Even with months of Parsons’s public discontentment simmering due to his desire for a contract extension, it is shocking to see the Cowboys let the situation get to this point. Parsons is one of the best defensive players in football, hard stop. He’s accumulated 52.5 sacks in his first four NFL seasons and earned two first-team All-Pro nods. It’s no exaggeration to say Parsons is on track for a Hall of Fame-caliber career. But the Cowboys played hardball with his contract negotiations and now have to decide whether they’ll actually trade their 26-year-old superstar.

Early signs suggest no, they will not. It took less than a half hour after Parsons’s trade request went public for a report to emerge stating the team has “no intention” of trading the star pass rusher. Between that and how the Myles Garrett situation unfolded earlier this year, it seems far more likely that Parsons’s dramatic trade demand will be used to finalize an extension with Dallas rather than a vehicle to play elsewhere next season.

Nevertheless, with the trade request public, all possibilities must be considered. It’s no guarantee the Cowboys will be able to mend their relationship with Parsons. They may have no choice but to put him on the block and see what kind of return is out there for a star defender just entering his prime with years of All-Pro production already on the books.

This potential future is of much interest to 31 other teams, as they would all be very keen on procuring Parsons’s services for their own ends. There would be no concerns about on- or off-field fits with a player of this talent. Opposing teams all over the league would be over the moon to just get him in the building and go from there, even if it means having to pay him top-of-the-line pass-rusher money.

So, if the Cowboys did trade Parsons, what would a realistic deal actually look like?

As was pointed out in the immediate aftermath of Parsons’s request, there is a decent comparison in modern NFL history. Back in 2018, a 27-year-old Khalil Mack was traded by the then-Oakland Raiders to the Chicago Bears for an absolute haul of picks. The deal fetched the Raiders four draft picks (including two first-rounders) for Mack, a second-round pick, and a conditional fifth-round pick.

That seems like a good starting point for Parsons. He’s a bit younger than Mack was at the time of his trade request, with just as strong a résumé leading into the trade demand. Additionally, both players were searching for their first big-money extension at the time of their trade request. And in the past seven years the value of a great edge rusher has only increased.

It feels safe to believe a trade package for Parsons would start with multiple first-round picks and include additional mid-round selections on top of that. If the Cowboys wanted an established player for Parsons, that changes the formula quite a bit for both sides, but there’s no way Dallas finds a partner who is willing and able to send a player of Parsons’s caliber in return. Because you just don’t trade those kinds of players.

But Parsons very well might. And no matter what the final price may be, we can know for sure right now that it’ll be sky-high.