Hidden Behind the Deadline: The Truth About the Micah Parsons Deal That Could Reshape Green Bay’s Future.QQ
Green Bay gave up two first-round picks and Kenny Clark, but that seems even more like a great deal in hindsight.
Back in August, Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst jumped on early to make sure that, if Micah Parsons were ever to be traded, his team would be involved — a lesson he learned from losing Khalil Mack to the Chicago Bears seven years earlier.
The Packers gave up two first-round picks and defensive tackle Kenny Clark, which is obviously not an insignificant compensation to the Dallas Cowboys. But looking back at it, especially after the trade deadline, it’s easy to see how great of a deal that was for Green Bay from several different angles.
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The piece
The first point is Kenny Clark himself. While he was an important piece of the Packers’ defensive structure for a long time, Clark showed obvious signs of regression last year — there was a good chance the Packers would cut him next offseason anyway due to his high salary. The contract extension signed in 2024 backfired, and the Packers were able to get rid of that contract while using it as a positive asset in the trade.
But now that the Dallas Cowboys traded a 2027 first-round pick, a 2026 second-rounder, and Mazi Smith to the New York Jets for Quinnen Williams, the Cowboys’ decision to request Kenny Clark is even more notable. Sure, the Cowboys couldn’t know at that time that Williams would become available, but interior defensive linemen are much more frequently available than impactful edge rushers.
The Cowboys could have asked for Rashan Gary or Lukas Van Ness, and the Packers would probably have done the deal anyway.
The draft capital
Moving on from two first-round picks is huge for any team, but look at how the market is. The Indianapolis Colts traded two ones for cornerback Sauce Gardner — who’s a great young player at a premium position as well, but a much more volatile one, so much that Gardner wasn’t even a Pro Bowler last season. Also, a single edge defender tends to impact the game more than a single cornerback, a weak-link system position by nature.
The Philadelphia Eagles traded a third-round pick for half a season of Jaelan Phillips, an edge defender who’s been good but not great and has handled multiple injuries recently with the Miami Dolphins.
What was known right at the time of the Micah Parsons trade is even more evident now: The Packers made a great deal, and the Cowboys could’ve gotten much more for such a transformative piece.
