After the Cowboys traded Micah Parsons to the Packers last year, Dallas owner and G.M. Jerry Jones compared the move to the Herschel Walker trade from 1989.
On Thursday, Jerry did it again.
“You could say those picks got us key players, but the main thing that the Herschel Walker trade did, it caused me to be more aggressive and caused us to, if you will, take more risk because we had more picks,” Jones said, via Todd Archer of ESPN.
But the Parsons deal sacrificed one of the best defensive players in the NFL for a 2026 first-round pick, a 2027 first-round pick, and defensive tackle Kenny Clark. For Walker, who had one 1,000-yard performance in three NFL seasons, the Cowboys emerged with three first-round picks, three second-round picks, a third-round pick, and a sixth-round pick.
Still, Jerry views the two extra first-round picks as the spark needed to turn him into a gambler.
“It’s like going to Las Vegas with some extra money in your pocket or going out there with the baby’s new pair of shoes and formula money in your pocket,” Jones said. “You can’t be as good a crapshooter as you are when you’ve got the baby’s new pair of shoes throwing out there with it.
“So, in a way, this actually created a mental part to us and to my role in it with me, to step out and make the moves and take, if you will, risks that are involved to be where we are today with a complete makeover of the defense.”
Jones nevertheless acknowledges that Parsons is a special talent.
“Even though Micah’s an outstanding talent [that] anybody would like to have, the bottom line is that I like what the result of the trade has ended up as I stand here today,” Jones said.
Frankly, it’s no surprise. That’s Jerry’s way. The glass is always half-full, even when it’s not. He craves interest in his team, and he knows how to generate it.
But if he’s truly serious about the Parsons trade causing future picks to burn a hole in his pocket, he should be looking to make more deals. Especially if the Raiders struggle to start the season and defensive end Maxx Crosby once again becomes available.
Packers Clips
The Packers made a different choice than the Steelers when it came to playing their starting quarterback on Thursday night, but they didn’t leave Jordan Love in the game for long.
Love got the ball after the opening kickoff and moved the team 46 yards over 10 plays in a drive that ended with a field goal. Love exited the game after that drive and Tyrod Taylor is now at quarterback for Green Bay.
Love’s night looked like it would be slightly shorter, but Steelers defensive lineman Dean Lowry was flagged for unnecessary roughness on a Trey Smack 58-yard field goal attempt. The rookie hit the kick, but the Packers took the penalty and turned back to Smack for a shorter kick after an incompletion on third down.
Love connected with Jayden Reed for a 19-yard gain, but a pass to running back MarShawn Lloyd resulted in a four-yard loss and Love finished 3-of-5 for 18 yards.
Aaron Rodgers did not start for the Steelers. Mason Rudolph was given the nod by Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy for the preseason opener.
The Steelers did not announce their quarterback plans for Thursday night’s preseason game against the Packers.
Aaron Rodgers, though, is on the sideline in street clothes.
Mason Rudolph will start, with Will Howard replacing him at some point in the first half, according to the 102.5 WDVE pregame show. Rookie Drew Allar will play the second half.
Howard missed the 2025 preseason with a hand injury.
Rodgers is expected to play in the preseason, perhaps Aug. 21 against his other former team, the Jets.
Rodgers’ protegee, Jordan Love, will start for the Packers tonight in what is expected to be Rodgers’ final meeting against the team that drafted him.
The Broncos have placed center Mike Deiter on season-ending injured reserve, Mike Klis of 9News reports.
Deiter, who joins defensive lineman Matt Henningsen (Achilles) on IR, injured his quad on Tuesday.
Deiter’s injury left Calvin Throckmorton and undrafted rookie Gavin Ortega at center with Luke Wattenberg and Alex Forsyth sidelined with injuries.
The Broncos signed center Lecitus Smith to take Deiter’s roster spot, per Klis.
Smith, 28, entered the NFL as a sixth-round pick of the Cardinals in 2022. He has also spent time with the Texans, Eagles, Packers, Patriots and Steelers.
He has appeared in 19 games, with four starts, including one start with the Packers last season in his only action of 2025.
The Packers’ inability to hold onto a big lead in their playoff loss to the Bears is still on quarterback Jordan Love’s mind as they get ready for the 2026 season.
Green Bay was up 18 points at halftime in the wild card round and they had an 11-point lead with over six minutes to play in the fourth quarter, but two Bears touchdowns gave Chicago a home win. It was reminiscent of a Week 16 loss in Soldier Field when they saw a 10-point lead evaporate over the final five minutes of what turned out to be an overtime loss.
Had they held on in the regular season, the Packers would have won the NFC North and hosted their first postseason outing instead of heading back to Chicago. During an appearance on This is Football, Love said he believes the biggest change from last year is that the Packers have addressed their inability to close out games.
“The biggest difference is our ability to finish,” Love said. “I think that’s kinda where we had a letdown last season was being able to finish late in games, late in the season, all those things. I think this year that’s the mindset. That’s the goal for us, to be able to go out there and finish no matter what the situation is. Just have that killer mindset.”
Love didn’t delve into too many specifics that the Packers will do differently, but said the team is stressing the need to continue “to focus on all the little details” rather than take their foot off the gas once they are in front. It’ll be some time before that is put to the test, but it is an exam the Packers will need to pass the next time they take it.
