Just prior to the kickoff of the 2025 NFL season, a gargantuan trade has sent a shockwave across the league.
The Dallas Cowboys announced on Thursday that they are sending Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers in exchange for two first-round draft picks and DT Kenny Clark. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, Tom Pelissero and Jane Slater first reported the news. The all-world edge rusher had been a hold-in since the beginning of training camp -- seeking a new contract prior to the final season of his rookie deal -- and he publicly requested a trade at the outset of August. On Thursday, Parsons received both wishes. After his arrival in Green Bay, he will sign a four-year, $188 million contract with $136 million guaranteed that will make him the highest-paid non-quarterback in league history, per Rapoport, Pelissero and Slater.
In the immediate aftermath of this blockbuster move, here are my winners and losers.
WINNERS
Packers’ Lombardi-lifting odds: Brian Gutekunst put his draft picks where his mouth is. The Packers GM said in January that his club needed to “ramp up” the urgency to chase Super Bowl trophies. Then he walked the walk, making the biggest splash of the year on the eve of the season. Parsons takes the Packers from good to great. Sure, it wasn’t cheap, but players of this caliber simply do not become available in their prime. Green Bay snagging the annual Defensive Player of the Year candidate is sure to conjure comparisons to Mike Holmgren wooing Reggie White to Titletown back in 1993, except White was 31. Parsons is 26. Adding Parsons fills one of the biggest needs for the Packers heading into the season: pass rush. Sliding him alongside Rashan Gary gives Green Bay the potential for a devastating duo up front. The Packers were already a good bet to make the postseason; now their chips are all in on a Lombardi bid. Gutekunst got his alpha.
Parsons: Sick of the Cowboys’ negotiating tactics, Parsons pushed his way out of Dallas and into a record-setting payday. The edge rusher played nice for most of the offseason, showing up to workouts and initially saying all the right things. His trade request was met mostly with apathy. He showed his pull, and he got the massive contract. Win, win. The versatile defender is worth every penny, generating 52.5 sacks over four years and earning a Pro Bowl bid in every season. Had he not dealt with an injury that shortened his season to 13 games last year, he very well could have won his first DPOY. After returning from a high ankle sprain in November, Parsons was the most dominant defensive performer in the game. With the contract dispute in the rearview, he can focus on lifting the Packers' defense to new heights. Of course, assuming that “back tightness” is all cleared up.
Jeff Hafley, Packers DC: Hafley immediately helped turn around a Packers defense that had long underperformed. In his first season at the helm, Green Bay finished sixth in points allowed and fifth in total defense. The last time the Pack had registered in the top 10 in both categories was 2010. Hafley made it work without a dominant pass rusher. Gary led the Packers with 7.5 QB takedowns last season, yet Green Bay still ranked tied for eighth in the NFL with 45 sacks. That’s the scheme doing work. Now, inject the most dominant, moveable pass rusher in the game. The DC should be beaming for weeks. Adding Parsons isn’t just gaining an edge rusher. He’s the equivalent of a Queen in chess, able to move all around the board, taking out opponents at will. It’s a good day to be Jeff Hafley.
NFC East offenses: You can almost hear the din from chuckling Commanders, Eagles and Giants fans across the country. Their division rival just sold the best defensive player in the conference for a couple of lotto tickets and a defensive tackle entering his age-30 season in Clark. Even with an offensive line as good as Philly's, Parsons still gave the Eagles fits. The edge rusher’s 10.5 career sacks versus Washington represent his highest total against any club, by five. The regularly rebuilding Giants offensive line finally gets a reprieve. Parsons is the type of defender whom offensive coaches spend an entire week game-planning for. Not having to face him twice a year? That’s a massive win, even before you consider that Dallas got unquestionably weaker.
Jerry Jones the Gambler: It’s almost as if Jones watched his own Netflix documentary and decided he was due for another big gamble. The Cowboys owner is betting big that he can relive the success of the Herschel Walker trade. Of course, that famous swap took more than a year to pay any dividends. Jones has admitted that he likes the Cowboys to be at the center of the 365-day drama that is the NFL. He got that -- and then some -- with the Parsons situation. Jones’ dice role here is that, in the long run, the Cowboys will be healthier without another massive contract on the books. It’ll take a few years to see if that gamble pays off.
