Micah Parsons, Luka Doncic Dallas trades have eerie similarities

Did Jerry Jones pull off his Herschel Walker 2.0 trade, or did the Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager get fleeced?

Those are the questions many NFL pundits and fans will scrutinize after Micah Parsons was shipped off to the Green Bay Packers for two first-round pics in 2026 and 2027 and three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Kenny Clark.

One of the most astonishing things about this blockbuster trade is how it was so eerily similar to Luka Doncic being unceremoniously packaged from the Dallas Mavericks to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis and not much else meaningful, with the Utah Jazz involved to pull it off as all other NBA general managers were livid they never got a phone call.

Here's why it's so similar.

Both 26 years old in the prime of their careers

Aug 2, 2025; El Segundo, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers Luka Doncic (77) is interviewed by ESPN LA radio following a press conference announcing the signing of a 3-year, $165 million contract extension at UCLA Health Training Center. | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

It's not often in either the NFL and NBA that a generational player is traded in the prime of his career. It's even more staggering when it happens twice in the same calendar year. In the same city!

The city of Dallas has now seen both Micah Parsons and Luka Dončić — each currently just 26 years old — traded away in 2025. pic.twitter.com/oAVBOUVFGJ
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 28, 2025

Doncic's trade truly came out of nowhere, while most NFL pundits and fans believed Parsons and Jones would eventually work it out. Parsons is a three-time All-Pro selection, including two with the First Team. Luka is a five-time All-NBA First Team selection.

It's mind boggling to think that both of these two players are no longer in Dallas.

Delusional general managers that didn't like their superstars

Aug 16, 2025; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones (right) talks with cornerback Shavon Revel Jr. (27d) before the game against the Baltimore Ravens at AT&T Stadium. | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Is it Michael or Micah?

Jerry Jones has referred to Micah Parsons as "Michael" several times during the press conference.

He finally corrected himself. 🏈🎙️ #NFL https://t.co/cNiCpIGPB6 pic.twitter.com/vIqMRgp7Es
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) August 29, 2025

It's obvious that Jones is feeling full of himself after the success of the Cowboys Netflix documentary, "America's Team: The Gambler and His Cowboys," because the 82-year-old marketing genius truly believes he outsmarted his former nemesis's son, Ed Policy.

Carmen Policy was the 49ers President and CEO when they traded standout pass rusher Charles Haley to the Cowboys in August 1992, and helped Dallas win multiple Super Bowls.

Now in August 2025, the Cowboys have traded standout pass rusher Micah Parsons to the Packers, whose… pic.twitter.com/yl3LxOkC89
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 29, 2025

But that all falls apart when Jones talks about it as a move to stop the run, adding that it also freed the Cowboys up to get better players because of the salary cap. Jones screwed up the salary cap with the way he structure the extensions for franchise quarterback Dak Prescott and star wide receiver CeeDee Lamb.

At least Jones got two meaningful first-round picks, unlike Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison, who got a seemingly useless 2029 first-round pick. And given Luka is now in skinny eff you mode, that might not amount to much of anything.

Harrison didn't want to pay Luka the supermax extension because he believed the five-time All-Star wasn't obsessed with conditioning like his hero, Kobe Bryant. Now Luka is seemingly going to do it just to spite Harrison, who became a laughingstock with his subsequent press conferences of awkwardness justifying the trade.

Luck, or rigged leagues, can still make Jones and Harrison look good

Nico Harrison, Cooper Flagg — Jun 27, 2025; Dallas, TX, USA; (from left) Dallas Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison and Mavericks first overall pick Cooper Flagg and head coach Jason Kidd pose for a photo at the Dallas Mavericks Practice Facility. | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Harrison was gifted the No. 1 pick in this year's NBA draft and chose the hyped Cooper Flagg, which many fans believe was rigged, no matter how many insiders tell them it's impossible.

Maybe Jones will get one last bit of that gambler good fortune and win his first Super Bowl since the glory days of the Netflix documentary in the mid 1990s.

We're not betting on it.

Jan 28, 1996; Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman (8) on the field against the Pittsburgh Steelers during Super Bowl XXX at Sun Devil Stadium. The Cowboys defeated the Steelers 27-17. | James D. Smith-Imagn Images

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