By Jacob Lev, CNN

(CNN) — The year 2025 has been a whirlwind for the city of Dallas and its fans when it comes to sports – in particular, supporters of the Dallas Cowboys and Dallas Mavericks.

It started out with the Mavericks shipping away megastar Luka Doncic on a whim seemingly overnight to the Los Angeles Lakers. Now, it all culminates with the Cowboys trading their superstar linebacker, Micah Parsons, to the Green Bay Packers.

The Cowboys received two first-round picks and defensive tackle Kenny Clark in exchange for Parsons.

The two-time All-Pro and the Packers have already reached an agreement on a four-year, $188 million contract, a person with knowledge of the details told the Associated Press.

Parsons reportedly becomes the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history. CNN Sports has reached out to Parsons’ representatives for comment.

‘I never wanted this chapter to end’

“I never wanted this chapter to end, but not everything was in my control,” Parsons wrote in a statement he posted on X Thursday. “My heart has always been here, and still is. Through it all, I never made any demands. I never asked for anything more than fairness. I only asked that the person I trust to negotiate my contract be part of the process.”

But before any trade was announced, rumors swirled of an inevitable divorce between the Jerry Jones-owned franchise and their star, Parsons.

Amid contract negotiations which turned ugly, Parsons requested a trade – in a very public manner – from a team he called a “dream” to play for ahead of the 2021 NFL draft that saw him selected 12th overall out of Pennsylvania State University.

The reasons around paying Parsons what he believes is fair have always been relatively inarguable as his stats and accolades back everything up.

The 26-year-old has 52 1/2 sacks, recording at least 12 in each of his four seasons while making the Pro Bowl each year.

“After repeated shots at myself and all the narratives I have made a tough decision I no longer want to play for the Dallas Cowboys,” Parsons said in a post on X on August 1.

A day later, the 82-year-old Jones, adamantly played down the trade request, adding it was “just a part of negotiation.”

Jones quickly changed his tone weeks later, placing the blame on Parson’s agent, David Mulugheta, for the contract holdup.

“When we wanted to send the details to the agent, the agent told us to stick it up our a**. … We had our agreements on term, amount, guarantees and everything. We were going to send it over to the agent. The agent said, ‘Don’t bother because we’ve got all that to negotiate,’” Jones said on the Michael Irvin podcast.

“Well, I’d already negotiated that. I’d already moved off my mark on several areas. The issue, very frankly, is we’ve had the negotiation in my mind. The agent is trying to get his nose in it and trying to come in there and improve off what we’ve already said.”

Last week, during the Cowboys’ preseason finale against the Atlanta Falcons, Parsons was seen laying down on a sideline training table.

Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer told reporters after the game that he didn’t see Parsons on the table and would speak to him about it.

Despite all of this, one thing was always repeated often by Dallas – Parsons would be donning a Cowboys uniform when the team opened up the season against their division rivals and reigning Super Bowl champions, the Philadelphia Eagles, on the road on September 4.

However, hours after the trade was announced, Jones sat in front of reporters and said there were no “bad feelings” between the team and Parsons.

“I really like Micah, I appreciate the four years that we had him here. He’s a great player,” Jones said. “This was by design, I did make Micah an offer. It wasn’t acceptable and I honored the fact that it wasn’t done in the way that he wanted to do it through an agent. There’s not an ounce of vindictiveness, there’s no bad feelings on my part on the fact that we didn’t come together on an agreement.”

Jones said the team is in a better spot now than it was in “recent years” and he did not rule out the possibility of using the two draft picks received in the trade to help boost the team via trade.

When asked about his comments on Mulugheta and on whether this will impact future negotiations, Jones quickly responded that he is “not fragile.”

“Let me tell you something, you can’t do that stuff and business like this and be fragile. I’m not,” Jones said. “I would think with his background, he’s very professional and willing to keep his eye on the ball and not get caught up in the emotions.”

Jones stated the Cowboys offered Parsons more guaranteed money, but the source who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the terms weren’t announced said that wasn’t accurate.

To make matters potentially more awkward, the Cowboys play host to the Packers at AT&T Stadium on “Sunday Night Football” on September 28.

Jones likened the situation to when longtime Cowboys running back and Pro Football Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith played against the team after signing with the Arizona Cardinals ahead of the 2003 season.

“That made it hard,” Jones said. “But obviously we have to play a lot of players. … Micah will be a – problematic. Very problematic. I suggest we get ahead and run the ball.”

But what makes the respective Parsons and Doncic trades so similar yet so different at the same time?

One of the most stunning trades ever reported

Just as Cowboy fans were coming home from work or running errands, they were greeted by a tweet from ESPN’s Adam Schefter announcing the Parsons trade.

While it did not reach the magnitude of that frightful early February night, it still left Cowboys and sports fans in general around the world stunned, a feeling Mavs fans know quite well.

At 12:12 a.m. ET on February 2, ESPN’s Shams Charania posted on X that Doncic – the Mavericks’ then 25-year-old star, who was expected to be the cornerstone of their franchise for the next decade or more – was being traded to the City of Angels. The news stunned a city, a state and a league.

What came after saw images of fan protests as the Mavs slowly started sliding down the Western Conference standings, culminating in the team missing the playoffs and general manager Nico Harrison hearing it from all sides.

Then a miracle happened, Dallas won the draft lottery and secured Duke University star Cooper Flagg with the first pick of the 2025 NBA Draft.

The 18-year-old phenom dazzled fans with an impressive showing at the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas earlier this summer, averaging 20.5 points, five rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.5 steals and one block a game in two games played.

While the Mavs’ story seems to have a happy ending, what about the Cowboys? A franchise as big as “America’s Team” coming into an upcoming NFL season needs to have high expectations.

Should fans be worried that when the Dallas Stars’ or Texas Rangers’ best player turns 26, they will find out that they’re gone from the city on social media as well?

The-CNN-Wire
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