The Green Bay Packers entered the season as one of the strongest Super Bowl contenders in the league. They were on the verge of getting that distinction, and landing a pass rusher of Micah Parsons' caliber changed everything for this team.
Unfortunately, injuries got in the way, and while they were still in a position to beat the Chicago Bears in the Wild-Card game, that's ancient history now. The Packers need to focus on patching the roster around Jordan Love, and they won't have as many draft assets as they would want to do so. Still, of all the years to give up a first-round selection, this was probably the best one.
The Micah Parsons Trade Looks Better After the 2025 Season
With the loss to the Bears, the Packers' first-round pick was slotted at No. 20. That pick will go to the Dallas Cowboys because of the Micah Parsons trade. While it always stings not to have a first-round selection, this draft class is so far from promising that it might not be the worst year to sit out the first round.
The Packers have some major needs to address in the NFL draft, primarily the center, cornerback, and nose tackle positions. Still, other than probably South Carolina's Brandon Cisse, there weren't any players the Packers could've taken at No. 20 to solve those positional issues. If anything, they would've probably been better off trading down anyway.
Micah Parsons is the second-best pass rusher in the game, trailing only Myles Garrett. Those players don't become available often, much less before they even reach their physical prime. If he stays healthy, he can anchor the Packers' defense for the next decade. That was a move GM Brian Gutekunst just had to make, regardless of the price he had to pay and how much money he wound up giving him.
Despite not playing the whole season, Parsons had the third-highest PFF grade among pass rushers in the entire league (92.0). He played the 24th-most snaps (707), yet got the seventh-most pressures (79). He's more than a game-changer; he's a game-wrecker, and that's more than what the Packers could've gotten with that No. 20 pick. In fact, with a healthy Parsons, that pick would've probably been lower.
The former Dallas Cowboys star finished his first campaign at Lambeau Field with 12.5 sacks, 41 total tackles (19 solo), 12 tackles for loss, 26 QB hits, two forced fumbles, and one pass defensed. The trade wasn't executed with the mindset of being all-in on one season, and this is just the beginning of the Micah Parsons era.