Micah Parsons is 26 years old. He’s arguably the best defensive player in the NFL. Given that he’s three years younger than Myles Garrett and four years younger than T.J. Watt, even if he’s not considered the best defensive player, he might be the most valuable.
The Dallas Cowboys aren’t necessarily going to trade Parsons just because he requested a trade on Friday. The Cowboys don’t intend to trade Parsons, via Dianna Russini of The Athletic. But with a contract extension still not done, Parsons said he wants out. And, if the standoff drags on and the Cowboys change their minds on trading Parsons, plenty of teams are at least going to figure out what it would cost to land the elite pass rusher. And then he’d probably get a contract worth more than Watt’s $41 million per season from his new team.
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The most likely outcome to all of this is the Cowboys give in and pay their star, which is what they usually do. But what would a Parsons trade look like? And who might pay an enormous cost to land him?
As far as Dallas trades go, it would probably be bigger news than Luka Dončić being shipped to the Lakers.
What would a Micah Parsons trade look like?
The best comparison to what a Parsons trade would look like happened in 2018, right before the start of the season.
The Oakland Raiders traded Khalil Mack to the Chicago Bears. Mack was 27 at the time of the deal. He was Defensive Player of the Year in 2016 (Parsons has not won DPOY) and was a first-team All-Pro twice in his four Raiders seasons (Parsons has also been All-Pro twice). When the Bears acquired him, he was signed to an extension that was the richest ever for a defensive player.
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In that Raiders-Bears trade, the Bears sent first-round draft picks in 2019 and 2020, along with a 2020 third-round pick and a 2019 sixth-round pick to the Raiders for Mack, a second-round pick in 2020 and a conditional fifth-round pick. That seems like the ballpark for a Mack trade, considering the similarities at the respective stages of their careers and the similar age as well. It would start with two first-round picks for Parsons and some other selections would have to be added.
And then the team that acquires Parsons would likely have to sign him to a deal worth more than any non-quarterback has ever gotten in NFL history. So while all 31 other teams would love to add Parsons, there are plenty who wouldn’t or couldn’t pay the price.
Which teams make sense to trade for Parsons?
The team that might make the most sense for Parsons is the one that traded his equivalent away seven years ago.
Las Vegas Raiders: The Raiders currently have the most salary cap space in the NFL for 2026 (big contracts often don’t have a huge salary cap hit in the first year), according to Spotrac. They’re projected to be $114 million under the cap. It would be a challenge for the Raiders to pay Maxx Crosby and Parsons, but what a pass rushing duo that would be. They were also set to pay Crosby and Christian Wilkins before everything went sideways with Wilkins and he was cut. The Raiders might also make a big move, considering they just hired head coach Pete Carroll, who will turn 74 in September, traded for 34-year-old quarterback Geno Smith and drafted running back Ashton Jeanty with the sixth overall draft pick. The moves indicate they want to win sooner rather than later.
Tennessee Titans: The Titans also have almost $100 million in projected cap space for next season, second-most in the NFL, which makes sense because their quarterback Cam Ward is on a rookie deal and they don’t have many other stars they’re paying big. Would a rebuilding team, that is likely to be drafting early in 2026 and maybe 2027, want to give up a lot of draft picks for any player?
Los Angeles Rams: The Rams will always consider making a big trade. They don’t mind giving up picks, should consider themselves contenders after winning the NFC West and almost beating the Eagles in the playoffs, and they have the fourth-most projected cap space for next year. The Rams also have an extra first-round pick next year due to a shrewd draft day trade with the Atlanta Falcons earlier this year.
Washington Commanders: The Commanders will also be considered a possibility due to Washington head coach Dan Quinn’s history with Parsons when he was the Cowboys’ defensive coordinator. The Commanders also have the fifth-most cap space for next season with quarterback Jayden Daniels on his rookie deal and have made some win-now moves this offseason like trading for offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil and receiver Deebo Samuel. The problem would be that Dallas would likely never trade Parsons within the division.
If the Cowboys at some point entertain Parsons’ trade request, many teams will be asking if they can figure out the cap ramifications of signing Parsons to an extension and if they can afford to give up the picks to get a deal done. The Raiders and Rams would likely be the teams everyone projects to land Parsons, though there would be others in the mix. And if a deal ever happens, it would be one of the most memorable in NFL history.
