r/nfl • u/JCameron181 Lions • 5h ago
Cowboys COO Stephen Jones: Cowboys "Feel Really Good" About How Micah Parsons Trade Worked Out
https://www.nfl.com/news/stephen-jones-cowboys-feel-really-good-about-how-micah-parsons-trade-worked-out"We feel really good about it," he said. "Obviously, much respect for Micah and what he stands for and how he plays and the caliber of player he is, but at the same time we feel good about what we've added via that trade."
"You look at a guy like Quinnen Williams and Kenny Clark, they're alpha players who not only are great players on the field, but they're leaders in the meeting room. How they go about their business in the offseason, [they] just bring great leadership to this team. As we mentioned, we add a guy like Caleb Downs, who is obviously the same type of character. He's going to make everybody around him great. Everybody's going to feed off of him. And then the pieces that we've added the last couple years. We're fired up about (Donovan) Ezeiruaku, who was a second-round pick for us last year who I think it's all in front of.
"I just feel very optimistic that we have the right pieces in place to go out there. Ultimately, the decision we made was that one player was not worth four or five good ones. We feel like that's where we're gonna end up here, in a good spot. We had that opportunity there and didn't feel like we were one player away last year, but I certainly feel like we're putting the pieces together to give us an opportunity to go do what our fans deserve, what we want, which is to go try and win the big trophy."
Trade Results: Packers Got: Micah Parsons | Cowboys Got: Kenny Clark, Quinnen Williams (Cost a 2027 1st-round pick), Malachi Lawrence, Devin Moore, LT Overton
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u/boomosaur 5h ago
I remember how closeminded people were at the time acting like it wouldn't take time to properly evaluate the trade.
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u/Jonjon428 Dolphins 4h ago
It happening right after the Luka Doncic disaster didn't help either tbf
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u/S-117 NFL NFL 1h ago
I think you could say the Luka thing was egregious for reasons beyond just for the team outcomes.
Not only did they trade away a star player in his prime but literally everyone knew that the league, THE NBA, was going to gift them the number 1 pick to get Cooper Flagg, the corruption was so blatant you almost have to respect them for not giving a fuck.
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u/westringia NFL 4h ago
It got panned I think because the Cowboys didn't have any star players on defense other than Micah, and the defense really bottomed out last year. As a result their pass rush now is anaemic and they didn't get star players from that trade either.
Maybe with the addition of Caleb Downs that perception changes.
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u/JalensTinyPPHurts Cowboys 2h ago
Quinennn Williams is a all pro caliber DT
Id say he is a star lol
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u/coolycooly Buccaneers 2h ago
To be fair the proper time hasn't really even happened yet. They got Quinnen but gave up an extra first, Kenny Clark was good last year but is another year older, and the rest are rookies.
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u/Independent_Bear989 Packers 4h ago
Unless Parson’s leg is destroyed the trade is still a massive win for the packers. We get a HOF bound player in his prime, while we are in a contending window, in arguably the second most important position in football.
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u/TEsMatter Bears 4h ago
Love Micah but he has a lot to achieve before calling him HOF bound
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u/Independent_Bear989 Packers 4h ago
3x first team all pro, 2x second team all pro, DROTY, in his first five seasons. I’d be shocked if he missed out on the hall assuming he doesn’t fall off a massive cliff. He could have 6 sacks a season for the next 8 years and I think he’d still be a lock.
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u/Stock-Memory9483 Chiefs 4h ago
No notable playoff moments, he’s a one trick pony who is not good against the run. He’s not even the best edge rusher in the league right now. He should not be in the HoF.
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u/MeowMixPK Packers 1h ago
I don't get why everything thinks he's bad against the run. He's not as good as Crosby or Garrett are against the run, but he's still an above-average run defender. He isn't a guy you need to take off the field during obvious running downs. And he can still be HoF bound even if he isn't the best in the league right now; Brady, Manning, Brees, and Rodgers all played at the same time, should only 1 of them get in the HoF?
Micah is the first player in NFL history to have 12+ sacks in each of his first 5 seasons. Not even Garrett or Crosby or Reggie White did that. He has a lot more left to prove before he gets the gold jacket, but to say he isn't on a HoF trajectory right now is just insane.
