Jerry Jones, Dallas Cowboys
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Jerry Jones
The Dallas Cowboys decided to shock the NFL world on Thursday, sending Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers for two first-round picks and Kenny Clark. This was a deal that somewhat made sense for the Cowboys if they didn’t believe they had an opportunity to win a Super Bowl with Parsons on the roster, but it’s still fair to question why they wouldn’t pay one of the top edge rushers in the NFL, if not the best.
As the Cowboys head into the 2025-26 season and beyond, there’s now a massive hole in an important part of their defense. However, The Athletics’ Nick Baumgardner had them finding a replacement for Parsons by landing T.J. Parker out of Clemson. Parker ranks among the top edge rushers in college football and projects to go within the first few picks of the 2026 NFL draft.
“The Cowboys just got rid of the best pass rusher — Micah Parsons — in the NFL for two first-round picks — one in 2026, another in 2027 — that both might ultimately wind up in the back half of Round 1. If Dallas has an opportunity to grab Parker (or even Woods), it probably has to jump at it, because pass rush and edge are now needs,”he wrote.
Did the Cowboys Get More Than What They Were Expecting?
Despite the possibility of adding a player like Parker for the Dallas Cowboys, it’s still puzzling why this all happened. When examining the situation, ESPN’s Bill Barnwell had some intriguing thoughts.
He believes the Cowboys got back more than they expected, which could push them to pick Parker since they also hold another first-round pick next year.
“The other argument, I suppose, is that the Cowboys didn’t believe they could land this much in a deal for Parsons and got blown away by what they were offered for their best defender. On a much smaller scale, for example, the Broncos might have wanted to hold onto wide receiver Devaughn Vele heading into the season. When the Saints called up old pal Sean Payton and offered a fourth-round pick for the 27-year-old Vele, though, the Broncos coach decided it was too good of an opportunity to pass up,”he wrote.
T.J. Parker Fills a Major Cowboys Need
Parker would be exactly what the Dallas Cowboys need. From top to bottom, he appears to be an excellent young man and excels at getting to the quarterback and making plays on the defensive side of the football.
For Clemson last season in his sophomore year, he posted 34 solo tackles, 11 sacks, and six forced fumbles.
He is showing strong values, speaking with Clemson about what he wants and how he navigates life.
“With my dad being in the military, he taught me a lot about life and maintaining a strong work ethic and how I can correlate that to being a great football player. I saw that Clemson shared a lot of those values when I visited and met the coaches, so the decision was a no-brainer.”
“We still have to go out there and prove it. It doesn’t matter to me where we are ranked right now…that only matters at the end of the season when we have a chance to win a championship. That ranking is probably based on last year’s success and this is a completely different team, so we have to earn everything,”he said.
This sounds like a young man the Cowboys and any team in the NFL would love to have one day.