Colin Cowherd Claims Cowboys Were Right in Not Paying Micah Parsons

The Dallas Cowboys traded Micah Parsons last year and Colin Cowherd believes they’re better off in the long run.

Green Bay Packers defensive end Micah Parsons warms up before a game against the Denver Broncos. | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

When the Dallas Cowboys traded Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers before the start of the 2025 regular season, they were hit with heavy criticism.

It’s rare to see elite players leave and the Cowboys didn’t have a legitimate replacement for Parsons on the roster. The result was predictable as the defense struggled all year.

Looking back one year later, Colin Cowherd still believes it was the right move. He’s also convinced the Cowboys are in a much better spot this season than they were a year ago.

Cowherd made it clear that he believes Parsons is an elite talent, but says Dallas wasn’t the right place for him. Parsons is a player who Cowherd says fits best on a team playing with a fourth quarter lead and can unleash him as a pass rusher.

He claimed that Parsons is a limited defender against the run and since Dallas doesn’t always play with a late lead, they needed more help. He also said they needed flexibility, which they wouldn’t have with Parsons making more than $40 million per season.

“That is why I defended the trade. Do you know how few defensive players? I mean, T.J. Watt is unbelievable. What is he, one in five in the playoffs? How's Myles Garrett's playoff record or Maxx Crosby? There are so few defensive guys I'm paying $148 or $168 million to, and Micah's great, but he's not one of them,” Cowherd said.

With Parsons gone, the Cowboys have rebuilt their defense. They have strong run defenders in Quinnen Williams and Kenny Clark. They also picked up Rashan Gary, who will have Donovan Ezeiruaku and Malachi Lawrence helping provide a pass rush. Throw in a revamped secondary led by Caleb Banks and Jalen Thompson, and this defense can be vastly improved.

That’s without even bringing up the fact that they were able to get ahead of the game and extend star left guard Tyler Smith early.

That said, Cowherd’s logic is spot on. Parsons is a player who deserves a big contract, but the Cowboys weren’t in a position to pay him. Their defense was atrocious in 2025, and even adding Parsons wouldn’t have done enough to improve them.

Micah Parsons impact on the game overall

Dallas Cowboys defensive end Micah Parsons reacts after the game against the Baltimore Ravens. | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Cowherd also believes that Parsons didn’t make enough of an impact to justify his contract in Dallas.

During his four years with the team, Cowherd says Parsons was often distracted, and even disappeared in big moments.

“Doesn't mean I won't pay him, but Micah was never in that group for me. He wasn't good against the run, kind of distracted. And I thought he disappeared against, you know, the o-linemen, the top tackles that could get their hands on him.”

That claim doesn’t take into account the fact that teams were scheming their offensive game plan around Parsons. Of course, the inability of any teammates to truly take advantage of the attention Parsons commanded further proves the point that Dallas made the right call in opting for a complete overhaul.

Sometimes, a move works out where everyone wins. And that appears to be the case here.

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