When you think about the Dallas Cowboys trading Micah Parsons for a pair of first-round picks and then, just a year later, looking to trade for a defensive end of similar caliber, it sounds like a no-brainer. Yet somehow, Jerry Jones and the Cowboys have landed in exactly that spot. Which brings up the obvious question: who even fits that Parsons-level profile that Jerry can realistically target?

The move for Maxx Crosby did not go through. But now, another option has emerged in Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns. The team recently modified Garrett’s contract, pushing his option bonus deadlines from late March to seven days before the regular season in 2026, 2027, and 2028.

On paper, that change does not create cap space for 2026. What it does do is give the Browns more flexibility moving forward. And according to Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap, it also makes Garrett more tradable by reducing future dead cap complications.

“They [the Browns] already had the lowest cap charge possible for Garrett, outside of converting some per game bonuses to a signing bonus. All this does is give the team the maximum flexibility to trade Garrett assuming they were to get him to waive his no trade clause.”

To figure out whether this works for Dallas, you have to look at both sides. From Cleveland’s point of view, the pathway to a trade is now more manageable than before, as Fitzgerald later mentioned in his report:

“If Garrett had his option picked up today (or they had to restructure his contract to get the low cap charge he currently has) the cost to trade him on the cap would have been $70.3M on a trade during the draft and $21.4M for 2026 and $48.69M in 2027 if traded in the summer,” Fitzgerald wrote.

“The acquiring team would only be responsible for $2.3 to $3.3 million in salary for the year. With the delay the cost to trade during the draft is $41.1M and the cost in the summer would be $15.34M in 2026 and $25.6M in 2027. The acquiring team would be on the hook for $31.5 to $32.5M in salary and the Browns owe nothing. A similar situation exists next year where with the delay the trade cost is $48.9M during the draft and a $17.8/$31.1M split between 2027 and 2028 if traded in the summer.”

The Browns are the same team that has recently proposed a rule that would allow draft picks to be traded up to five years into the future, instead of the current three-year limit. That proposal still needs approval from NFL owners, but it is hard to ignore the timing.

Cleveland is positioning itself with flexibility, and Dallas is actively searching for an elite edge rusher. After multiple failed attempts to land Crosby, this now looks like another opportunity for Jerry Jones to consider.

Why Jerry Jones and the Cowboys should consider a Myles Garrett trade?

If the Cowboys had not shown interest in trading for Maxx Crosby, the idea of pivoting to Myles Garrett likely would not even be in the conversation. But that interest was very real. And Jerry Jones has already explored that path.

For context, ESPN reported that Dallas made three separate offers to the Las Vegas Raiders for Crosby. The first included their 2026 first-round pick at No. 20 along with Osa Odighizuwa.

At one point, the Cowboys pulled that version back and reshaped it. The second offer involved the 2026 first-round pick at No. 12 and a 2027 third-round pick. That still did not meet the Raiders’ demand for two first-round picks. The final offer followed a similar structure. Dallas proposed the 2026 first-round pick at No. 20 along with a 2027 second-round pick. That, too, was rejected.

Now the situation has shifted. The Cowboys have another opportunity, and this time, it centers around Garrett.

Garrett signed a four-year, $160 million extension last year and is heading into the 2026 season as the reigning Defensive Player of the Year. That was after a historical 2025 season, in which he had 23 sacks, which is a single-season record duplicated by Michael Strahan and since by T. J. Watt.

So when you stack it, it makes the case develop in a variety of ways. Garrett is exactly what Dallas has been seeking in all aspects. And as they have recently been pushing to get an elite edge rusher, this is one move that Jones has to consider.

It then comes down to two things: whether Cleveland will actually be willing to make the Garrett move and whether Dallas is now better positioned to pay the kind of price that a player of his caliber will accept.