Brian Gutekunst and company left the NFL world shocked on Thursday. Green Bay landed Micah Parsons in a blockbuster trade. Trading for the All-Pro defensive end from Dallas is arguably the biggest move the franchise has ever made.
The sense of urgency seems to be alive and well in Green Bay. This is, by far, the biggest move the franchise has made since snagging Reggie White in free agency in 1993.
So, what did it cost? After much speculation and rumors circulating throughout the week, it was already expected that a player and several first-round picks would be the recipe to land Parsons. The Packers sent two first-round draft picks, and defensive tackle Kenny Clark to Dallas.
Kenny Clark was Green Bay’s longest tenured player. Brian Gutekunst told the media it was a “really tough phone call” when informing Clark that he had been traded.
While Clark has been the heart of Green Bay’s defense for many years, the swap for Micah Parsons was a no brainer. Parsons signed a 188-million-dollar contract with the Packers. This contract makes him the highest paid non-quarterback in NFL history.
Gutekunst has been known for favoring the draft and develop process. Yesterday when meeting with the media he stated, “You guys know how we feel about picks here and how important they are to our football team. So, to make this move, you can understand what we think about the player.”
Parsons was the 12th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. Since then, he has earned 52.5 sacks. He is just the second player in NFL history to earn at least 12 sacks in each of his first four seasons. The other player? Reggie White.
Most recently, Parsons was a pro-bowl selection in 2024 but missed four games due to injury. In 2023 he earned second-team All-Pro honors. In 2021 and 2022, he was awarded first-team All-Pro.
Parsons totaled 70 pressures last season, which was more than Rashan Gary and Lukas Van Ness earned combined.
Gutekunst called this a “rare” opportunity to be able to trade for a player of Parson’s caliber. “Obviously a player like Micah, he’s very unique and very rare is it that they’re available.”
The possibilities with Parsons are endless, and this move has single handedly increased Green Bay’s Super Bowl odds. The criticism Gutekunst has received from most of the fanbase, including myself, on the failure to address the pass rush can be put to rest.
Gutekunst did take a moment to bring everyone down from cloud nine, “We’ll see. We’ve got a long way to go. It’s a team game. We’ve won no games so far. We’ve got to get him up to speed and into our scheme and see how that fits. Like I said, it was a unique opportunity to add a very unique player. We were excited about that.”
Parsons offered his thoughts on the impact Kenny Clark had for Green Bay, “I never want to try to replace him. I just want to try to sustain the standard he left here and his print that he left, just like the other prestigious guys that came through this program.”
“Y’all don’t understand how excited I am to be here.” We can all agree, the feeling is more than mutual. Parsons will wear number 1 for the Packers, a number last worn by the legendary Curly Lambeau in 1926.
