Even before the Maxx Crosby trade, we knew that the Green Bay Packers came out ahead in the Micah Parsons trade. They sent two first-round picks and Kenny Clark to the Dallas Cowboys for Parsons, which was a relatively modest price for a player considered one of the NFL’s most dominant defenders. But the latest blockbuster trade, where the Las Vegas Raiders sent Maxx Crosby to the Baltimore Ravens, only reinforces that Green Bay got a good deal.
While Clark had been a cornerstone of Green Bay’s defensive line for years, he was approaching the stage of his contract where the team likely would have had to consider moving on anyway. In return, the Packers landed Parsons at just 26 years old, coming off a historic start to his career, where he had at least 12 sacks in each of his first four seasons in the league.
On Friday, the Ravens landed Crosby for two first-round picks. Crosby is a phenomenal player and one of the NFL’s most productive pass rushers, but the context matters. He will be 29 by the time the 2026 regular season begins and is coming off a major knee procedure. When compared to what the Packers paid to acquire Parsons, the difference in age and circumstances makes Green Bay’s deal look even more favorable in hindsight.
The contract component should be part of the discussion. Still, even there, the comparison favors Green Bay. Parsons signed a deal with an average annual value roughly $11 million higher than Crosby’s, yet the way Green Bay structured the contract keeps Parsons’ cap hits lower than Crosby’s over the next two seasons. The larger numbers are pushed into the later years of the deal, giving the Packers flexibility in the short term.
In reality, those larger cap hits in the later years of the deal never play out as written. Teams always adjust elite players’ contracts, like Parsons, through restructures or extensions well before those cap hits arrive.
So when looking at the full picture, the Ravens effectively paid the same trade compensation for an older player who is more expensive in the short term. Meanwhile, Green Bay landed the younger star and maintained control over the contract’s structure. It’s a sequence of moves that continues to reflect well on the Packers.
As a pass rusher, Parsons operates in the elite tier of the NFL, while Crosby is consistently very good in that phase. However, the dynamic flips against the run. Crosby has produced strong run-defense numbers for an edge defender and is one of the most reliable players in the league at setting the edge. Meanwhile, Parsons has generally been closer to league average in that department.
Crosby also rarely leaves the field, typically playing a higher percentage of defensive snaps than Parsons. Still, front offices are not paying or trading multiple first-round picks primarily for run defense or snap volume — pass rushing is the premium trait. In that area, Parsons is the better player and one of the most disruptive defenders in football, which is why people can generally view him as the more impactful overall player despite Crosby’s strengths against the run and his heavier workload.
None of this is meant to diminish what Crosby brings to Baltimore. He could be the final piece that helps the Ravens get over the hump. The point here is about value and process. When the Packers acquired Parsons, Brian Gutekunst managed to land one of the league’s premier defenders for a package that already looked lighter than expected at the time.
As more deals like this happen around the league, the Parsons trade only continues to look better for Green Bay. It already felt like the Packers paid less than expected when they finalized the deal, and that perception is unlikely to change anytime soon. If anything, as the market for elite pass rushers keeps rising, there’s a good chance the move will be viewed as a bargain several years from now.
