Here’s what you need to know from press conferences with Micah Parsons, Brian Gutekunst and Matt LaFleur on the big trade.
After a plane issue delayed the Green Bay Packers’ set of press conferences, general manager Brian Gutekunst, head coach Matt LaFleur and your newest Packer, edge defender Micah Parsons, finally got in front of the media on Friday night.
Both Gutekunst and LaFleur were very particular about not talking about the timeline of the trade and when these discussions actually started. What Gutekunst did shed some light on when he thought the trade possibility for Parsons went from something close to a Hail Mary to something they could actually get done:
“I don’t think it was until the last few days that I actually thought, hey, there’s an opportunity here to close this thing out.”
According to Gutekunst, his previous involvement with the Khalil Mack trade, where Mack ultimately ended up with the rival Chicago Bears in 2018, taught him that he needed to be earlier in these discussions. Gutekunst said that he didn’t think being earlier in on Mack would have changed the outcome of that trade, but that it could have been a factor in other trades of that caliber, like this move for the three-time All-Pro and four-time Pro Bowler.
Many have speculated that new Packers president and CEO Ed Policy, who took over the job this offseason, pushed the team to make this move. Gutekunst’s story of events is that Policy was “supportive” and kept in the loop, but not the one who pushed this trade.
Both Gutekunst and LaFleur, when asked about their defensive tackle room, reiterated their confidence in Colby Wooden, Karl Brooks, Warren Brinson and Nazir Stackhouse. Don’t expect this team to make a trade or signing to replace Kenny Clark, at least until they’ve exhausted these options. At the moment, it appears that Wooden will be the Packers’ starting nose tackle in 2025 after losing Clark in the Parsons trade.
As far as how quickly Parsons will be able to suit up and play for Green Bay, Gutekunst stated, “He’ll help us in some form or fashion” against the Detroit Lions in Week 1. “It’s on us to be smart and make sure he’s ready to go.”
According to LaFleur, the head coach’s first exposure to Parsons was during the 2021 Pro Bowl. As LaFleur tells it, most of the players looked like they were there on vacation, while Parsons was competitive throughout the week.
One of the first things out of Parsons’ mouth at the podium was that he was going to wear number 1 with Green Bay, a number that hasn’t been worn since 1929 when Curly Lambeau, the namesake of Lambeau Field, last donned it. Parsons was openly debating whether he should wear 1 or 0 on Twitter earlier today. 0 has never been worn by the Packers, and Green Bay actually turned down the opportunity to give Josh Jacobs that number when he requested it back in 2024.
When asked if he had a choice on where the Cowboys would be trading him, Parsons admitted, “No. I didn’t have any say.” He also stated that he was not told of the trade by the Jones family, who own and run the franchise, but learned about it through his agent.
As far as his early impressions of Green Bay, Parsons said that he’s “super impressed by the facilities” and that “there’s no reason to look outside of the building.” He also praised LaFleur as one of the better coaches in the NFL and discussed how he was impressed by the schemes that the Packers had used to beat the Cowboys during his time in Dallas.
If you would like to listen to all three full press conferences, you can find the video linked below:
Category: General Sports
