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lite.cnn.com - on gopher - inofficial
ARTICLE VIEW:
Two superstars traded in a year: How Dallas became the epicenter of
sports for the wrong reasons
By Jacob Lev, CNN
Updated:
6:59 AM EDT, Fri August 29, 2025
Source: CNN
The year 2025 has been a whirlwind for the city of Dallas and its fans
when it comes to sports – in particular, supporters of the and .
It started out with the Mavericks shipping away megastar on a whim
seemingly overnight to the Los Angeles Lakers. Now, it all culminates
with the Cowboys trading their superstar linebacker, Micah Parsons, to
the Green Bay Packers.
The Cowboys two first-round picks and defensive tackle Kenny Clark in
exchange for Parsons.
The two-time All-Pro and the Packers have already reached an agreement
on a four-year, $188 million contract, a person with knowledge of the
details .
Parsons reportedly becomes the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL
history. has reached out to Parsons’ representatives for comment.
‘I never wanted this chapter to end’
“I never wanted this chapter to end, but not everything was in my
control,” Parsons wrote in a he posted on X Thursday. “My heart has
always been here, and still is. Through it all, I never made any
demands. I never asked for anything more than fairness. I only asked
that the person I trust to negotiate my contract be part of the
process.”
But before any trade was announced, rumors swirled of an inevitable
divorce between the-owned franchise and their star, Parsons.
Amid contract negotiations which turned ugly, Parsons requested a trade
– in a very public manner – from a team he called a “dream” to
play for ahead of the 2021 NFL draft that saw him selected 12th overall
out of Pennsylvania State University.
The reasons around paying Parsons what he believes is fair have always
been relatively inarguable as his stats and accolades back everything
up.
The 26-year-old has 52 1/2 sacks, recording at least 12 in each of his
four seasons while making the Pro Bowl each year.
“After repeated shots at myself and all the narratives I have made a
tough decision I no longer want to play for the Dallas Cowboys,”
Parsons said in a on X on August 1.
A day later, the 82-year-old Jones, adamantly played down the trade
request, adding it was “just a part of negotiation.”
Jones quickly changed his tone weeks later, placing the blame on
Parson’s agent, David Mulugheta, for the contract holdup.
“When we wanted to send the details to the agent, the agent told us
to stick it up our a**. … We had our agreements on term, amount,
guarantees and everything. We were going to send it over to the agent.
The agent said, ‘Don’t bother because we’ve got all that to
negotiate,’” Jones said on the Michael Irvin podcast.
“Well, I’d already negotiated that. I’d already moved off my mark
on several areas. The issue, very frankly, is we’ve had the
negotiation in my mind. The agent is trying to get his nose in it and
trying to come in there and improve off what we’ve already said.”
Last week, during the Cowboys’ preseason finale against the Atlanta
Falcons, Parsons was seen laying down on a sideline training table.
Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer told reporters after the game
that he didn’t see Parsons on the table and would speak to him about
it.
Despite all of this, one thing was always repeated often by Dallas –
Parsons would be donning a Cowboys uniform when the team opened up the
season against their division rivals and reigning Super Bowl champions,
the Philadelphia Eagles, on the road on September 4.
However, hours after the trade was announced, Jones sat in front of
reporters and said there were no “bad feelings” between the team
and Parsons.
“I really like Micah, I appreciate the four years that we had him
here. He’s a great player,” Jones said. “This was by design, I
did make Micah an offer. It wasn’t acceptable and I honored the fact
that it wasn’t done in the way that he wanted to do it through an
agent. There’s not an ounce of vindictiveness, there’s no bad
feelings on my part on the fact that we didn’t come together on an
agreement.”
Jones said the team is in a better spot now than it was in “recent
years” and he did not rule out the possibility of using the two draft
picks received in the trade to help boost the team via trade.
When asked about his comments on Mulugheta and on whether this will
impact future negotiations, Jones quickly responded that he is “not
fragile.”
“Let me tell you something, you can’t do that stuff and business
like this and be fragile. I’m not,” Jones said. “I would think
with his background, he’s very professional and willing to keep his
eye on the ball and not get caught up in the emotions.”
Jones stated the Cowboys offered Parsons more guaranteed money, but the
source who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the terms
weren’t announced said that wasn’t accurate.
To make matters potentially more awkward, the Cowboys play host to the
Packers at AT&T Stadium on “Sunday Night Football” on September 28.
Jones likened the situation to when longtime Cowboys running back and
Pro Football Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith played against the team after
signing with the Arizona Cardinals ahead of the 2003 season.
“That made it hard,” Jones said. “But obviously we have to play a
lot of players. … Micah will be a – problematic. Very problematic.
I suggest we get ahead and run the ball.”
But what makes the respective Parsons and Dončić trades so similar
yet so different at the same time?
One of the most stunning trades ever reported
Just as Cowboy fans were coming home from work or running errands, they
were greeted by a tweet from ESPN’s Adam Schefter announcing the
Parsons trade.
While it did not reach the magnitude of that frightful early February
night, it still left Cowboys and sports fans in general around the
world stunned, a feeling Mavs fans know quite well.
At 12:12 a.m. ET on February 2, that Dončić – the Mavericks’ then
25-year-old star, who was expected to be the cornerstone of their
franchise for the next decade or more – was being traded to the City
of Angels. The news stunned a city, a state and a league.
What came after saw images of fan protests as the Mavs slowly started
sliding down the Western Conference standings, culminating in the team
missing the playoffs and general manager Nico Harrison hearing it from
all sides.
Then a miracle happened, Dallas won the and secured Duke University
star Cooper Flagg with the first pick of the 2025 NBA Draft.
The 18-year-old phenom dazzled fans with an impressive showing at the
NBA Summer League in Las Vegas earlier this summer, averaging 20.5
points, five rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.5 steals and one block a game in
two games played.
While the Mavs’ story seems to have a happy ending, what about the
Cowboys? A franchise as big as “America’s Team” coming into an
upcoming NFL season needs to have high expectations.
Should fans be worried that when the Dallas Stars’ or Texas
Rangers’ best player turns 26, they will find out that they’re gone
from the city on social media as well?
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