Micah Parsons landing spots, plus a first look at NFL players who could make Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2026

Welcome to the Monday edition of the Pick Six newsletter! 

I don’t want to get everyone too excited, but I have some big news: The first game of the NFL season is exactly one month away. The NFL season will be kicking off on Sept. 4 with the Eagles hosting the Cowboys. It doesn’t seem possible that the regular season is just one month away, but it is. However, before we get to the regular season, we have to make it through 48 preseason games and the Cowboys still have to convince Micah Parsons to take his trade request back. 

Speaking of Parsons, in this newsletter, we’ll be taking a look at a few possible landings spots for the Cowboys star, plus we’ll predict what a contract might look like if he ends up staying in Dallas. 

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. 

1. Micah Parsons makes trade demand: Possible landing spots for the Cowboys star

The weekend started off with a bang on Friday and it was all thanks to Micah Parsons. The Cowboys star decided to let everyone on earth know he wants out of Dallas by posting a trade demand on social media.

• Parsons made it clear that he wants out. “I have made a tough decision,” Parsons wrote on social media. “I no longer want to play for the Dallas Cowboys. My trade request has been submitted to Stephen Jones personally.”

If you have 10 minutes to burn, you can read his full statement here. The statement is so long that it might actually qualify as a short book. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was asked about the trade demand over the weekend and didn’t sound overly concerned. 

This will most likely end with the Cowboys keeping Parsons by making him the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history, but if that doesn’t happen, Parsons could certainly be dealt, so Garrett Podell decided to take a look at a few possible landing spots. 

• Patriots. New head coach Mike Vrabel, a former linebacker himself, would love nothing more than to build the identity of his Patriots through the defensive side of the ball like the early years of the Bill Belichick-Tom Brady dynasty teams that he played for in the early 2000’s. … Adding Parsons to play alongside Milton Williams, Harold Landry III and Christian Barmore could give the Patriots one of scariest defensive fronts in the entire league.. 
• Chargers. Nine-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Khalil Mack is on a one-year contract at the age of 34, so the Chargers will need a new anchor on their defensive line. Parsons, who is eight years younger, could certainly be that for Los Angeles for years to come..
• Raiders. Pairing Parsons with Maxx Crosby, the player he is tied with for most quarterback pressures in the NFL since 2021, would give Las Vegas the most fearsome pass rush duo in the NFL.

Podell came up with a total of six landing spots, and you can check all of them out here. If you’re wondering how things got so ugly between Parsons and the Cowboys, Podell also wrote a timeline of events that you can see here. 

2. 2025 NFL contract disputes: Predicting the deal that will finally get things done

There are no training camp holdouts going on around the NFL this year, but there are plenty of hold-ins, which is where a player reports to training camp but doesn’t practice. Micah Parsons, Terry McLaurin and Trey Hendrickson are all holding in, and as of this weekend, it looks like James Cook has also decided to go that route. The Bills running back had been practicing with the team, but decided to sit out Sunday due to “business.” 

All four guys want a new contract, so Cody Benjamin decided to project what kind of deal it will take to get things done in each situation. 

Let’s check out his numbers for Parsons and Cook: 

James Cook

• Current contract: Cook is set to make $5.7 million this year, which is the final year of his rookie deal. 
• Cook’s asking price: The running back is looking to get a new deal that pays him at least $15 million per year. 
• Cody’s contract prediction: Cook signs a three-year, $43.5 million extension with Bills that pays him $14.5 million per year. 

Micah Parsons

• Current contract: Parsons is set to make $24 million this year, which is the final year of his rookie deal.
• Parsons asking price: It’s believed that Parsons wants to be the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL, which means he’ll he looking to top the $41 million per year that the Steelers gave T.J. Watt. 
• Cody’s contract prediction: Parsons signs a four-year, $180 million extension with the Cowboys that pays him $45 million per year. 

Benjamin also has contract predictions for Terry McLaurin and Trey Hendrickson, and you can check those out here. 

3. Pro Football Hall of Fame: Recapping the enshrinement ceremony for the Class of 2025

The Pro Football Hall of Fame officially has four new members following an enshrinement ceremony over the weekend that saw Eric Allen, Jared Allen, Antonio Gates and Sterling Sharpe all get inducted. Gates became the first player ever to make the Hall of Fame without playing college football. Sharpe also made some history by joining his brother Shannon in the Hall, which makes them the first pair of brothers to be enshrined in Canton. 

