Editor Note: We’re all still processing the tragic passing of Marshawn Kneeland. You can view the reported details of what happened here, and we will cover any news-worthy developments down the road if there are any. If you are struggling with any mental health issues, visit here for resources to help. We are now returning to our regular coverage of the Dallas Cowboys season.
When the Dallas Cowboys traded away their star edge rusher Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers right before the start of the new season, it shook up the entire sports world. What initially looked like the fallout of a contractual stalemate, propagated by the stubborn Jerry Jones, turned into a game of either-or. The brain trust over at The Star felt that the sum of all of the alternative parts would be greater than one whole Micah Parsons.
Jones has gone on record expressing how moving on from Parsons could yield the Cowboys three to five players. He indicated that the team as a whole would benefit more with these additional players than just that of Parsons. They saw it as a great opportunity to make a move, in hopes of returning a large haul that would ultimately make them a better team. Jones iterated that these new players would arrive via the trade itself (Kenny Clark), draft picks, and what they’d be able to do with the cap resources that would now be available from not signing Parsons. He also clarified that the draft capital received in the trade wouldn’t be limited to using them during the draft, but also as bargaining chips to trade for new players themselves.
With each new day, the front-office plan has slowly taken shape. While everything hasn’t fallen into place perfectly like they hoped, you can see what they had envisioned with how things are starting to play out. And now, after the big trade for the New York Jets’ stud defensive tackle, Quinnen Williams, more and more of the equation is starting to reveal itself. Today, we wanted to take a look at the different parts of the Parsons trade and some of the connected pieces that might not have been so obvious in the beginning.
Kenny Clark
The veteran nose tackle was an important piece of the trade, according to Jerry Jones. He made it clear that addressing the interior of the defensive line was of utmost importance, and the three-time Pro Bowler was expected to help. Clark is 30 years old. He’s a good player, and he’s shown up at different times this season, but he hasn’t proved to be the answer the team was looking for. The good news is, he’s only costing the team $2.6 million this year as Green Bay covers the remaining $8.2 million of his 2025 annual salary. Should the Cowboys keep him going forward, he’ll come with a cap hit of $21.5 million and $20 million, respectively, over the next two seasons. That may be a little too steep, especially if his production starts to dip. His future on the roster could be in jeopardy as the Cowboys look for bigger solutions, which brings us to…
Quinnen Williams
With Clark not yielding the desired results, the Cowboys stepped it up a notch, trading for one of the top defensive tackles in the league. You can arrange your list however you want, but Williams should be making everyone’s top five. He’s coming off three very strong years (all Pro Bowl seasons), including a dominant showing in 2022 when he earned first-team All-Pro honors. Since entering the league, he’s been viewed as one of the league’s top run stoppers. He controls the line of scrimmage, finds the ball carrier, and finds him quickly. Williams isn’t a guy who used to be good. He’s 27 years old, is still throwing blockers around, fighting through double teams, and comes with two additional years of player control for $21.8 million and $25.5 million, respectively. He will be an impact player for this Cowboys defense for the foreseeable future.
Donovan Ezeiruaku
Before the Cowboys agreed to part ways with Parsons, they must have felt good about the depth of their defensive end position group. On paper, it looked pretty good, consisting of free agent Dante Fowler, and second-round investments Sam Williams and rookie Donovan Ezeiruaku. (Obviously Marshawn Kneeland was also a part of that picture). They had camp standout James Houston and later signed veteran Jadeveon Clowney after the pressure from the edge group wasn’t living up to expectations. Fortunately, production has increased with this group, and one bright spot continues to be the growth of the rookie Ezeiruaku. Similar to when the Cowboys saw DeMarcus Lawrence slide in the draft, this organization views Ezeiruaku as a second-round steal. If things go according to plan, the team will have another young star pass rusher on their team real soon, making the departure of Parsons a far less bitter pill to swallow.
George Pickens
The trade for former Pittsburgh Steelers wideout George Pickens came with risk. He’s been described as a bit of a headcase who will eventually come unhinged and create all kinds of problems. While the potential to implode is there, we suppose, there is no denying what he does on the football field. Since joining the Cowboys, he’s unleashed a new level of greatness, largely thanks to having a better quarterback throwing him the ball. Pickens has been snatching balls from defenders and coming down with some incredible highlight-reel catches. His per-game average is 25 yards more than what he was doing in Pittsburgh, and he set a new career-high in touchdowns before the halfway mark of the season. No longer is there a question of “if” he’s the guy. He is. Now, the question shifts to, will the Cowboys re-sign him? If the Cowboys’ intentions were to retain him all along and use the extra cap space available from not signing Parsons, then this overall plan will look that much better.
The first-round pick from Green Bay
There is still a first-round draft pick in the Cowboys’ pocket courtesy of the Packers. We all should be rooting for Green Bay to lose, as the worse they finish, the better than draft pick becomes. Most people penciled them in as this year’s champs after the Parsons trade, but that’s easier said than done. They just lost to Carolina, play Philadelphia next on Monday night, and have three games coming against their division foes, who all have the same number of wins as they do. Last year, they finished 11-5 and lost in the wild card game, earning the 23rd overall pick. A similar type of finish could happen again this year. Everyone assumes that pick will be near the end of the first round, but if it winds up somewhere in the third quadrant, that’s a decent draft pick. Over the last dozen years, the Cowboys have picked in the range of 16 to 24 five times, and all five of those players have turned into All-Pros. Don’t overset your expectations, but don’t discount them either. They could land a very good player with this draft pick.
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