Micah Parsons and his family landed in a private jet in Wisconsin on Friday, and it’s safe to say the All-Pro pass rusher found the grass to be a lot greener in Green Bay.
Parsons returned to social media en route to Wisconsin to ask if he should select jersey number 0 or 1 after the 12th pick in the 2020 NFL Draft shed the No. 11 and layers of drama that led to his departure from the Cowboys.
Parsons and Reggie White are the only players in NFL history with at least 12 sacks in their first four NFL seasons, which dates to 1982 when the league made it an official statistic.
To pry Parsons from Dallas, the Packers traded former Pro Bowl defensive tackle Kenny Clark and two first-round picks to the Cowboys on Thursday. He’ll sign a record-setting contract worth $188 million and immediately alter the game plan for the Packers’ Week 1 opponent, the NFC North champion Detroit Lions.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones won’t have to wait long to see what he’s missing in Parsons. The Packers play in Dallas next month in a primetime Sunday showdown that is likely to have both sides circling Sept. 28 on their calendars.
Clark said he was getting ice cream with his daughter when he found out it was time to pack his bags. He said in his introductory press conference at The Star he’s ready to get to work where he’s “wanted.”
“No nonsense, you’re going to get a dawg, somebody that’s just all about football,” Clark said. “I’m here to ball. I’m here to be my best self. I feel like when I’m my best self, there’s nobody messing with me. That’s what I bring to the table — I’m here to play my ass off.”
Teammates in Dallas were left stunned by the move. Cornerback Trevon Diggs posted a broken heart emoji with no caption and wide receiver/return man KaVontae Turpin posted: “Yeah this league (s–) crazy.”
Jones proclaimed the deal was “best for the organization” in a press conference Thursday confirming the swap and closing the book on a friction-filled month with one of the top defensive players in the NFL.
Subtracting Parsons leaves Dallas lighter at the edge positions but Jones didn’t rule out using the newfound draft capital to improve the team immediately.
Matching Parsons’ production will be next to impossible. His 18 multiple-sack games in his first four career seasons are second all-time to White (23).
The Packers know all about White. After playing for the Eagles, he signed with Green Bay as a free agent in 1993, then posted 68.5 sacks in six seasons.
