The Green Bay Packers tried to swing a trade for Khalil Mack just before the start of the 2018 season when the Oakland Raiders opted to make a deal with the Chicago Bears.
“The whole Khalil Mack thing, it’s not that we didn’t try,” then-Packers President Mark Murphy told WSSP-AM 105.7 in Milwaukee the next summer. “We were aggressive. We wanted to sign him. I think, ironically, the Raiders took the Bears’ offer because they thought they would be a better draft pick.”
The Bears went on to win the NFC North that year as Mack led a fierce Vic Fangio-directed defense while the Packers wound up firing coach Mike McCarthy midseason. So, the Raiders’ bid for better draft picks didn’t pan out. The Bears haven’t had a winning season since, and the Packers have been to the playoffs in five of the last six years.
With postseason appearances the last two years for quarterback Jordan Love and the feeling that they are close to breaking through, the Packers pulled off a similarly seismic trade Thursday afternoon. General manager Brian Gutekunst, who went angling for Mack, got his man by acquiring Micah Parsons from the Dallas Cowboys for two first-round draft picks and defensive tackle Kenny Clark. The Packers are signing Parsons to a four year, $188 million contract that will make him the highest-paid non-quarterback in the league.
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Commanders cornerback Mike Sainristil, right, is pushed out of bounds by Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons during the second half of a Jan. 5 game in Arlington, Texas. Josh McSwain, AP File
It’s a trade packed with major implications for the NFC North, which sent three teams to the playoffs last season. Instead of having to deal with Parsons in Week 3 when the Cowboys visit Soldier Field, the Bears will see him twice — Week 14 at Lambeau Field and Week 16 at home.
Parsons is one of two players in NFL history with 12 or more sacks in each of his first four seasons. The other is Hall of Famer Reggie White, who joined the Packers at age 33 in his ninth season. The Packers are getting Parsons at 26 and entering his fifth season on what is expected to be the youngest roster in the league.
The deal went down less than an hour after the Bears announced they placed defensive end Austin Booker on injured reserve. He led the NFL in preseason with four sacks but suffered a knee injury on special teams against the Buffalo Bills on Aug. 17 and will be sidelined until at least Week 6.
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Chicago Bears defensive end Austin Booker, left, sacks Miami Dolphins quarterback Quinn Ewers, right, causing a fumble during the second half of an NFL preseason football game on Aug. 10 in Chicago. Paul Beaty, Associated Press
That move led some to wonder if the Bears would immediately seek to buoy the position behind Montez Sweat and Dayo Odeyingbo. Booker’s injury is likely one reason the club kept Dominique Robinson on the 53-man roster. Veteran Tanoh Kpassagnon, signed to the practice squad, is a good candidate to be flexed to the game-day roster.
None of the three — Booker, Robinson or Kpassagnon — is going to look like Parsons, but this wasn’t the time for general manager Ryan Poles to make what would have been the boldest of moves in his four years.
“I’ve said this before, we always will call and see what the situation is,” Poles said Tuesday when asked generally if he had given consideration to trading for a defensive end. “And then weigh that against our short-term and long-term decision-making process. Does it make sense? What does it take to acquire a player? If the player’s here, what does it cost? And then say, ‘OK, for where we are, is that something we want to do?’
“There’s more levels to just grabbing the talent and bring it in. There’s some impact things that happen in your locker room and on the field and your salary-cap that, yeah, he could give you a little burst of energy, but long term, does it make sense for you or is it going to be a derailer down the road when you’re trying to sustain?”
The Bears are in Year 1 of their reboot under coach Ben Johnson. Salary-cap implications aside — the team would have had to redo some contracts to make room for Parsons — this wasn’t the time to mortgage the future and go over the top for a player, even one as dominant as Parsons.
Even if you are a big believer in trading draft picks (essentially lottery tickets) for proven, established performers — and who isn’t — this roster, even after a busy offseason of retooling, is not one elite player away from challenging for a Super Bowl. The Packers, who are 67-33 under coach Matt LaFleur, might just be, although Gutekunst told Green Bay reporters he never believes any team is one player away.
Whether Poles would be willing to consider a more modest move at defensive end remains to be seen. Za’Darius Smith, 33, is a free agent. He registered 24½ sacks over the last three years. However, if the Bears believe Booker is significantly improved from his rookie season and will be healthy after a minimum stay on IR, adding a player such as Smith would block opportunities to get the 22-year-old on the field. That wouldn’t make sense for a team prioritizing development of its young talent.
The Bears have a big question mark at left tackle, one Johnson was unwilling to answer Wednesday. The left tackle and pass protection as a whole will face a major test when looking at the schedule, and it’s not just two games against Parsons, who now teams with Rashan Gary.
The Bears, who allowed an NFL-high 68 sacks last season, are going to have to face the best edge rushers in the league. Myles Garrett (60), T.J. Watt (58½), Trey Hendrickson (57), Nick Bosa (53½) and Parsons (52½) have the most sacks in the league over the last four seasons and all are on the schedule. Of the 18 players with nine or more sacks in 2024, the Bears will face 11.
