The Dallas Cowboys kick off the 2025 NFL season on Thursday against their NFC East rival, the Philadelphia Eagles, but they’ll be without one of their best players from the last four seasons.
The Cowboys traded Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers in a league-altering move after a contract dispute with the superstar pass rusher throughout training camp. With the season opener here, here’s a reminder of what Dallas received in return for the three-time All-Pro.
Breaking Down What the Cowboys Got in Return for Micah Parsons
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones made the shocking decision to trade Parsons to the Packers on August 28. The move came after a drawn-out and personal contract dispute between the star pass rusher and Jones throughout training camp.
Parsons had been a franchise cornerstone since being selected No. 12 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft. In four seasons in Dallas, he totaled 52.5 sacks, earned the Defensive Rookie of the Year award in 2021, made three NFL All-Pro teams, and led the league in pressure rate at 20.3 percent.
Replacing a player of that caliber is nearly impossible, and the Packers had to give up a haul to make the deal happen.
Officially, the trade sent Parsons to Green Bay in exchange for defensive tackle Kenny Clark, a 2026 first-round pick, and a 2027 first-round pick.
Full details of the trade that sends Micah Parsons to Green Bay.
(via @RapSheet, @TomPelissero, @SlaterNFL) pic.twitter.com/ahcW28dW1t
— NFL (@NFL) August 28, 2025
The Packers drafted Clark in the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft, and he has been an elite defensive tackle for nine seasons. In his career with Green Bay, Clark has recorded 417 total tackles, 51 tackles for loss, and 35 sacks.
Kenny Clark registered the Packers’ quickest sack of the season so far.
2.61 seconds from snap to sack. pic.twitter.com/TcnRvUjkrN
— Daire Carragher (@DaireCarragher) September 25, 2023
Following the trade, Jones emphasized that Dallas needs to improve its run defense, and Clark is expected to play a key role in the team’s plan to strengthen its interior defensive line.
While that might make sense on paper, Clark is an aging veteran with his best years likely behind him. He enters his 10th NFL season this year and turns 30 in October, whereas Parsons is just 26 and entering his prime.
The two first-round picks Dallas acquired in the trade give the Cowboys significant draft capital heading into the 2026 and 2027 NFL Drafts. While the Packers are likely to be NFC contenders this season and next, having two first-round selections in each of the next two drafts should give Dallas the ability to move up and acquire the talent it wants.
Even with Clark and two first-round picks coming back in the trade, the deal still likely wasn’t worth it for Dallas. PFSN’s Bjorn Begstrom gave the Packers an A+ for the trade while handing the Cowboys a D.
Parsons is one of the best players in the league, and there was really no scenario in which trading him to Green Bay would have been a smart move for Jones and the Cowboys.
Fans will get to see how Dallas fares without Parsons in their first game of the season on Thursday, September 4, when they take on the Eagles at 8:20 p.m. EST with coverage on NBC.