NBC: Sure, The Peacock will miss out on Parsons facing off against the Super Bowl champion Eagles in Week 1, but I’m of the belief that the Kickoff Game is impermeable to poor ratings. You’re tuning in regardless. The turnabout here is that NBC is already slated to air the Packers' game against the Cowboys in Week 4. Now, that bout is Parsons’ return to Dallas. Not that Packers-Cowboys is a missable matchup, but the trade raises it to another stratosphere of must-watch. Do you really want to miss the first time Parsons lines up a clean shot on Dak Prescott?
LOSERS
Cowboys fans: It’s been 30 years since their last Lombardi Trophy run. That streak feels likely to hit 31. Thursday's news is a turd-in-the-punchbowl moment for Cowboys fans who have been sipping sour Kool-Aid for years. Dallas fanatics have endured a glut of annoying contract standoffs that could have been avoided but ultimately bore fruit. The Parsons negotiations seemed to be playing out similarly until the gut-punch trade. Even the most optimistic Cowboys fans will have a hard time convincing themselves that they can compete in 2025 sans their defensive superstar. Clark addresses a longtime need at defensive tackle, but draft picks can’t help right now. Then those fanatical supporters have to hope the organization hits on those picks, which are likely to be near the end of the round. Can’t have another Taco Charlton misstep.
The “It’ll get done eventually” soothsayers: I’ll admit it: I assumed that, at the end of the day, Jones would pay Parsons an obscene amount of money to smooth over the angst that the contentious negotiations spawned. Wrong. It was the popular belief that, much like with Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb, Jones was simply dragging his feet, keeping his club in the headlines, but he’d eventually pay that man his money. Even Parsons’ trade request was treated as simply the next step in going through the motions. Turns out we were all wholly inaccurate. Parsons truly wanted out, and Jones ultimately obliged.
Jerry Jones the GM: The entire unraveling of the contract situation doesn’t leave the general manager in a good light. The issues Parsons relayed about his agent being iced out of talks isn’t a good look for the man in charge of personnel. Then there is the issue that the GM’s club is undoubtedly worse heading into a season. The Cowboys' entire defense revolved around Parsons’ ability to pester the quarterback. Now they’re left with a massive hole. Donovan Ezeiruaku flashed at camp, but does anyone really believe the second-round pick can fill those shoes? GMs constantly tell us that their job is to give the coaches the best 53 they can each year. It’s hard to say the Cowboys have done that after trading Parsons.
Matt Eberflus Cowboys DC: It’s a bummer for Eberflus. After bottoming out in Chicago, he landed on his feet in Dallas, hoping for a swift turnaround. Instead of scheming up ways to get Parsons loose on opposing quarterbacks, he’ll be going after it with … Dante Fowler Jr.? The defensive front was far from sturdy last year, and there were already questions in the secondary, thanks in part to injuries. While the addition of Clark helps, Parsons’ absence will only magnify those issues. He wasn’t up to snuff as a head man, but Eberflus can coach up a defense. Having to do so without a game-changer like Parsons, however, will make life significantly harder.
NFC North quarterbacks: Already in a loaded division, now Jared Goff, Caleb Williams and J.J. McCarthy must contend with Parsons twice a year. Yippee! The Lions are undergoing a transition on the interior of their offensive line. The Bears completely revamped their blocking crew but still have questions at left tackle. And the Vikings added a couple of veteran free-agent blockers to the mix who are coming off injuries. With those groups having to face a Hafley defense that just added Parsons, the anxiety rises to another level. Green Bay’s D already made life hard on QBs. It’ll be much more difficult with Parsons screaming off the edge in a cheese-colored helmet.
Lukas Van Ness, Packers DE: Snaps have to come from somewhere. While the staff will say the right things about there being enough plays to go around, it’s likely the third-year pro will see his opportunities get sliced. The former first-round pick has gotten off to a slow start to his career. In 34 games over his first two seasons, he has compiled seven sacks. The Packers just added a player who had 11 sacks in the final nine games of last season. Van Ness has shown some improvements this offseason, but not enough to make Green Bay comfortable heading into the season without an upgrade. Adding a pass rusher was always a need. Gutekunst didn’t just add an ancillary veteran; he got a perennial Pro Bowler. Short term, Van Ness will have fewer opportunities. With both Gary and Parsons already paid big deals, his chances of sticking around Green Bay on a big second contract took a massive hit, as well.