There were plenty of memorable moments during the ceremony. Here are a few that stood out: 

• Marv Levy turned 100 and everyone celebrated. To kick off the festivities, Chris Berman and Hall of Fame running back Thurman Thomas (also a Bills legend) wished Levy a happy birthday. Born August 3, 1925, Levy turned 100 years old on Sunday. Everyone in the stadium sang happy birthday to the Hall of Fame coach (you can see the clip here). — Jeff Kerr
• Sterling Sharpe gave a shout out to Jon Gruden. Gruden was an offensive assistant for the Packers during Sharpe’s final three seasons in the NFL, and apparently, Gruden had a big impact on Sharpe during those three seasons. “What Jon Gruden taught me was probably the thing that took my game to its highest heights. And that was don’t study defenses, don’t study defensive backs. Study other receivers,” Sharpe said. The former Packers star also brought his brother, Shannon, up on stage, and you can see that here. — John Breech
• Gates thanked Philip Rivers. Gates played 14 of his 16 seasons with the Chargers in San Diego, and played the final two years in Los Angeles. He made sure to give San Diego a shoutout — most notably Philip Rivers. The two shared a moment as Gates brought him up, “You weren’t just the guy throwing the ball, you were the heartbeat of the offense,” Gates said as he took out a handkerchief to hold back the tears. “You saw the game the same way. You trusted me and I trusted you.” — Jeff Kerr 

For all of the highlights from Canton, be sure to check out Jeff Kerr’s full summary of the ceremony here. 

4. Hall of Fame Class of 2026: Drew Brees headlines group of players who will be eligible for the first time

With this year’s class officially inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, now seems like a good time to go ahead and take a look at who might be in the class of 2026. 

CBSSports.com’s Bryan DeArdo put together a list of players who will be eligible for the first time next year. Here’s a look at some of the players (and one notable head coach) who will be eligible for the first time next year: 

According to DeArdo, at least three of the people on this list will end up being first-ballot Hall of Famers. “Of this list of players, Brees and Fitzgerald figure to be locks for induction next year, along with Belichick, who led the Patriots to a record six Super Bowl wins during his time in New England.”

If you want to see the full list of candidates who will be eligible for induction for the first time in 2026, be sure to click here. 

5. Every team’s most likely future Hall of Famer

The Pro Football Hall of Fame is not officially sponsoring this newsletter, but it kind of feels like they should be. After breaking down the Hall of Fame ceremony and taking a look at players who might get enshrined next year, we’re going to close out our Hall of Fame coverage for the day by trying to predict one future Hall of Famer from EACH team. 

Bryan DeArdo made this list and there are a lot of quarterbacks, so we’re going to check out a few non-quarterback names who cracked the list. 

• Ravens: Derrick Henry. It was a tough call between Henry and Lamar Jackson. But Henry’s body of work is already good enough for Canton, while Jackson may need to have a few more big years before his spot is secured.
• Texans: Danielle Hunter. The 30-year-old is a five-time Pro Bowler (including each of the last three seasons) and is just a half-sack away from 100. He had 12 sacks and 17 tackles for loss during his first season in Houston. 
• Dolphins: Tyreek Hill. Hill was a Pro Bowler in each of his first eight seasons. While that streak came to an end last year, Hill (who has also been named an All-Pro five times) should be back to his usual self this year now that he’s healthy.

DeArdo has a total of 32 names on his list, and you can see them all here.

6. Extra points: Matthew Stafford still out of practice

It was a busy weekend 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. 

• Matthew Stafford set to miss joint practices this week. The Rams will be practicing with the Cowboys this week, but Stafford won’t be participating. Stafford also won’t be participating in a jog-through practice that’s scheduled for Monday, according to Sean McVay. Stafford has already missed two weeks of training camp with a back injury, and the Rams will have to be at least slightly concerned if he isn’t on the field soon. 
• NFLPA has a new president. After 17 days, the NFLPA finally has a new executive director. The players’ union elected David White to serve as the interim director. White is replacing Lloyd Howell, who resigned his position in July. The NFLPA has been in disarray over the past few months, and now, White will be tasked with fixing that. 
• Falcons keeping their top two quarterbacks on the bench for first preseason game. Falcons head coach Raheem Morris announced Monday that Michael Penix Jr. and Kirk Cousins won’t be playing in Atlanta’s first preseason game, which will be coming on Friday against the Lions. That sets the stage for Easton Stick to get most of the snaps for the preseason home game. 
• Ravens appear to have their kicker. The Ravens had two kickers in training camp but cut one of them over the weekend (John Hoyland), which leaves just Tyler Hoop on the roster. The rookie kicker was perfect during a practice at M&T Bank Stadium on Sunday, which included hitting a kick from 60 yards. We’ve got a few more observations from Ravens training camp, and you can check those out here. 
• Zach attack, Part I: Broncos give Zach Allen massive extension. The Broncos pass-rusher signed a four-year, $102 million extension over the weekend that includes $69.5 million in guaranteed money. Allen, who was named second-team All-Pro last season, is now under contract through 2029. 
• Zach attack, Part II: Dolphins give Zach Sieler massive extension. The Dolphins defensive tackle signed a three-year, $64 million extension that includes $44 million in guaranteed money. The former seventh-round pick is coming off two straight 10-sack seasons with the Dolphins.