Braxton Jones is expected to be the starting left tackle Sept. 8 against the Minnesota Vikings, but Johnson has made it clear there will be a short leash for him and anyone else who lines up there.
“We feel good about the guys we have in that room,” he said. “Someone’s going to take the bull by the horns and is going to completely take over. But we’re not afraid to make a change if the performance isn’t where it needs to be.”
Unless Jones finds a ceiling he has yet to reach or that “someone” turns out to be second-round pick Ozzy Trapilo, who was moved back to his more familiar right side during the middle of training camp after struggling on the left, it stands to reason left tackle will be a top priority next offseason.
The Bears are likely to face other issues of varying importance. None of the safeties on the roster is signed beyond 2025. How will the cornerback(s) opposite Jaylon Johnson fare? How will the team feel about running back after the season? And, of course, what will the pass rush look like in the first season for defensive coordinator Dennis Allen?
Start trading away multiple first-round draft picks and those holes get more difficult to fill, something that can force the team into overpaying for players in free agency or seeking bridge options in the form of productive players who are past their prime. The salary cap also becomes strained.
For the Bears to really get their program moving in the right direction, they need Johnson and his staff to begin developing drafted talent at a greater rate than previous staffs have done. According to SportRadar.com, the Bears have the eighth-lowest percentage of drafted players from 2021 to 2024 still on their roster at 48.5%. It’s a huge year for former second-round picks such as defensive tackle Gervon Dexter, cornerback Tyrique Stevenson and safety Jaquan Brisker. They either will cement themselves as part of the team’s core or signal it’s time to be replaced.
Their greatest hope has to be that quarterback Caleb Williams makes major strides in the next year or two. If they can develop more high-end talent while Williams grows, then the Bears will be in position to contemplate a dreamlike move in the future.
The season after the Bears one-year gain with Mack, the Packers made it to the NFC championship game following the 2019 season. They advanced that far again the next year. Now they are banking in a big way on Parsons being the missing piece to return them to that level — at minimum.
The rest of the NFC North is on notice.
31 historical photos of the Chicago Bears
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Bill Wade played in 59 games for the Bears from 1961 to 1966. Ray Gora
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Ed Brown played in 98 games for the Bears from 1954 to 1961. Chicago Tribune historical photo
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Zeke Bratkowski played in 59 games for the Bears from 1954 to 1960. Chicago Tribune historical photo
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George Blanda, center, played in 115 games for the Bears as a kicker-quarterback from 1949 to 1958. Chicago Tribune historical photo
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Wille Thrower played in one game during the Bears' 1953 season. Chicago Tribune historical photo
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Steve Romanik, shown here in 1951, right, played in 24 games for Bears from 1950 to 1953. Ray Gora
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Johnny Lujack played in 45 games for Bears as a kicker-quarterback from 1948 to 1951. Chicago Tribune historical photo
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Nick Sacrinty, left, played in 11 games during the Bears' 1947 season. Chicago Tribune
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Henry Burris played in six games during the Bears' 2002 season. JOHN SMIERCIAK
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Jim Miller played in 32 games for the Bears from 1999 to 2002. JOSé M. OSORIO
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Shane Matthews played in 20 games for the Bears from 1996 to 2001. JAMES PRISCHING
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Mark Hartsell played in one game during the Bears' 2000 season. John Smierciak
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Cade McNown played in 25 games for the Bears from 1999 to 2000. NUCCIO DINUZZO
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Moses Moreno played in two games during the Bears' 1998 season. JAMES PRISCHING
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Steve Stenstrom played in 11 games for the Bears from 1996 to 1998. TODD PANAGOPOULOS
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Erik Kramer played in 49 games for the Bears from 1994 to 1998. JOHN SMIERCIAK
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Steve Walsh played in 13 games for the Bears from 1994 to 1995. Chicago Tribune
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Rick Mirer played in seven games during the Bears' 1997 season. NUCCIO DINUZZO
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Jim Harbaugh played in 89 games for the Chicago Bears from 1987 to 1993, including the Bears' 1993 Thanksgiving Day win over the Detroit Lions in a low-scoring 10-6 game. Nancy Stone
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Peter Tom Willis played in 21 games for the Bears from 1990 to 1993. Jim Prisching
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Will Furrer played in two games during the Bears' 1992 season. James Prisching
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Mike Tomczak played in 77 games for the Bears from 1985 to 1990. Chicago Tribune
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Mike Hohensee played in two games during the Bears' 1987 season. BILL HOGAN
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Steve Fuller played in 38 games for the Bears from 1984 to 1986. ED WAGNER JR
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Rusty Lisch played in seven games during the Bears' 1984 season. Chicago Tribune
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Bob Avellini played in 73 games for the Bears from 1975 to 1984. Chicago Tribune
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Vince Evans played in 56 games for the Bears from 1977 to 1983. Phil Mascione
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Mike Phipps played in 31 games for the Bears from 1977 to 1981. Ed Wagner Jr
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Gary Huff played in 43 games for the Bears from 1973 to 1976. Ed Wagner Jr
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Joe Barnes played in three games during the Bears' 1974 season. Ray Gora
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Jack Concannon played in 51 games for the Bears from 1967 to 1971. Ed Wagner Jr
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