The Dallas Cowboys made a move so shocking that it was momentarily paralyzing. A move that some would deem as unthinkable. Dallas traded away Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers. Parsons is a star pass rusher nearing the prime of his career, and trading him to one of the team’s biggest rivals, Green Bay, is all the more stunning.
Parsons has been named a Pro Bowler in each of his first four NFL seasons and has been named an All-Pro in two of them. In his short career, he has racked up a staggering 52.5 sacks, good for the sixth-most all-time in that span behind names like Reggie White, J.J. Watt, and Derrick Thomas. Although Green Bay sent the Cowboys defensive tackle Kenny Clark, a multi-Pro Bowler himself, and two first-round picks for Parsons, it still doesn’t feel like enough compensation for a player of Parsons’ caliber. The question is, why? Why would Jerry Jones do this? Simple: Jerry Jones has to do it his way or not at all.
As has been famously highlighted throughout the years, and featured in Netflix’s recent documentary, the rift between Jimmy Johnson and Jerry Jones was the prelude to the end of the Dallas dynasty of the 1990s, and whether you side with Johnson or Jones as to who was right, the only opinion that truly matters and carries weight is of Jones himself, who serves he team’s owner and general manager. Jones had a way of doing business that didn’t work for Johnson, and Jones, unwilling to cede to his coach, parted ways with a coach that had won him two Super Bowls.
In over the 30 years since, Jones’ hubris and self-righteousness have gotten worse, despite the team not winning a championship since the 1995 season, and this has caused the Cowboys to seemingly jog in place over the past three decades. Jones’ approach has only been exacerbated by the team’s rising value, now $13B as of this year, and perhaps vindication for himself. To make matters worse, his son Stephen became a more prominent figure in the team’s operations, often echoing his father’s business tactics but also senselessly justifying them as well.
As for the Parsons trade itself, the cost of the contract shouldn’t really be a major factor if you think about it. The rest of the NFL has proven that contracts and salary cap figures can be moved around to make the pricy agreements work. Granted, had Parsons received his asking price, a deal would have been done, and everything would have been water under the bridge. Except, it wasn’t being conducted on Jones’ terms and how he likes to do business. In a sit down with ESPN’s Stephen A Smith, Jones cited having to be “comfortable” about the cost, which speaks more to his personal sentiments as a businessman than NFL owner, and doesn’t align with how contracts are ironed out in today’s NFL.
On the Ross Tucker Podcast, Andrew Brandt, a longtime sports agent who negotiated contracts for the Green Bay Packers and Philadelphia Eagles, weighed in on what Jones tried to do with Parsons:
It appears that Jones tried to circumvent Parsons’ agent David Mulugheta, and had a handshake deal with Parsons without the agent present. Unfortunately, that blew up in Jones’ face, and with Jones no longer wanting to play ball with Parsons and his representation, became what was the last straw and the trade was made. More than anything, the decision to trade Parsons is about Jones wanting to exert control and send a message that he still is the head honcho at the board room table.
Jones had made it a routine to drag out contract negotiations with his premier players, such as CeeDee Lamb, Ezekiel Elliott, and Dak Prescott, before deals were struck, but not before leaking the contract figures and using the media to frame the player as asking for too much or being greedy. A way of Jones putting pressure on the player but making it seem like the ball was in the player’s court, very similar to Stephen Jones saying last month that Parsons has to want to be paid. What happened to Parsons feels strikingly familiar to when the Cowboys approached Tyron Smith in 2014 about a new eight-year, 110M contract without his agent being present. Smith didn’t sign the proposed the contract on the spot, and opted to speak with his presentation before taking the deal anyway.
“Late last week, the Cowboys approached me with a deal I told my agents I wanted to sign,” Smith said in a statement released by his marketing firm. “My agents explained the pros and cons of this deal versus one that may be shorter term and/or higher guarantee. After careful consideration, I decided this long term deal was exactly what I wanted.
“Over the past three years, the Cowboys organization and Jones Family have helped me through trying times and I felt this was my opportunity to return the gratitude. I am beyond grateful for the Cowboys staff, my teammates, and the fans, and wanted to ensure I was locked in as a ‘Cowboy for Life.’ I want to thank everyone for their support and look forward to having a star on my helmet for the remainder of my career.”
Two different players, with two different players personality, resulting in wildly different outcomes. Jones has to understand that the days of old aren’t the way things are done anymore and a handshake deal or number written on the back of a dinner napkin is made for TV like his Netflix special. Ultimately, Jones drew a hard line in the sand, asking Parsons to play under the fifth-year option or go elsewhere and Parsons obliged. A star player on a Hall-of-Fame-like trajectory is now elsewhere because Jones couldn’t get with the times. Old habits die hard.
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