Cowboys' Jerry Jones reveals real reason he traded Micah Parsons in August

Micah Parsons' contract standoff with the Dallas Cowboys was as predictable as it was avoidable.

Jerry and Stephen Jones have a long history of dragging out contract negotiations until the 11th hour. That has often led to complicated relationships with their stars, but they usually got away with it.

Not this time. The superstar pass-rusher drew a line in the sand, and it seemed personal this time. As a result, the Cowboys lost their best player and, to add insult to injury, they didn't get the best value in return for his services.

Jerry Jones, however, doesn't feel that way. Talking on 105.3 The Fan, the controversial business mogul stood by his decision, claiming that waiting that long before trading Parsons was the right thing to do.

Jerry Jones defends timing of Micah Parsons trade to Green Bay Packers

"We needed this timing," Jones said, per ESPN. "We needed to be right here at the beginning of the season in my mind to get the highest value. I heard people talking about, 'Well, why didn’t you trade him back before the  draft?' Because draft picks become the most valuable timing-wise, you can have them in the offseason before the draft. That’s when the pick becomes much more valuable and the player becomes less valuable."

The Cowboys got first-round picks in 2026 and 2027 and DT Kenny Clark in the trade with Green Bay. Clark is a great player who should help with their woes against the run, and the first-round picks are always valuable. Even so, Parsons' trade value was going down by the day, not up.

Everybody knew he wanted out and that he wasn't going to budge. The New York Jets didn't even want to meet Jones' asking price, knowing that he was reaching. The Packers aren't going to get top-10 draft picks in the foreseeable future, and Clark, while great, isn't a player of Parsons' caliber.

Jones and the Cowboys could've just done things the right way, and they would've either kept their franchise player or gotten a total haul for his services. He may try to gaslight the fan base again, but he just did a disservice to the organization and mismanaged his assets.