Packers earn high marks for Micah Parsons trade while the Cowboys earn something else

The long, drawn-out battle between Micah Parsons and the Dallas Cowboys has come to a resolution.
With Parsons taking off the “star” and pulling on the “G.”

After weeks of speculation and negotiations through the media, the Cowboys have traded Parsons to the Green Bay Packers. Parsons immediately put pen to paper on a new four-year deal with the Packers, worth up to $188 million.

According to several reports, the Packers are sending a pair of first-round picks to the Cowboys, as well as defensive tackle Kenny Clark.

So, let’s hand out some grades.

This is a massive move for the Packers, even with the cost paid.

Yes, giving up a pair of first-round picks and a stalwart defensive tackle in Clark is a high price to pay. Yes, making Parsons one of the highest-paid defenders in the league -- as well as setting a new mark with $136 million guaranteed, more than the $108 million secured by T.J. Watt in his latest contract -- is a big contract.

But the Packers needed to address the pass rush this season, and that remained an issue even after free agency and the draft. Adding Parsons to this defense gives defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley a tremendous Swiss Army knife pass rusher.

Over the past four seasons, Parsons has accumulated a combined 52.5 sacks, and while many have come off the edge, Dallas has also used him as an interior rusher, with the ability to quickly put pressure on the quarterback through the A-Gaps.

As he did on this play against the Washington Commanders, getting to Jayden Daniels before the rookie quarterback even finished his dropback:

Or this play from 2023, where he gets to Matthew Stafford right through the center:

Parsons immediately gives the Packers’ pass rush a tremendous boost.

Which is worth whatever the cost.

On the flip side, you can give the Cowboys credit for a big return on Parsons, as they add a pair of first-round selections and a very capable defensive tackle in Kenny Clark.

However.

This goes beyond the return and speaks volumes about the bigger picture in Dallas. From the beginning of this process something seemed … off with how Jerry Jones was handling the Parsons negotiations. From questioning his injury history at the start of training camp, to pointing out how fans in the crowds were more vocal when Cee Dee Lamb was looking for his new contract last season than they were over Parsons this summer, to noting that life goes on if a deal is not reached, Jones has been more vocal than usual as this process wore on.

At the beginning of the summer, it was easy to write this all off as Jones looking to keep the Cowboys in the national conversation, as he is known to do. But as the impasse drew into August, the door seemed to open more and more to Parsons not lining up with the Cowboys in Week 1.

Now that the door is busted open. And it comes when the Cowboys were already looking up at both the Commanders and the Eagles in the division. It is difficult to see how this move helps Dallas close those gaps here in 2025.

Ultimately, the Cowboys may make the most of this deal next year and beyond. They could turn those two first-round selections into premier players.

But they traded an All-Pro and burned bridges with the fan bases for that potential. And traded him to a team that bounced them out of the playoffs in a blowout following the 2023 regular season, when the Packers were the No. 7 seed and the Cowboys were playing at home as the No. 2 seed.

This all sounds like a mystery box situation …

Looking at the process Dallas followed to get here, it is hard to feel good about this trade from the Cowboys’ perspective.

And when you are drawing comparisons to Peter Griffin, that is not a good thing.