Micah Parsons trade somehow makes the Jets look like geniuses

The NFL world was stunned on Thursday when the Dallas Cowboys agreed to send three-time All-Pro pass rusher Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers in one of the most shocking blockbuster trades in recent memory. Lost in all the noise, however, is the fact that the New York Jets might somehow be one of the biggest winners of the deal.

No, the Jets as a team didn't get better on Wednesday. And no, the Parsons trade doesn't directly impact the current Jets. But a little retrospective comparative analysis makes the organization come away looking pretty savvy.

The Jets famously traded All-Pro safety Jamal Adams to the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for two first-round picks, a third-round pick, and safety Bradley McDougald in the summer of 2020.

That trade helped net the Jets both star wide receiver Garrett Wilson and standout offensive lineman Alijah Vera-Tucker, and when compared to what the Cowboys received for a future Hall-of-Famer in Parsons, that Adams deal looks even more like the heist of the century.

The Jets got more for Jamal Adams than the Cowboys got in the Micah Parsons trade

The Cowboys received two first-round picks and former Pro Bowl nose tackle Kenny Clark in return for someone who is probably among the top-five best players in the NFL today. You could make a strong case that Parsons is the league's most valuable non-quarterback.

Yet, despite this, Dallas somehow received a lesser haul than what former general manager Joe Douglas was able to get for Adams some five years ago. That doesn't make any sense, but it's true.

Clark is still a rock-solid run-stopper, but this isn't the same player who spent years dominating as the centerpiece of the Packers' defensive line. The nine-year NFL veteran is fresh off a lackluster 2024 season in which he finished with a 59.0 Pro Football Focus grade.

That includes a lowly 57.1 PFF run-defense grade, just one sack, and 33 total pressures on 420 pass-rush snaps. Clark was a middling player at best in 2024, and given that he turns 30 in a couple of months and already has a lot of tread on his tires, it's safe to say that he's a declining player.

It's not just that. Clark is also on an expensive contract, set to earn $20 million or more in 2026 and 2027. There isn't a world where the Packers would have received more than a Day 3 pick for Clark if they shopped him around to other teams.

Not only was Green Bay able to fleece the Cowboys for one of the best players in the NFL in his prime, but they also offloaded an expensive contract for a declining, aging defensive tackle.

Compare that to the haul the Jets received for Jamal Adams, and it’s not even close. For all of Joe Douglas’ flaws as general manager — and there were many — his lasting legacy might just be the miraculous Adams fleece.

With every blockbuster NFL trade that comes and goes, that Adams deal only looks better in hindsight. Thank you Jerry Jones, and sure, thank you Joe Douglas.

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