Jordan Love will play in the Packers’ first preseason game on Thursday night. The Steelers have not said whether Aaron Rodgers will play.
With Rodgers playing what he has declared his final season, and the teams not scheduled to meet in the regular season, the Steelers quarterback would play his former team again only if both reach the Super Bowl.
Love sat behind Rodgers for three seasons in Green Bay before the Packers traded Rodgers to the Jets in the 2023 offseason. Love expressed gratitude for Rodgers’ mentorship.
“I’ve mentioned it time and time again: I have nothing but great things to say about A-Rod and my time being behind him and watching him, how much I was able to develop and grow in my process seeing him,” Love said, via Zach Jacobson of PackersDispatch.com. “The transition — I think for the organization, that’s something that’s never easy, and for the players, it’s not something that’s ever easy, either. For a guy that’s been here that long and done so many great things, those are big shoes to fill. For me, I try to focus on being my best and doing the best job I can for the team.”
Rodgers didn’t get much help from Brett Favre when he arrived in Green Bay, and Rodgers vowed to be better with Love. He was, according to Love.
“I’ve heard different stories, Aaron talking to me about his time coming up and how he wanted his approach with me to be different, which is great,” Love said. “But, at the same time, I’m going through my own journey. I wasn’t here to experience some of the stuff he went through, so all I got is what I know and what I saw.”
Rodgers is “bummed” the preseason game isn’t in Green Bay as he will never play at Lambeau as an opposing player.
Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers says that the 2026 season will be his final one as an NFL player and that means he will never play in Green Bay as a visiting player.
Rodgers was a Packer for 18 seasons before being traded to the Jets in 2023 and neither the Jets nor the Steelers have played at Lambeau Field since he left the NFC North team. The Steelers hosted the Packers last season and will do so again for a Thursday preseason game.
During a Zoom call with Packers reporters on Wednesday, Rodgers said that he wishes the game had been scheduled as a road contest.
“It would have been strange, being in that [visitors] locker room and stuff, but I would have found my way over, like many former players have over the years . . . and see some of the guys and see some of the trainers and equipment staff and all the people I really care about that still work there. Yeah, I was definitely bummed out that we weren’t in Lambeau for this one,” Rodgers said, via Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com.
Rodgers said that there “has to be an invite back” for him to return to Lambeau once he’s done playing. That seems inevitable given his place in franchise history and likely election to both the team and the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but Rodgers would prefer that it happened a little sooner.
Jordan Love is expected to start Thursday night’s preseason game in Pittsburgh, but it remains unclear if his predecessor as the Packers’ starting quarterback will be on the field for the Steelers.
Head coach Mike McCarthy told reporters on Tuesday that he has not determined which of the team’s players will take part in the preseason opener. Rodgers said earlier this summer that McCarthy told him that he wants the quarterback to play in the first two preseason games and that he responded by saying “if you want me to play, I’ll play” while adding “I’m not saying I want to do it.”
McCarthy previously said that Rodgers wants to play and reiterated that on Tuesday while adding that he is deciding if it’s the best course of action.
“I’ve never had a quarterback that didn’t want to play,” McCarthy said, via 93.7 The Fan. “It’s really how it all fits together.”
McCarthy said that players who start the game will play for a series or two and that a second group would play the rest of the first half.
Packers quarterback Jordan Love played the preseason opener in each of the last three seasons and it looks like the team will take the same approach this summer.
Head coach Matt LaFleur said at a Tuesday press conference that he plans to play Love against the Steelers on Thursday. LaFleur noted that he reserves the right to change his mind, but he also noted why he likes “getting your process down” ahead of the regular season.
“It’s pretty fluid in regards to how many snaps,” LaFleur said. “But I do think there’s a lot of value for all our guys to just get mentally prepared to go play a game.”
The Packers will be in Pittsburgh on Thursday and they’ll be back on the road against the Broncos for their second preseason game. Their only home game of the summer will be on August 28 against the Cardinals.
Last year as a rookie, Steelers quarterback Will Howard suffered a fractured hand in early August that kept him out of the team’s preseason games.
That’s part of why it’s understandable that Howard — a sixth-round pick in the 2025 draft — is so excited to get his first pro exhibition opportunity this week when the Steelers host the Packers on Thursday night.
“I’m so fired up. I can’t wait for the game,” Howard said, via video from Mark Kaboly. “Obviously, I’m trying to take it day by day, and it’s still camp. But, sometimes you can’t help but look forward a little bit and start getting excited just to be out there and [get] live game reps — because I haven’t played in over a year in live game reps. I think the last time was the national championship. So, I’ve been champing at the bit for a while to get out there with the guys in a real game-like setting — uniform on, helmet on.
“I just can’t wait. I think tomorrow we’re going to start looking at Green Bay a little bit, do some planning a little bit. I’m just really, really excited.”
Howard added, via Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, that he’s expecting to play “a good amount” on Thursday night. But to this point, head coach Mike McCarthy hasn’t set out definitive plans.
No matter how long he’s out there, Howard is going to find Thursday night’s experience meaningful.
“I know everyone says preseason isn’t real football,” Howard said, “but to me, it is.”
