Blogging The Boys
As Dallas Cowboys fans are still processing, or recovering from, the news of Micah Parsons being traded to Green Bay, many are wondering how we got here. There is no one answer; it’s the result of a large, multi-faceted equation. But based on their press conference Thursday night, Jerry and Stephen Jones clearly felt that Dallas’ depth at defensive end, plus changes on the defensive coaching staff, made it easier to let Parsons go.
Contributing to that comfort level are two new players, Donovan Ezeiruaku and James Houston, and new defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus. We’re not saying that they’re the keys to what’s transpired. Jerry and Stephen were adamant that it had more to do with what they were able to obtain in the trade compared to the massive contract Parsons wanted. But, based on the Jones’ comments, it’s clear that they were factors in the decision.
According to Jerry’s timeline, the direct conversation he had with Parsons about a contract occurred in early April. At that time, Dallas had signed Dante Fowler and Payton Turner in free agency and still had Marshawn Kneeland and Sam Williams under contract. But with DeMarcus Lawrence and Chauncey Golston’s exits, there wasn’t any sense of a surplus at defensive end. Plus, with Turner having busted in New Orleans and Williams coming off an ACL tear, they were far from confirmed assets for 2025.
While DE was a need going into the 2025 draft, it wasn’t generally considered as big as other positions like RB, WR, CB, and DT. But when Donovan Ezeiruaku, a first-round prospect by some analyses, fell to the Cowboys in the second round, they had to act on that value. Even with that big addition to the pass rush, though, nobody really thought of him as a potential Parsons replacement. If anything, he was seen as the future Robin to Parsons’ Batman, likely replacing Fowler in 2026.
It hasn’t hurt that, at least according to training camp observers, Ezeiruaku was a menace for the Cowboys’ offensive line. But even still, we never linked his immediate impact to Parsons’ future. It just accelerated the idea of him taking snaps from Fowler, or maybe making Williams expendable.
The rookie wasn’t the only standout pass rusher in Oxnard, though. James Houston, who only signed with Dallas about a week before camp, emerged as one of the MVPs of August. After strong camp reports and preseason performances, even being called “unblockable” by Brian Schottenheimer, Houston fought his way onto the Cowboys’ 53-man roster.
Even on Tuesday, though, we still didn’t imagine Parsons being gone. Even after the Cowboys went long with six DEs on the 53, we assumed it was either that they liked Houston that strongly or were maybe trying to find a trade partner for Williams. Little did we know that the front office’s decision was made, in no small part, because they anticipated Parsons’ departure. While trade talks with the Packers developed quickly, [things certainly were in...