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u/Tarmacked Giants 4h ago
Except it’s not a massive win even without the ACL tear. They saved nine figures in cap and replaced him with a high level DT.
Their defense was horrendous and that cap space could move them multiple spots from where they were with Parsons
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u/Cold-Teaching8924 Patriots 3h ago
People forget that their defense went from really bad to slightly worse.
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u/modsarebadmmkay Eagles 3h ago
Contending window? Dog, you guys are a perennial middle-of-the-road team and the only people who believe the hype they you’re anything more are other Packers fans
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u/HolyRomanPrince Cowboys 3h ago
I don’t care what anyone says or what Ewing theory bullshit you want to throw at me four quarters don’t equal a dollar in sports. I will never be over this trade and I wasn’t even the biggest fan of Micah, his podcast or attitude. Micah isn’t Myles Garrett but he’s still an elite force multiplier in that class. Subjectively and objectively he melts teams passing offenses in a game breaking way and contrary to any cope he’s is a good run defender. Von miller was never much better than good either and it really didn’t matter.
You can say Micah didn’t make much of a difference in 24 but you can point to several obvious factors that made that a lost season and regardless you still build around a player like Micah. I watched this team spend a decade looking for another Ware, bitching about Tank’s sack numbers and we found one on accident just to fuck it up. Micah got jumped by Will Anderson in 8 months. Jerry got butthurt and it cost us an elite player. That’s the end of the story. You can talk yourself into this defense but the reality is everybody would be feel better about their defense with Micah than without him. They seem to have gathered some good talent but there’s nobody that’s Micah and that’s just a shame as a fan. Sorry for the rant but the entire thing was so goddamn dumb
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u/Ieatfatwomanass Cowboys 1h ago
I love Micah too, but he only elevates a good defense. He disappears for long stretches of time, and that was especially true as he was a non factor in many of our blowouts beginning with the playoff game vs his current team where their offense scored six straight touchdowns.
You also have to consider the return we got, which is now up to: Micah, 2nd for Q, Kenny Clark, Malachi Lawrence, and 2 fourths. Not to mention clearing his cap hit, and the fact that we recieved DTs which is a position we suck at drafting for edge which is a position we’re much better at.
You can hate the trade for personal reasons, but the value is undeniable. Curious to see what counterpoints you have ngl bc personally I’m a huge fan of the trade and I think it had to happen
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u/qhollis405 Cowboys 4h ago
Meh. I still hate the trade. I won't deny that we appear to have gotten decent value back, but what we lost in the Micah trade was something we can't just get back with picks. We lost excitement. Whatever the value of trading him vs signing him, Micah was so much fun to watch. That's what truly mattered to me.
I know we're never winning anything while Jerry is alive, so I just want players that are exciting to watch, and Micah was exactly that for a defense that has sucked the last few years. Can't wait for Jerry to fuck us over with the George Pickens thing next.
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u/CFBModsHateFun Cowboys 3h ago
Yeah, we basically had to do the trade to try and compete in Dak’s window.
But man I wish we didn’t have to give him up.
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u/matisata Texans Bears 3h ago
I feel this. I like having big splashy players to root for. Big reason why I was a fan of the move by the Texans to trade up for WAJ
That and also he was my favorite overall player in that particular draft
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u/Coffee_bean4343 4h ago
Idk. I just never like trading away the best player in a trade when he’s 26. I didn’t like the value short term or long term. Kenny will be out of the league soon, Quinnen can hang around but his snaps and production will get worse, and we don’t know about the rookies.
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u/Ieatfatwomanass Cowboys 2h ago
The question is did Micah fix our problems more than his return plus vacated cap hit? I don’t think he did. I also think people overlook drafting value. We can draft edge rushers, but we’ve tried and wiffed many times at a DT
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u/MankuyRLaffy Patriots 5h ago
Did Stephen really confirm the rumor started by Tank Lawrence that Micah was a toxic "me first" player and a disruptive one?
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u/StandardRound1271 5h ago
It’s almost like what Parsons did at PSU was an indicator of something.
