With the Dallas Cowboys trading Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers on Thursday, there is no doubt that it has spawned an immense amount of conversation around owner Jerry Jones and the validity of the deal. While some analysts applaud and praise the Cowboys' move to deal Parsons to the Packers, many others have found major issues with it, like Stephen A. Smith.
On ESPN's “First Take,” Smith would be asked for his opinion on the matter and didn't hold back by saying that for Jones, the trade is a “disaster,” as the team got back two first-round picks and defensive tackle Kenny Clark. Smith argues that Dallas didn't get enough for Parsons from Green Bay as the first-round picks will be late, since the team is expected to be contending in the future.
“This is a disaster for Jerry Jones, this is a bad, bad situation, and I think this is something that's going to taint whatever legacy he hoped to have, because this is not a football decision,” Smith said. “He can slice it any way he wants to. Micah Parsons is a superstar-caliber player in the National Football League. You traded him for two late first-round picks.”
“You made them younger, you made them better defensively,” Smith continued. “So you take those things into consideration, and they're within the NFC conference. You know what? If you're gonna trade Micah Parsons, trade him out of the conference, or trade him to somebody like New Orleans or somebody like that, you don't trade him to a Green Bay Packers team, who, by the way, is the last team to whip your a** in the playoffs.”
This is NOT a good day for the Dallas Cowboys.
My reaction to the Micah Parsons trade. pic.twitter.com/aEWDiyE5IF
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) August 29, 2025
Stephen A. Smith further critiques the Cowboys' Micah Parsons trade
As some could call the Cowboys' decision to trade Parsons malpractice, it seems like more people are taking issue with the return, since the pass rusher is considered a superstar in this league. Smith is one who echoed the same sentiment, saying that if a deal had been made earlier in the year, a better offer would have been available.
“And so the reason why this is…going to taint Jerry Jones is because in the end, we're all looking at it, and we know this is not purely a football decision, two first round picks and Kenny Clark, a defensive tackle who had a down year last year, does not equate to a superstar at age 26 that is Micah Parsons.”
“By the way, Clark is three years older. It doesn't equate to that. If you had made this deal in March and opened the floodgates to everybody, then there's no question that you would have had a better deal offered to you than the deal that you just agreed to.”
Dallas opens the season on Thursday, Sept. 4, against the Philadelphia Eagles.
