What Cowboys-Packers' Micah Parsons trade means a year later

If Sunday's game between the Green Bay Packers and the Dallas Cowboys at Lambeau Field were a made-for-TV movie, it would open like this: The home team's starters would be introduced, and Micah Parsons would run out last to a raucous ovation while his former team stood and watched.

Instead, Parsons will be without a uniform, will come out unannounced and his play will have zero impact on who wins the game. Nearly 14 months after Parsons was traded from the Cowboys to the Packers, and a little more than nine months removed from left ACL surgery, the All-Pro edge rusher has yet to be cleared to return from last year's season-ending injury.

Given everything that has happened for the two teams since that Aug. 28, 2025, blockbuster deal, Parsons' presence still looms large over both franchises as they try to build championship contenders. Both teams are off to bumpy starts this season as Green Bay awaits Parsons' return to action and Dallas' defense continues to struggle.

Parsons might still be the one player the Packers need to get back to a Super Bowl, but it didn't happen in Year 1. The Packers were 9-3-1 when Parsons blew out his knee at the Denver Broncos in Week 15, and they didn't win another game -- including an opening-round playoff loss. They're off to a 3-2 start this year while they wait for Parsons' return, which could still be weeks away.

Meanwhile, the Cowboys had arguably the worst defense in the NFL last season, and at 2-3 this season, they're still trying to remake their defense into what owner and general manager Jerry Jones envisioned when he shipped Parsons to the Packers.

Just like last season's 40-40 tie -- when Parsons had a sack and three tackles in his first matchup against the Cowboys -- Sunday's game (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC) will not reveal a winner in the trade, but what does it mean for both franchises a year later?

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott said he will miss being able to play against his former teammate.

"Wishing him all the best and getting healthy," Prescott said. "Caught up with him a lot this offseason and here in Dallas while he was rehabbing, so he knows I support him in that.

"But at the end of the day, it's the Cowboys versus the Packers. It's not me versus Micah, or the Cowboys versus Micah. It's about us going in and getting to win."

How the Parsons trade has affected the Cowboys

Since the trade, the Cowboys dealt for defensive tackle Quinnen Williams. After signing him to a three-year, $105 million extension in August, Jones said the Parsons trade could not have worked out better, but he stopped short of saying the Cowboys won the deal.

In addition to defensive tackle Kenny Clark, the Cowboys received the Packers' first-round picks in 2026 and 2027.

Last season, the Cowboys flipped the better of the 2027 first-rounders to the New York Jets for Williams and their 2026 second-round pick. With the No. 26 pick in this year's draft, the Cowboys added pass rusher Malachi Lawrence, who has only one sack, one tackle for loss and seven quarterback pressures but is expected to see more playing time Sunday.

Jones went so far as to compare the Parsons trade to the 1989 trade of running back Herschel Walker to the Minnesota Vikings that helped the Cowboys win three Super Bowls in a four-year span in the 1990s.

"You could say those picks got us key players, but the main thing that the Herschel Walker trade did, it caused me to be more aggressive and caused us to, if you will, take more risk because we had more picks," Jones said in August. "It's like going to Las Vegas with some extra money in your pocket.

"In a way this actually created a mental part to us and to my role in it, to step out and make the moves and take, if you will, risks that are involved to be where we are today with a complete makeover of the defense."

But the makeover, to be kind, remains a work in progress.

Last season, the Cowboys allowed a franchise-record 511 points and were 30th in yards allowed per game. After the season, defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus was fired, and only one defensive coach remains from last year's staff (assistant linebackers coach J.J. Clark).

Defensive coordinator Christian Parker came from the Philadelphia Eagles, where he was the passing game coordinator and defensive backs coach in 2024 and 2025. He brought a new scheme that has had some strong moments -- among them two fourth-and-1 stops of Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry in Week 3 and improved third-down work at times -- but has not been consistent.

Through five games, the Cowboys have allowed 395.4 yards per game, which ranks 31st in the league. Four of their five opponents have had a season high in yardage. They are allowing 168.4 rushing yards per game (32nd) and 27.2 points per game (26th). Dating back to last season, the Cowboys have allowed 20 or more points in each of their past 12 games, matching a team record.

This week, Dallas added longtime NFL coach Mike Pettine, a former Packers defensive coordinator, as a senior defensive assistant to help Parker.

"We have to play better all across the boards," coach Brian Schottenheimer said. "I think [Parsons is] a terrific player. I'm looking forward to seeing him, but I like the picks that we got from Micah. I think we've done some really great things getting those picks.

"And I hope that when it's all said and done, it goes to show that that made a big difference because I do feel that way when you look at the guys who we were able to add to our roster."

Yet that difference hasn't been reflected in takeaways or sacks.

During Parsons' tenure in Dallas after being drafted No. 12 in 2021, the Cowboys averaged 1.72 takeaways per game. Since the trade, they have averaged .64. With Parsons on the roster, the Cowboys had three or more sacks 33 times (48.5%), but in the 22 games since the trade, the Cowboys have reached that mark seven times (31.8%). With Parsons in Dallas, the Cowboys were held to one sack or fewer 29.4% of the time. Without him, that figure is 52.3%.

How the Parsons trade has affected the Packers

In Green Bay, the jolt that Parsons' arrival gave to the locker room was unlike anything many of the players had ever felt.

"S---, his presence," Packers All-Pro safety Xavier McKinney said at the time. "Just being Micah Parsons. When you get a guy like that, of that talent, you can put him out there and tell him to just stand there. And before the play is snapped, they're going to be looking for him because if you're not prepared for him, it's not going to be good for you."

