Jerry Jones claims Jets turned down absurd trade offer involving Micah Parsons, Quinnen Williams
Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones recently revealed that he offered Micah Parsons plus a first-round pick to the New York Jets in exchange for Quinnen Williams during training camp.
Jerry Jones says Jets turned out incredible trade offer for Quinnen Williams
“I wanted a one and Parsons for Williams,” Jones said on 103.5 The Fan. That seems like an absurd offer, but Jones left little up to interpretation.
“A one and Parsons for Williams,” he repeated. Later, he added that the deal did not go through because the Jets “did not have the cap room to pay [Parsons].”
Jones also said something similar to WFAA’s Ed Werder: “We tried at training camp with the Jets to basically make an exchange that was ready to go, heads up, with Quinnen and Micah and a one, and we didn’t get it done.”
Parsons, of course, was instead sent to the Packers for defensive tackle Kenny Clark and two first-round picks. The Cowboys later acquired Williams before the trade deadline for a package including a 2027 first-rounder, a 2026 second-rounder and defensive tackle Mazi Smith.
Jones has slowly revealed more and more information about the Parsons trade since it was completed. During a September radio appearances on ESPN New York, Jones said that called the Jets regarding Williams when he was shopping Parsons before the season. The Jets were not interested, he claimed, because they “didn’t have the resources to entertain [the] conversation,” similar to his pronouncement on 103.5.
If true, Jets made a big mistake
If Jones’ latest revelation is true, that means two things. First, he was willing to sacrifice a massive amount of value to move Parsons and acquire Williams. Second, the Jets made a huge mistake in not accepting the deal.
Although Williams is an excellent defensive tackle, Parsons is undoubtedly a better and more valuable player, even at a higher price point. This year, Williams has 2.5 sacks and 10 tackles for loss this season; per Pro Football Focus, he ranks fifth among interior defenders with 40 pressures but 38th with a 12.1% pass-rush win rate.
Parsons, meanwhile, has 12.5 sacks and 12 tackles for loss, plus 67 pressures and a 24.3% pass-rush win rate, both top-three marks among NFL edge-rushers. In his career, he has averaged 0.89 sacks and one tackle for loss per game; Williams’ per-game numbers are 0.41 sacks and 0.60 tackles for loss.
Those numbers may not tell the complete story of either player, but it seems like the Jets should have taken Jones’ offer. Sure, they would have had to pony up for Parsons’ mega-extension, but they were already prepared to move on from Williams. Adding an extra first-round pick on top would also give the Jets an opportunity to add another starter — if not a star — on a rookie contract. That would help to offset the financial cost of acquiring Parsons.
How realistic is Jerry Jones' claim?
But Jones’ words should also be taken with a grain of salt. He has spent a lot of time trying to retroactively justify trading away Parsons, especially after using some of the resulting draft capital to acquire Williams. Claiming that the Jets were not interested in Parsons and a first-rounder for Williams serves to downplay the former’s value and boost the latter’s.
The idea that the Jets could not afford to pay Parsons does not hold water, either. After his extension, the All-Pro edge-rusher’s cap hit in 2025 is just $9.97M. New York certainly could have designed a similar contract structure and absorbed
Perhaps the Jets didn't want to commit so much money to Parsons as they were clearly contemplating a rebuild. Parsons would still be a cornerstone for that effort, but he may not have wanted to weather any losing seasons in the hopes of a future turnaround. But again, adding another first-round pick would have accelerated that process, and a core of Parsons, cornerback Sauce Gardner and wide receiver Garrett Wilson seems like a solid foundation for the Jets to build from. That is an expensive trio, but having elite players at three of the sport’s most important positions is a good problem to have.
Instead, the Jets declined the Cowboys’ initial offer for Williams before moving him and Gardner at the deadline as part of what appears to be a full-on franchise reset.
Browns’ Quinshon Judkins Gets Bad News Ahead of Week 2
Quinshon Judkins signed his rookie contract with the Cleveland Browns, but it doesn’t seem likely he will be in the lineup this week.
Judkins missed all of training camp and the preseason as he was holding out for his contract. As well as his legal issues were being resolved. As Judkins is practicing ahead of Week 2, his status is uncertain. But the Browns listed him as the fourth-string running back on the unofficial depth chart.
Judkins is behind Jerome Ford, Dylan Sampson, and Raheim Sanders, so at this rate, it does seem likely he won’t be in the lineup for Week 2 when the Browns are on the road to play the Baltimore Ravens.
Judkins will need time to get ramped up and up to game speed before he gets into game action. Meanwhile, Cleveland got a temporary roster exemption for Judkins, meaning he can practice and doesn’t count on the 53-man roster for the time being.
“The #Browns are expected to get a temporary roster exemption for RB Quinshon Judkins, who is signing his fully guaranteed rookie contract today,” Pelissero wrote on X. “That’s unrelated to the league’s ongoing disciplinary process; it’s standard for players who missed camp and can last up to two games.”
Although Judkins isn’t technically on the 53-man roster yet, the hope was that he would play in Week 2.
Browns Coach Isn’t Sure When Judkins Will Play
After Cleveland’s Week 1 loss, the attention turned to Judkins and when he will be in the lineup.
However, after the loss, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski wasn’t thinking about Judkins or his return to the field.
“We’ll see,” Stefanski said on Sept. 8. “Got to get through this week of practice, but don’t know.”
If Judkins does get up to speed, he could be in the lineup in Week 2. But, that would mean Cleveland would have to make another roster move as he technically isn’t on the 53-man roster yet.
But, for now, Judkins will practice all week, but all signs point to him likely taking another week to get ready before making his debut in Week 3.
The Browns are a massive 11.5-point underdogs against the Ravens in Week 2 on the road.
Cleveland Had High Expectations for Judkins
After the Browns selected Judkins in the second round, he was expected to be the team’s starting running back.
Following the draft, Cleveland’s general manager, Andrew Berry, said he expected Judkins to be a bell-cow-like running back for the team.
“We feel like he’s just a very well-rounded back,” Berry said. “We’ve obviously been spoiled over the past couple of years, particularly with Nick and Kareem (Hunt). And we feel like he is very much in that mold in terms of skill set. Not necessarily saying that he’s going to, with certainty, develop into one of those players. We certainly hope that’s the case. But we think that he can be a bell cow runner that can really carry the load for us.”
Judkins was selected 36th overall in the 2025 NFL Draft after helping the Ohio State Buckeyes win the national championship.
