Micah Parsons Has A $188 Million Contract, So NOW He Can Retire His Mom

Good people typically feel good when other good people do good and feel good, so when Micah Parsons celebrated his huge payday from the Green Bay Packers Thursday evening with his mother, that was good.

But, please understand here, we should all have some perspective.

Micah Parsons Retires His Mother

Parsons celebrated his trade to the Packers and ensuing signing of a $188 million deal with family. He shared a tender moment of that on Instagram. The NFL captured the heartwarming story and posted it on X.

And the point of the moment is that Parsons believes he can finally retire his mom from her job.

"That moment when your momma never got to work again," Parsons wrote on his story. "God you are amazing!"

Well, no lies told there. God is amazing!

INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 10: Micah Parsons arrives with his son, Malcolm, for the NFL Honors show at the YouTube Theater on February 10, 2022 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Michael Owens/Getty Images)

Long Wait For Parsons Moment

But that moment in which Parsons is retiring 50-year-old Sheresa Parsons from a lifetime of work had to wait until now?

Now?

Look, Micah Parsons is entering his fifth season in the NFL. He was a first-round draft pick of the Dallas Cowboys in 2021. And he signed a four-year contract worth $17,079,792, of which he was paid every penny.

He was also due to collect $24,007,000 this season, worst case scenario, on a fifth-year option with the Cowboys had he not been traded and gotten an extension.

But now he's retiring his mom?

PHILADELPHIA, PA - DECEMBER 29: Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons (11) looks on during the game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Dallas Cowboys on December 29, 2024 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, PA.(Photo by Andy Lewis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Perspective About NFL Money Is Needed

With all respect to Micah Parsons and his good intentions, this ain't a flex. 

And the fact the NFL and its media are celebrating it is cool, but it shows a lack of perspective. That's because most of the rest of the planet would have tried to retire mom the moment that fully guaranteed rookie deal was signed four years ago.

A little personal note: 

In 1993, I left one newspaper in South Florida for another, and got a $12,000-a-year raise to $59,000. And that's when I retired my parents.

My dad was a hotel porter and my mom was an apartment building manager and from the point where I was getting the new paycheck, they didn't have to work anymore.

I paid their rent, which was $600 per month. And I gave them money every week for groceries. I share this not to brag, but because this was not unusual in my circle of friends.

Feb 1, 2024; Orlando, FL, USA;  Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb (88) and linebacker Micah Parsons (11) celebrate during the NFL Pro Bowl Skills Competition at the UCF NIcholson Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

Parsons Parents Are Set

We tried to make sure our parents were good after they'd spent so many years making sure we were good.

And this: $59,000 in 1993 dollars is nowhere close to $17 million in today money. 

There was not much (nothing) left over after taxes and other expenses. But I made it work because I didn't want the people who sacrificed for me to have to keep sacrificing any longer.

Sheresa and Terrence Parsons, by all accounts, sacrificed for Micah Parsons and his siblings in Harrisburg, PA., back in the day. And it's wonderful they don't have to work anymore because their son got paid.

But, let's be real, this could've happened a while back.