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The Dallas Cowboys have always carried the weight of outsized expectations. With Jerry Jones pulling the strings and ‘America’s Team' forever in the spotlight, the drama never truly goes away. This year feels quite different, though. The Cowboys aren’t just balancing championship aspirations with pressure. They’re staring down the possibility of losing their most dominant player since DeMarcus Ware. As the Micah Parsons contract standoff drags into late August with no resolution, the franchise must make a decision. Either break the bank to pay Parsons or explore the unthinkable: trading him before the 2025 season begins.
The Cowboys’ Preseason So Far
The current Parsons drama has only highlighted the larger cracks running through the Cowboys locker room under Jones. Dallas heads into the 2025 season with the league’s worst-ranked running back room, the retirement of veteran anchor Zach Martin, and Dak Prescott looking shaky as he crosses into his 30s. Against that backdrop, the Parsons saga looms even large. It casts doubt on the stability of a franchise already teetering on uncertainty.
The Cowboys and their superstar edge rusher remain locked in a contract stalemate. Jones has reportedly refused to even engage with Parsons’ agent since early spring. Sure, the expectation is still that Parsons will eventually sign a record-setting extension to become the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL. However, the lack of progress has slightly opened the door to another possibility. If Dallas were ever to deal the 26-year-old, the price would be astronomical: at least two first-round picks plus premium assets. That’s why the front office must now weigh the unthinkable. They must consier moving their best player amidst the reality of a roster in need of reinforcements.
Here we'll try to look at and discuss the last-minute trade that the Dallas Cowboys must make before Week 1 of 2025 NFL season.
Why a Trade Is on the Table
On paper, trading Parsons makes no sense. He’s a generational pass rusher who can wreck games single-handedly. He is the kind of defender every team in the league covets. Yet the Cowboys’ reluctance to meet his asking price creates a dangerous situation. If Dallas won’t pay him $41 million per year or more, another franchise certainly will. The longer the standoff drags, the more it risks becoming a distraction that undermines Dallas’ season before it even starts.
Jones has never shied away from making bold, controversial moves, of course. Again, the Cowboys have holes to fill and not enough cap flexibility to cover them all. Trading Parsons might be the only way to replenish draft capital and reposition the franchise for the long term.
The Trade That Could Change Everything
Dallas Cowboys: Edge Micah Parsons for Green Bay Packers role player, 2026 Day 1 and 2 draft picks, 2027 Day 2 and 3 picks
If Parsons were ever to be moved, Green Bay is the rare team that makes perfect sense. The Packers view themselves as Super Bowl contenders. However, their defense still lacks the kind of centerpiece Parsons represents. Pairing him with Rashan Gary would instantly give Green Bay one of the most terrifying pass-rush tandems in the NFL.
From the Cowboys’ perspective, this package provides both immediate and future value. If they can maybe land Gary in this deal, Dallas would obtain a proven edge defender who can step into Parsons’ role and produce at a high level. The draft picks, potentially four in total, would give Dallas the ammunition to reshape its roster over the next two years. With Zach Martin’s retirement leaving a gaping hole in the offensive line and Prescott’s long-term future in question, those assets could become the foundation of the next Cowboys core.
Why Green Bay Would Say Yes
Green Bay has the draft capital, cap space, and urgency to make this move. With over $31 million in cap room, they can absorb Parsons’ current deal and then hammer out an extension that cements him as the defensive cornerstone of the franchise. Dropping Parsons onto a defense that already boasts someone like Jaire Alexander and a promising young front seven would immediately change the NFC power balance.
The Packers also understand the stakes. In an NFC where the 49ers and Eagles have set the standard, acquiring Parsons could be the piece that pushes them over the top. Trading four draft picks is steep, of course. That said, for a 26-year-old superstar who changes how opponents game-plan every Sunday, it’s a price worth paying.
The Risks of Standing Pat
Of course, trading Parsons is a gamble for Dallas. If they let him walk or play out his contract without an extension, they risk losing him for nothing more than a compensatory pick. And if they keep him under the franchise tag in the future, the drama will only continue to hang over the locker room. The Cowboys’ roster is already fragile. Again, they are thin at running back, aging on the offensive line, and unsettled at quarterback. Banking on Parsons alone to carry the defense won’t fix those structural issues.
At some point, the front office has to decide whether Parsons is the foundation of the future or simply their most valuable bargaining chip. Given the stalemate, the latter option may be more realistic.
The Time for Boldness
The Cowboys’ dynasty dreams have stalled in the divisional round year after year. With questions everywhere else on the roster, Micah Parsons is both their best player and their most valuable asset. Trading him before Week 1 would be shocking, controversial, and painful—but it might also be the only way forward.
If Jerry Jones truly wants to secure Dallas’ future, he must consider the unthinkable. Sending Parsons to the Packers for Rashan Gary and a haul of draft picks would reshape both franchises—and could ultimately define the Cowboys’ next decade.
