Micah Parsons trade grades: Packers get this generation's Reggie White; Cowboys' franchise set back for years

In one of the most surprising transactions in NFL history, the Dallas Cowboys traded Micah Parsons. Dallas sent Parsons to the Green Bay Packers for two first-round picks and nose tackle Kenny Clark, which sent shockwaves throughout the NFL. The 26-year-old Parsons then reportedly agreed to a four-year, $188 million deal -- making him the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history (which is what he wanted). 

This all occurred because the Cowboys failed to get an extension done with Parsons, which was a major victory for the Packers, with the regular season starting up next week. Parsons is not only a superstar; he's a generational player.  

Landing Parsons is Green Bay's biggest offseason acquisition since the team acquired Reggie White in the 1993 offseason -- a signing that signaled the beginning of the NFL's free agency era. White led the Packers to a Super Bowl three years later, and Parsons can do the same. 

How did the Packers fare in this deal? What about the Cowboys? This appears to be a clear win for Green Bay. 

Packers: A+

There really isn't any other grade to give the Packers here. Green Bay landed a generational pass rusher who isn't even close to entering his prime, all for two first-round picks and star nose tackle Kenny Clark. Sure, Dallas got a haul, but what Green Bay got in return is more significant. 

Green Bay essentially got Reggie White again, only this time the Packers didn't have to outbid several teams in free agency to do so. The Packers quietly negotiated this deal with the Cowboys over the last several days in the hopes of landing the generational pass rusher and extending him -- giving Parsons a four-year, $188 million deal when the trade was finalized. The $47 million in average annual value is the highest given to a non-quarterback in NFL history. 

Based on how the Packers fared the last few seasons, those late first-round picks would be in the 20s. Green Bay can afford to part ways with those picks for a generational player like Parsons, who the Packers needed badly on their defensive line. The Packers finished 13th in pressure rate (35.3%) last season and 10th in sack rate (7.4%). They already have a good pass rusher in Rashan Gary, but he was their only consistent threat on the edge. That changes with Parsons, who is the type of player that can take the Packers defense to the next level -- and create even more takeaways for a unit that ranked in the top five in that department last season. 

Parsons and White are the only two players with 12+ sacks in each of their first four seasons. Fitting the Packers got this generation's version of White, and could ride Parsons to a Super Bowl title. 

Cowboys: D-

The return for Parsons is subpar, and so is trading him out of the organization. This should have never come to fruition, and it is all the fault of owner Jerry Jones. Also doubling as the Cowboys general manager, Jones decided to go into a standoff with Parsons rather than handle his contract situation long before the trade request came into fruition.

Jones thought Parsons would be like Dak prescott, Ezekiel Elliott, and CeeDee Lamb -- and get the record-breaking deal done before the season. Parsons was good to his word on the trade request, knowing negotiations with Dallas were at the point of no return. 

Keep this in mind. Jones paid an over-30-year-old Dak Prescott over Micah Parsons, making Prescott the highest-paid quarterback in the NFL (and he still is). How does a record-setting deal like that not get done with Parsons, who hasn't even begun to sniff his prime yet? Parsons is the true difference maker on that side of the ball and one of the five best players in football. That's a player any franchise should never allow to leave the building, and the Cowboys did just that. 

This is why the Cowboys haven't been to a conference championship game in 30 years. This is why the Cowboys are all hype and no substance. This organization lives off VHS tapes of Super Bowl championships while the Philadelphia Eagles have passed them by -- and likely the Washington Commanders as well. 

What to know about Kenny Clark, the key piece returning to Cowboys in the shocking Micah Parsons trade

Robby Kalland

Sure, two first-round picks and Kenny Clark is a nice return, but not enough for a generational player like Parsons. These aren't even going to be high first-round picks either. 

What Jones did to the Cowboys franchise is malpractice. The NFC East is glad he still owns the Cowboys.