Micah Parsons' Packers Contract Worth More Than What Jerry Jones Paid to Buy Cowboys

If you want an example of how the economics of sports have changed over the years, Micah Parsons' contract with the Green Bay Packers following his trade from the Dallas Cowboys can answer it for you.

ESPN's Adam Schefter pointed out the $188 million deal Parsons got from his new team is $48 million more than what Jerry Jones paid to buy the Cowboys 36 years ago.

To be fair, the value of $188 million today is very different than $140 million in 1989. If you adjust Jones' purchase price of the Cowboys for inflation, it would be just under $365 million.

When you consider that the Cowboys are now worth $13 billion, Jones still comes out way ahead of Parsons in the equation.

However, Parsons' contract also speaks to how rapidly the value for star players in sports has increased. If you go back less than a decade to the start of the 2016 NFL season, Andrew Luck was the highest-paid player in the league with a $24.6 million average annual salary. That is just over half of what Parsons will be making per season on his new deal with the Packers ($47 million annually).

It was just five years ago when Patrick Mahomes became the first NFL player making at least $40 million per season. Entering the 2025 season, there are 20 players who will earn at least $40 million.

Sixteen of those 20 are quarterbacks, with Parsons, T.J. Watt and Myles Garrett being the only defensive players on the list. Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase is the only non-quarterback offensive player making at least $40 million.

It speaks to how much of a premium has been put on the EDGE position that three players are making the same amount, or at least close to it, as some of the top quarterbacks in the league.

The Packers recognized this by aggressively pursuing Parsons, including giving up two first-round draft picks in the trade to acquire him. The Cowboys better have a good plan to get after the quarterback without Parsons because he was the only player on their 2024 team that had more than 5.5 sacks.