Cowboys reportedly decided to trade Micah Parsons a week before he demanded to be moved

Green Bay Packers pass rusher Micah Parsons caused a significant stir in the NFL by publicly demanding a trade from the Dallas Cowboys. Unbeknownst to him at the time, the Cowboys had already decided to trade him a week prior to his announcement, according to a report from Fox insider Jay Glazer.

Before Parsons made his request public, Dallas had reportedly begun gauging interest from other teams in the 26-year-old player. The Cowboys' preference was to trade him to an AFC team, but they were unable to generate any serious interest from that conference, as per Glazer's information.

Interest for Parsons emerged from the NFC, with the Philadelphia Eagles offering the most substantial trade package to Dallas. The Eagles were reportedly willing to part with two first-round draft picks, a third-round pick, a fifth-round pick, and additional assets. However, the Cowboys were unwilling to trade Parsons within their own division, which ultimately allowed the Green Bay Packers to secure him. The Packers distinguished themselves early in the bidding process by offering player Kenny Clark in addition to other considerations, and they later signed Parsons to a four-year, $188 million contract.

The relationship between Parsons and the Cowboys deteriorated rapidly during the offseason. What began as a standard contract dispute escalated after Parsons went public with his trade demand, leading Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones to publicly criticize Parsons and his agent extensively. With the season approaching, the fractured relationship resulted in the trade, which, though it seemed sudden to outsiders, had apparently been under consideration by the Cowboys for longer than anticipated.