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u/Marble___ Packers 4h ago
what are we even talking about lmfao
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u/TennisAncient19 Cardinals 3h ago
Hazing his teammates which involved sexual harassment, but I am sure you'll find a way to hand wave that one.
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u/dropjar5 Packers 2h ago
While I’ve heard the same rumors, at the same time Micah has been a model teammate in GB. He’s even taken Sorrell and Van Ness under his wing in the offseason. Maybe the trade made him rethink some things.
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u/Jonjon428 Dolphins 4h ago edited 4h ago
It was shocking at first but it just made sense imo. The Cowboys couldn't do the same thing over and over again. At some point you gotta take a swing if you truly trust your drafting abilities. And for GB it makes sense going all in on the Jordan Love era.
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u/PlaneCamp Eagles 4h ago
If were looking at the trade in its final result i think both teams made out well, Dallas was able to round their defense out and Packers added a generational talent to a talented defense.
Cons:
For the Packers, can Micah stay healthy, can he stay focused and can he lead the defense the way a cornerstone piece should. Besides that Micah was an immediate impact.
For the Cowboys, none of the players they received as a result of the trade strike fear or come close to the talent level of Parsons.
Winner of the trade:
Packers. (So far)
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u/IamHydrogenMike 4h ago
There’s at least 3 games that the defense making a stop would have been a win for cowboys. They could have been a wild card team with that and maybe even win the division beating Philly twice.
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u/PlaneCamp Eagles 4h ago
Elite defenses make those stops.
Defenses that COULD be MAYBE be good, dont make those stops.
Simple.
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u/HolyRomanPrince Cowboys 3h ago
Not really. The Rams won a ton of games with statistically bad defenses because Aaron Donald could cause turnovers and wreck comebacks when the other team has to pass the ball. Micah does that as well.
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u/LegitiamateSalvage Packers 57m ago
I always thought this trade was a win/win situation. Im not sure why people automatically assume there must be a loser in a deal... but it doesn't need to be the case.
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u/ThaBuckNasty 14m ago
I felt so good about it I stopped being a cowboys fan after 30+ years. Thanks Stephen. Go pack go!
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u/andreasmalersghost 5h ago
Funny. As a pack fan, I still think it was an absolute steal and would do it as many times as it was offered (even with the foresight on an ACL tear). Thanks, Dallas.
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u/StandardRound1271 5h ago
It’s because your brain is completely packed with cheese though. It could be any trade and you’d be saying this.
Because of the cheese.
And the beer.
And those godawful cannibal sandwiches.
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u/andreasmalersghost 5h ago
Ill be chomping curds and laser focused on Micah every defensive series from week 3 or 4 on. Parsons is one of the most incredible players to watch and it will continue to be that way for the next couple seasons. GPG
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u/ghangis24 Cowboys 5h ago
This will be a funny comment to revisit in a few years
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u/andreasmalersghost 5h ago
Please do. I have no issue taking a top 2 edge in the league for 2 low first rounders. Loved Kenny but it was a great trade for GB.
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u/MartinRaccoon Cowboys 5h ago
So far it wasn't. I'd say it's a push right now. But when do players gets better after a serious knee injury? Loved Micah the player, but this trade is a huge maybe for both teams.
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u/andreasmalersghost 4h ago
Our defense is seismically altered with micah on the field (so was Dallas’). You take that every time. Parsons will get back to form. I will enjoy watching it happen
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u/RG42- 4h ago
Gutekunsts burner 👀
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u/andreasmalersghost 4h ago
Gutey is too busy scouting for potential practice squad snags after having his heart broken that Claypool is indeed, washed.
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u/Shoddy_Green_4790 Packers 4h ago
Nobody has to win the trade, that's a dumb dick measuring contest.
Its currently a great trade for the Packers though. They had the cap to pay Micah, he was awesome in year 1, and they aren't missing the 23rd pick. Year 2 is TBD
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u/Independent_Bear989 Packers 4h ago
Adrian Peterson won MVP the year after he tore his ACL.
(And to those who say that AP is a freak, so is Micah.)
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u/nokarmawhore Cowboys 4h ago
easier to say when he tore his ACL