Micah Parsons no longer wants to be a member of the Dallas Cowboys.
In sending shockwaves throughout the NFL on Friday, the All-Pro edge rusher requested a trade due to the team’s inactivity in contract negotiations.
Parsons sent social media abuzz with the request and showed the Cowboys’ front office that he is not playing around about his money. In putting Cowboys COO and EVP Stephen Jones on notice, the No. 12 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft has shaken headlines throughout the NFL as rumors start to float about potential landing spots.
Thank you Dallas 🦁👑 🙏🏾! I pic.twitter.com/EUnEj9uRUt
— Micah Parsons (@MicahhParsons11) August 1, 2025
NFL teams looking to capitalize on a potential Cowboys’ miscue
Whenever a franchise changing player like Parsons potentially hits the market either via free agency or via trade (in this case trade), it gives teams who were in position to draft that player a chance to correct a mistake. When it comes to NFL Draft history, it’s always easier to look back and say what a team should’ve done when at the time that team(s) had certain needs they wanted to address.
In a quarterback driven draft, Parsons was the best defender coming out of college and lived up expectations in becoming one of the top game-changing defenders in all the NFL. The Cowboys snagged him with the No. 12 overall pick, but due to their failure (so far) to make him perhaps the top paid defensive player in the league, other teams, including rivals, may be ready and willing to make the move.
Let’s look at three of those teams.
Chicago Bears
There will be a trend here and it starts with the Chicago Bears who were the team that traded in front of the Cowboys in that 2021 NFL Draft to select quarterback Justin Fields. Just three drafts later, the Bears found themselves drafting another quarterback in Caleb Williams with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. But, if the team knew then what they knew now, Parsons would’ve been the pick that could have the team in a great position defensively.
Now Bears GM Ryan Poles have an opportunity to correct a mistake with a "Khalil Mack-sized opportunity” that could team Parsons with Montez Sweat in a scenario that has FanSided staff writer Ryan Heckman excited from an on-the-field standpoint. Whether Poles and the Bears can make it work financially, well, Heckman is leaving that up to the front office.
Heckman writes:
“In all likelihood, the Bears would have to give up a first-round pick, a second-round pick and maybe additional picks from there. Plus, they'd have to pay him top dollar on an extension.
Just picture a defensive line with Sweat and Parsons, though. Would the Bears be able to include Odeyingbo in a deal? It could help, financially, if Poles was able to swing that. I'm no cap expert, but extending Parsons and keeping the contracts of Sweat and Odeyingbo might be too tall of a task.”
At just 26, Parsons has averaged double-digit sacks in his young career. If the Bears can find a way to make it work, the NFC North will get even tougher.
New York Jets
There is a trend developing here when it comes to the 2021 NFL Draft. The New York Jets had two opportunities in that draft to take Parsons. They had the No. 2 overall pick in which they selected Zach Wilson out of BYU. Ironically, the Jets now have Fields as their quarterback so that was another selection gone wrong. Should they have gone with Parsons by trading down in the draft to set themselves up with an opportunity to draft another quarterback later in that draft?
Given where Fields was taken, the Jets could’ve initially drafted Fields and Parsons in the same draft. They could’ve traded down and taken the Penn State product within the top 10 and used that draft capital they would’ve gotten in return to select Fields or another quarterback later in the draft. As is, the Jets are a team in need of an edge rusher and has the cap space to get it done.
CBS Sportswriter Garrett Podell has the Jets as a landing spot due to their $29.624 millon cap space and how he would add another superstar to the mix in New York. He writes:
“The Jets just locked down two key pieces of their core this offseason by re-signing wide receiver Garrett Wilson and cornerback Sauce Gardner. Adding another young, elite talent in Parsons could be exactly what the Jets need to get their mojo back in Year 1 under new head coach Aaron Glenn. They have just the right amount of cap space to get the deal done, and reinforcing their defense to support a talented but inconsistent quarterback in Justin Fields would be reminiscent of the mold from the peak Rex Ryan years in 2009 and 2010.”
New England Patriots
In selecting Mac Jones with the No. 15 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots have a chance to rewrite history with a Micah Parsons trade. The team has the need, the cap space and the coach in Mike Vrabel that could make Parsons happy.
Looking back in history, trading up a few spots to select Parsons versus the Mac Jones failed experiment would’ve had then-head coach Bill Belichick blushing. Back then, there were rumors about the Patriots having interest in Parsons. They can correct a mistake with the addition of Parsons and set up what could be the most fearsome front seven in the NFL if they added him to the mix with Milton Williams, Christian Baremore, Keon White and Harold Landry.
Our good friends at Musketfire are down with the hype but also recognizes there is a risk for a rebuilding team like the Patriots. Musketfire contributor Ryan O’Leary writes:
“The Patriots still lead the NFL in effective salary cap space, according to Over the Cap, at about $60 million. New England would have no problem paying Parsons among the top EDGE defenders in football while still having a healthy margin to carry over into 2026.
As for the draft pick compensation, trade talks for Parsons would likely start at two first-round picks, similar to the deal for Mack in 2018. That’s not ideal for a Patriots team that’s been trying to draft and develop young talent for multiple years running. Parsons would provide an immediate impact as a pass rusher, with the positional versatility to line up all over the formation.”
If the Patriots hit on current draft picks and Drake Maye matures into a top 10 quarterback, the compensation for a player like Parsons could be worth the gamble and serve as the ultimate prize.
More NFL Draft history:
In NFL Mocks’ opinion: While there is buzz about the potential landing spots for a player like Parsons, the reality is the Cowboys will likely find a way to get a deal done. Just like Myles Garrett and T.J. Watt, the star player likely remains with the team that drafted him. If he doesn’t, the Patriots are in the best position to strike a deal, but teams like the Los Angeles Chargers and Green Bay Packers could see Parsons as the final piece of their Super Bowl dreams.
If he had a choice, bet on one of those two teams.