Cowboys-Packers Micah Parsons trade includes poison-pill provision

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Packers-Cowboys swap includes a poison-pill provision that requires Green Bay to surrender its 2028 first-round pick to Dallas if the Packers trade Parsons to another club in the NFC East. Likewise, the Cowboys will owe the Packers a 2028 first-rounder if they should trade defensive tackle Kenny Clark – who was sent to Dallas as part of the Parsons package – to another team in the NFC North.

While the Parsons component of the poison-pill condition technically applies to any NFC East team, Schefter’s sources say the Cowboys’ real concern was Philadelphia. In addition to the Eagles’ status as reigning Super Bowl champions and the fact that they look to be a championship contender for the foreseeable future, Parsons is a Harrisburg (Pa.) native and Penn State product who entertained dreams of playing for the Birds. 

On the other hand, the condition expires at the end of the 2026 season, and Parsons’ childhood fantasies notwithstanding, the record-setting contract he signed with the Packers keeps him under club control through 2029. Even if Green Bay were inclined to trade him before the expiration of the condition – which is highly unlikely – the accompanying dead money charge would complicate those efforts. 

Additionally, if the Packers and Eagles were adamant about completing a Parsons trade before the end of the 2026 slate, they still could. Philadelphia simply would have to include enough trade compensation to make up for the loss of Green Bay’s 2028 first-rounder.

Schefter and Jason Wilde of Channel3000.com acknowledge the odds of the poison pill coming into play are slim, though it does add yet another element to one of the most stunning trades in recent memory. The provision only recently came to light when other clubs, in preparation for last week’s trade deadline, reviewed the NFL’s database that tracks each team’s draft picks and realized the Cowboys and Packers have conditions attached to their 2028 first-rounders.

Many fans will remember that the Packers have been involved in high-profile poison-pill agreements before. When Green Bay traded quarterback Brett Favre to the Jets in 2008, part of the deal was that Gang Green would owe the Pack three first-rounders if they were to flip Favre to an NFC North outfit.