Tony Romo sounds off on Jerry Jones trading Micah Parsons, how close Cowboys are to competing for Super Bowl

Jerry Jones made several moves in 2025 that he anticipates paying off in the long run for the Dallas Cowboys. Most notably, Jones in late August traded All-Pro pass rusher Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers.

Parsons was disruptive in Green Bay, compiling 12.5 sacks before tearing his ACL late in the season. The Cowboys, meanwhile, missed the playoffs and ranked last in defensive EPA. They ranked fifth in offensive EPA, but it wasn’t enough to outweigh the defense’s struggles. Head coach Brian Schottenheimer fired defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus earlier this month.

Former Cowboys quarterback now CBS Sports announcer Tony Romo wasn’t surprised that the defense didn’t hold up without Parsons. That being said, he doesn’t fault Jones for passing on signing him to a record-breaking extension for a pass rusher.

“I think what they tried to do is they tried to have a philosophy of hiring ex-head coaches as the defensive coordinator. You take a look, they had Dan Quinn to Mike Zimmer to then Matt Eberflus. I think that worked with Quinn so well that they wanted to stick with that and obviously it didn’t work out for multiple reasons for anybody coming in after losing Micah,” Romo said on Tuesday’s Pat McAfee Show. “But I can see how this is gonna be a win/win for Green Bay in Dallas. I mean, if you weren’t good enough to win the Super Bowl last year and you’re about to sign Micah, then all of a sudden, you’re telling me, ‘OK, I’m gonna pay three guys in the top two or three at their position — Dak [Prescott], CeeDee [Lamb], Micah.’

“Now, you’ve got another receiver [George Pickens] coming in you have to pay. You’re not going to be able to build this roster out fully. They have lost giving up a lot of running yards in the playoffs in years’ past. Sometimes, that’s a little too short to think of just that for a reason to trade him, but I can see getting four or five guys and that could actually equal something there with Micah.”

Tony Romo optimistic about Cowboys’ immediate future

The Cowboys acquired a pair of first-round picks and Pro Bowl defensive tackle Kenny Clark in the Parsons deal. Jones used one of the picks to acquire another Pro Bowl defensive tackle in Quinnen Williams from the New York Jets. Dallas also owns picks No. 12 and 20 in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft.

Eberflus is out and his replacement is former Philadelphia Eagles passing game coordinator and defensive backs coach Christian Parker. With Parker in place and plenty of ammunition, Romo sees a pathway for Dallas to get back to contention in the near future.

“You got now two big guys in the middle. That’s a lot of improvement. They have another first-rounder coming this year, they got another one,” Romo said. “I just feel like they can get three or four guys — if they end up getting the right coach in there — that this team can turn around in a hurry. This is not a long one; this can be real fast. I think Dallas — one or two players away with the scheme on defense — they can make a run in the playoffs.”