I’m an optimistic person. And yes, right now, it is difficult to be that when it comes to the 2025 Dallas Cowboys, who traded Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers on Thursday. But for the fans who want to head into the weekend with a glass-half-full point of view, I will try.

The Cowboys got a couple of first-round draft picks — one for 2026 and another for 2027 — in addition to Kenny Clark in exchange for Parsons. But what does that mean? Let’s dive in.

Cowboys’ defensive tackle room is receiving an obvious upgrade

Owner Jerry Jones took a surprising stance during his press conference on Thursday following the trade. According to him, the Cowboys get better with the move not only in the future through two first-round draft picks but now, too.

I don’t believe he means that. However, I will say the Cowboys’ defensive tackle room got genuinely upgraded through the addition of Kenny Clark. Though he’s fresh off a down year in 2024, he played through a foot injury all year. He’s now healthy, and Dallas finally gets someone who can play nose tackle.

“The other big factor was the conversations between (head coach Brian Schottenheimer) and (defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus) about the defense,” Stephen Jones told reporters. “Obviously, getting a player like Kenny Clark helps with depth, but it also gives you the ability to scheme pressure. I think coach Eberflus has been really good at that, using scheme to get after the quarterback. What’s harder to scheme, though, is stopping the run.”

Again, I’m not sure I buy how intentional the Cowboys were in getting Clark. But there’s no denying the defensive tackle room received a significant upgrade with his addition. That will show up against opponents who try to pound the rock versus the Cowboys’ defense, which has been a common theme over the last few years.

Kenny Clark is more than just a run defender, though

If the Cowboys can make up for the loss of the top player that made the pass defense dangerous, they’ll parlay that with a better run defense. The challenge will be keeping teams from flipping the script on Dallas and beginning to air it out.

And here’s the thing: Clark is a productive pass rusher, too. As recently as 2023, he ranked seventh among defensive tackles in total pressures, per PFF. He was 11th in 2022 and fourth in 2021.

The Packers even moved him to three-technique because of how good he was getting after the quarterback. So Matt Eberflus is getting a guy who can play. He might not be Aaron Donald, Quinnen Williams, or Dexter Lawrence, as the Cowboys tried to portray him Thursday, but he’s an upgrade.

Cowboys have four first-round draft picks in the next two years

This is difficult to get excited about, days away from September, but it’s still true. The Cowboys will have a good opportunity to pick four first-rounders in the next couple of years. And if there’s one thing Dallas does well, it’s drafting players.

The Cowboys have a young roster in Brian Schottenheimer’s first year as head coach. He’s on a four-year contract and based on how Dallas does business, he’s unlikely to be fired before the deal runs out. At least he’ll have draft capital to work with during his tenure.

My one complaint is that the Cowboys are likely getting late first-round draft picks because I would expect the Packers to be picking late, especially after landing one of the best defenders in football.

Much-needed contract extensions could follow Parsons’ departure

The Cowboys could have made all of these deals together by working some salary cap management, but the front office has always been cautious about its approach to signing long-term deals.

Removing Parsons from the equation opens the door for sped-up negotiations with left guard Tyler Smith and cornerback DaRon Bland. We’ll see if that happens before the NFL Kickoff.

So what now?

The Cowboys hurt themselves going into the 2025 NFL season. They are not a better team without Parsons. But they did improve at defensive tackle and are in a spot to make some noise in the NFL Draft the next couple of years. Is that enough?

We’ll find out. But for now, those are your reasons for optimism. Maybe the run defense looks better. Maybe the Cowboys do what they do and find top players in the next two Drafts.

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