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Green Bay Packers edge rusher Micah Parsons.
We already know the Philadelphia Eagles tried to obtain former Dallas Cowboys edge rusher Micah Parsons in a trade before the 2025 season.
It was a deal that almost happened, we thought, until Cowboys owner Jerry Jones stepped in and decided he couldn’t stomach Parsons going to a division rival.
To hear Parsons tell it, the deal didn’t go down for a different reason — specifically that the Eagles were willing to give up NFL All-Pro defensive tackle Jalen Carter in exchange for him, but Parsons didn’t want to play for the Eagles if he couldn’t play with Carter.
Parsons was eventually traded to the Green Bay Packers in exchange for 2 first round picks and Pro Bowl defensive tackle Kenny Clark. The Packers signed Parsons to the largest contract for a defensive player in NFL history — 4 years for $186 million with $136 million in guaranteed money.
“There was one person that I had to play with that if he was gone I did not want to be there — and that was Jalen Carter,” Parsons said on Saturday in a Bleacher Report podcast conversation with Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown and Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young.
While it’s always nice to get back to the “He Said, He Said” relationship between Jones and Parsons, there is quite a bit of evidence to back up Parsons’ claim.
Cowboys Traded for Defensive Tackles — Twice
After Parsons was traded, Jones made a point of saying he had been dissatisfied with how the 3-time NFL All-Pro played against the run, which was a big reason why he insisted on getting Clark back in the trade.
The Cowboys doubled down at the NFL trade deadline when they sent the New York Jets their 2027 first round pick, 2026 second round pick and former first round pick and defensive tackle Mazi Smith in exchange for NFL All-Pro and 4-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Quinnen Williams.
“Blockbuster: The Cowboys are trading for Jets Pro Bowl DT Quinnen Williams, sending a first-round pick and more to NYJ, per The Insiders,” NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport wrote on his official X account. “New home for one of the NFL’s best to team that values interior DLs, as NYJ builds for the future.”
Might Explain Carter’s Animosity in Week 1
While one might hesitate to play Sigmund Freud too much, learning the Eagles almost traded Carter to the Cowboys might give more insight into — but not excuse — the stunning incident between Carter and Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott in the regular season opener on September 4.
In one of the more infamous in-game moments in NFL history, Carter spit on Prescott before the opening snap and was ejected from the game before playing a single down.
We can only gather Carter may have been feeling some animosity toward the Cowboys as a whole — and not just Prescott — in that moment.
Parsons, who has openly talked of his disdain for the Eagles in the past, may have let some of that bleed into a game this season as well — he was fined $12,172 for fighting in a Week 10 loss to the Eagles.
Tony Adame covers the NFL for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Commanders, Dallas Cowboys, Baltimore Ravens, Philadelphia Eagles and Denver Broncos. A veteran sports writer and editor since 2004, his work has been featured at Stadium Talk, Yardbarker, NW Florida Daily News and Pensacola News Journal. More about Tony Adame
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