustration with financial negotiations.

Which other notable players are seeking resolutions to contract disputes? Which teams are dealing with major “hold-ins” as the 2025 season draws near? And what’s our best guess for what happens next, be it a blockbuster trade or record extension?

Here’s an updated rundown of all the latest on the contract front, including reported demands and action steps taken by Cook, Parsons and a trio of other Pro Bowlers:

James Cook, RB, Bills
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The issue: The two-time Pro Bowl running back wants a long-term contract extension, recently promising reporters it’s “going to get done” either in Buffalo or elsewhere.The situation: Cook is at Bills training camp but declining to practice, repeatedly answering recent media inquiries about his availability with one word: “Business.”The current contract: Cook is signed through 2025, due $5.7 million in the final year of his rookie deal.The demand: Cook, who is coming off two straight 1,000-yard rushing seasons, is reportedly seeking about $15 million per year, which would make him one of the NFL’s top five highest-paid players at his position.Prediction: Signs three-year, $43.5 million extension with Bills
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The issue: The All-Pro wide receiver wants a pay raise ahead of the final year of his current contract.The situation: McLaurin recently requested a trade after growing frustrated with Commanders leadership over stagnant extension talks, despite indicating weeks earlier he ultimately desired to remain in Washington.The current contract: McLaurin is signed through 2025, due $25.5 million in the final year of a three-year extension.The demand: Many have speculated McLaurin, who’s logged five straight 1,000-yard seasons, is hoping for about $30 million per year, or roughly what DK Metcalf, a similarly productive receiver, got from the Pittsburgh Steelers this offseason.Prediction: Agrees to play out current contract with added guaranteesMicah Parsons, EDGE, Cowboys
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The issue: The four-time Pro Bowl pass rusher claims he no longer wants to play for the Cowboys after an offseason of unproductive negotiations over a long-term contract extension.The situation: Parsons is at Cowboys camp but declining to practice, arguing in a recent social media post that he felt misled by team owner Jerry Jones during failed contract talks.The current contract: Parsons is signed through 2025, due $21 million on a fifth-year option to close his rookie deal.The demand: Parsons, who’s had four straight double-digit sack campaigns, is reportedly seeking a $200 million deal, or a similarly lucrative extension that makes him one of, if not the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history.Prediction: Signs four-year, $180 million extension with Cowboys

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The issue: The four-time Pro Bowl pass rusher wants a new long-term contract after more than a year of failed negotiations.The situation: Hendrickson is at Bengals camp but declining to practice after skipping spring’s mandatory minicamp, airing public grievances with team leadership and requesting a trade for the second time in as many seasons.The current contract: Hendrickson is signed through 2025, due $18.6 million in the final year of an extended initial deal.The demand: Hendrickson, who led the NFL with 17.5 sacks in 2024, admittedly wants an extension with multi-year guarantees, as well as a deal that puts him more in line with top-five earners at the edge rusher position.Prediction: Signs two-year, $72 million extension with Bengals