Syndication: Green Bay Press-Gazette
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The blockbuster trade that sent three-time All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons from the Dallas Cowboys to the Green Bay Packers took the NFL by surprise. It boosted the Packers' outlook for the 2025 season and beyond, but also left Cowboys fans befuddled with their front office. One young fan was particularly upset about his favorite player being shipped out of town, but Parsons mended the wound with a thoughtful gesture.

In a video posted to TikTok, the young Cowboys fan had an emotional reaction when his mother shared the news that Dallas traded Parsons. He broke down in tears, heartbroken that the star defender played his last snap for the Cowboys. When Parsons saw the video, he reached out to the family and set up a call with his fan and said he would send him his new No. 1 jersey.

"I'm sorry, bro," Parsons said on the call. "I hope you know that in life, things happen that you can't control. You just gotta keep going. I know you're a big fan, so I'm going to hook you up with a new No. 1 jersey. I'm gonna send that to you, make sure you get right. Even though you're a big Cowboys fan, I hope that you still follow me and my career. That's what it's all about. I love seeing passionate fans. That just meant a lot to me. I hope you know that. Make sure you get good grades in school, too, or I'm going to tell your mom to take the jersey and not give it to you."

The heartbroken Cowboys fan was not alone in his disappointment with the trade. After an offseason-long negotiation process that saw fans jeer franchise owner Jerry Jones at training camp and pundits question the front office, things reached a head when news of the trade broke.

"I know he loved Micah Parsons," Cowboys legend Michael Irvin said of Jones. "So in order for us to be right here, something had to go down that hurt Jerry personally to make this crazy, dumb move. … This is a gamble The Gambler should not have taken."

The trade brought to an end a standoff between Parsons and the Cowboys that had been ongoing for years. Parsons said this offseason that he and his agent had been in search of a long-term extension since 2023, but talks with Jones soured throughout the process. It reached a boiling point on Aug. 1 when Parsons requested a trade amid the stalled negotiations.

Even with the trade request, though, it was a shock to the football world that Dallas would actually move on from one of the most disruptive defensive players in the league. Parsons was a centerpiece of the Cowboys franchise who has never missed a Pro Bowl and who racked up at least 12 sacks in each of his first four years in the NFL.