The Green Bay Packers just went from a fringe contender to one of the best teams in the NFL almost instantly, as they acquired star pass rusher Micah Parsons from the Dallas Cowboys in a move that sent the entire NFL into a fit of furious laughter at the expense of Jerry Jones.
While Green Bay didn't pay too steep a price to acquire one of the best players in the entire league in Parsons, they did need to give up veteran defensive tackle Kenny Clark, along with two future first-round picks. Even with Parsons coming in, that absence will be felt.
On a Packers team that was already the youngest in the league, losing a veteran mentor like Clark is sure to have some sort of tangible effect on the locker room. Wide receiver Jayden Reed, who may need to give up his No. 11 for Parsons, was the first to voice his displeasure.
Reed was in disbelief that his beloved KC was the one heading to Dallas in the Parsons deal. While Parsons makes this team so much better than they were prior to this move, losing him to Dallas is not something that can just be instantly replaced.
Packers WR Jayden Reed laments losing Kenny Clark in Micah Parsons trade
Clark has spent the last nine seasons in Green Bay, making three Pro Bowls along the way and playing much better than those accolades would suggest. Even when the defense around him was not particularly amazing, Clark was one of the few consistently excellent performers the Cowboys had to lean on.
Clark, who has not missed a game in any of the last three seasons, is coming off one of the worst seasons of his career in the eyes of Pro Football Focus, which may be what moved him out of the hypothetical "untradable" tier.
The Packers now have a weakness at the defensive tackle spot, as the two starters are the thoroughly average Devonte Wyatt and a collection of career backups who are now thrust into starting roles. One can only imagine that the tandem of Parsons and Rashan Gary off the edge can overcome those shortcomings for now.
While many Packers fans would likely have driven Clark to the airport personally to ensure they could land Parsons, he is still one of the best defensive linemen in Packers history, and this trade is a stunning way for his time in Green Bay to come to an end.