Or as Packers coach Matt LaFleur said: "He definitely has an aura about him."

Parsons delivered on the promise initially. He recorded 12.5 sacks before his left knee buckled in the 14th game of the season. Despite missing the last three games, he still led the NFL with 64 quarterback pressures, according to ESPN Analytics. The problem was, the Packers didn't win another game, including the deflating playoff loss to the Chicago Bears in the wild-card round, when they allowed 25 fourth-quarter points.

The trade meant the Packers went into this past offseason without a first-round pick. But general manager Brian Gutekunst believed he had a roster that wasn't in need of many players, as evidenced by him trading away more picks and drafting six players -- his smallest class since taking over in 2018. He used his first three picks on defensive players -- cornerback Brandon Cisse (Round 2), defensive tackle Chris McClellan (Round 3) and edge rusher Dani Dennis-Sutton (Round 4). All three have been significant contributors so far.

The Packers also lost defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley, who became the Miami Dolphins' head coach in January. He was replaced by former Arizona Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon, who has kept his plans for how he intends to use Parsons mostly under wraps.

Gannon, however, said Parsons has made an impact despite not taking a snap this season.

"He's a really good leader," Gannon said this week. "He's in there, he coaches up those guys. He gives an element that he's an energy giver. That's cool to see with a guy that's not playing, that he provides energy to the unit. I know he's working his tail off to get ready to go."

Without Parsons, the Packers' pass rush has been serviceable. It ranks 13th in quarterback pressures and ninth in contact with the quarterback, according to ESPN Analytics, but Gannon has blitzed on 31.7% of opponent dropbacks, which is 10% higher than last season's unit and ranks 13th in the league.

"I think it's going to be huge when [Parsons] gets back," safety Javon Bullard said. "A player like that, you got to put into account what he can do for your team, for your defense. We know. The staff knows. And the league knows. So you've got to account for him when he comes back. I think it's going to be huge for us."

Parsons hasn't rushed his recovery, saying this week that if this were the Super Bowl, he would play. As much as the Packers would like Parsons back, Gutekunst has said several times that this isn't just about getting him back this season but also protecting the long-term investment they have in Parsons.

"He's under contract, so he ain't going nowhere," Bullard said. "But like I said, can't wait to have him back, hopefully sooner than later."

Why the trade will linger over both teams for years

There were other, less direct effects of the Parsons trade for both teams.

It allowed the Packers to let edge rusher Rashan Gary go. They likely were going to release the 2019 first-round draft pick after the 2026 season, but the Cowboys offered a fourth-round pick and the Packers made the trade in March.

Gary ended a 12-game sackless streak in the Cowboys' Week 4 win against the Houston Texans when he chased down C.J. Stroud.

The Cowboys' lack of a consistent pass rush has played a role in the longest active streak in the NFL without an interception at 248 passes -- the Carolina Panthers have the second-longest streak at 97. The Cowboys' last interception was by Williams in last season's Week 15 loss to the Vikings, and the last pick by a Dallas cornerback was made by Trikweze Bridges in Week 8 against the Broncos.

Jones said the trade was born out of his desire to revamp how the defense was played. He wanted pass rush from the interior and to be better against the run. Immediately after the trade, executive vice president Stephen Jones said the Cowboys can "manufacture" pass rush with the blitz.

The Cowboys' blitz rate last season was 29.2%, which ranked 10th in the NFL. The result was only 35 sacks. So far this season, the Cowboys' blitz rate is 24.1%, which ranks 24th, and they have only five sacks in five games.

Schottenheimer said there are "different ways" to get more out of the pass rush. He mentioned blitzing, but he put more of the onus on the secondary.

"The coverage has to be better," Schottenheimer said. "You want to get better pass rush, you got to have better coverage. Can't allow quarterbacks to have 130-point whatever [passer ratings]. It's not good enough.

"So got to be stickier in coverage. That's part of it. We know that. I feel like we've got plenty of edge pieces that can rush the passer."

The Cowboys acquired cornerback Joey Porter Jr. from the Pittsburgh Steelers to help the pass rush -- but when the Cowboys had Parsons, the pass rush helped elevate the secondary.

In Green Bay, the best edge rusher this season has been Lukas Van Ness, a player whom Parsons has championed since he got there. Van Ness has 2.5 sacks and a team-high eight quarterback hits.

"Micah has been a great addition to our room over the past year, just not only coaching me and the rest of the guys and being a leader," Van Ness said. "He's taught us a lot and I think that he's proud of the group we have and I think he knows we have a lot of potential to do some good things together."

Until Parsons returns, there's no way to know whether the investment Gutekunst made by trading the draft picks and giving Parsons a four-year, $188 million contract extension was worth it. Nor can those questions be answered until well after Parsons returns from his injury.

"It's an unfortunate part of this game, you know?" Gutekunst said this offseason. "And it's the risk you take whenever you acquire players. That can happen.

"Immediately for me, it's probably just the callousness of being in it. It's, 'OK, what's next? How do we make sure we do everything we can for the football team to give them the best chance to win the next game?'"

The reunion of the Cowboys and Parsons was different when they played in Dallas last September. The trade was fresh. This year, there has not been as much chatter, mostly because of Parsons' unavailability.

A year ago, Prescott was asked if the first meeting would bring closure to the trade

"I doubt you'll be done with that," Prescott said then. "Someway, somehow, it will get brought up again."