It's no secret by now that former Penn State star linebacker Micah Parsons is fed up with the Dallas Cowboys. Cowboys' owner Jerry Jones has been unwilling to talk a contract extension with Dallas' star and the two have a relationship that has seemingly become unfixable.
That became apparent when Parsons personally requested a trade request during training camp, and has not backed down on. However, neither has Jones and the Cowboys. Dallas' owner doesn't seem interested in trading the star linebacker or paying him, which leaves everyone in a weird spot.
During ESPN's "Get Up" on Tuesday morning, former NFL general manager Mike Tannenbaum offered three trade proposals for the Cowboys' star, including one that would send him to the NFC North.
Where will Micah Parsons end up and for what?
Tannenbaum suggested the Cowboys could trade Parsons to the Detroit Lions for safety Brian Branch, a first-round pick and two second-round picks.
This would give the Cowboys a proven, talented defender in exchange for their defensive star as well as strong draft capital.
Branch was a second round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft by the Lions, and has quickly become one of the best safeties in the NFL. The 23-year-old finished fifth in Rookie of the Year voting in 2023 and made his first Pro Bowl in 2024.
There's not a defender the Cowboys could get in return for Parsons that would provide the same impact for their defense. However, Branch collected 19 tackles, eight tackles for loss, six quarterback hits and a sack last year from the safety position. The Lions' Pro-Bowler also defended 16 passes, had four interceptions and forced a fumble.
The Cowboys have a decent safety duo with Donovan Wilson and Malik Hooker, but Branch would be an obvious upgrade and he's a young player to build a future around.
Dallas has less than two weeks until their regular season gets underway against the Philadelphia Eagles, and you would think they'd want to have a decision made on their star linebacker by then. All signs point to Parsons ending up somewhere other than Dallas soon.