The Green Bay Packers made one of the NFL’s boldest bets last summer when they sent two first-round picks and Kenny Clark to Dallas for Micah Parsons.
A year later, one of those selections is still waiting to be spent.
FOX Sports’ Rob Rang offered a fresh projection for what it could become, and the answer would give the Cowboys another explosive offensive weapon.
In his 2027 mock draft, Rang has Dallas using Green Bay’s first-rounder at No. 26 on Ole Miss running back Kewan Lacy, a sub-200-pound playmaker who has drawn a lofty NFL comparison from scouts.
“Some scouts believe he is the second coming of De’Von Achane,” Rang wrote.
The projection adds some intrigue to a trade that will continue to be evaluated well beyond Parsons’ first season with the franchise.
Cowboys Projected to Turn Packers Pick Into Lacy
Rang’s Sept. 5 mock is an early snapshot, with an entire NFL and college football season capable of altering the order. But the selection attached to Green Bay stands out because it remains the final first-round piece the Packers surrendered for Parsons.
Lacy led the SEC with 306 touches and 24 rushing touchdowns last season, according to Rang, production that helped put him into the first-round conversation despite a frame that comes in below 200 pounds.
Rang wrote that he believes in Javonte Williams and coach Brian Schottenheimer’s offense, but suggested Dallas could seek more “juice” in the backfield. Williams is coming off a 1,201-yard, 11-touchdown rushing season in 2025, making Lacy more of a big-play addition than an obvious replacement in the projection.
The Achane comparison makes that possibility more eye-opening.
Achane has turned speed into one of the NFL’s most dangerous traits since entering the league. The Miami Dolphins running back has averaged 5.6 yards per carry across his first three seasons, including 1,350 rushing yards in 2025.
Lacy has a full season to determine whether that comparison follows him into April. If it does, the Packers’ former pick could become a recognizable asset tied to the Parsons deal.
Parsons Trade Still Has One First-Round Chapter Left
Green Bay knew the cost would spread beyond one draft when it acquired Parsons in August 2025.
The Packers officially sent Clark and their 2026 and 2027 first-round selections to the Dallas Cowboys. Parsons then agreed to a four-year, $188 million contract extension that made him the NFL’s highest-paid non-quarterback at the time.
The first year delivered both the upside Green Bay paid for and a reminder of the risk.
Parsons recorded 12.5 sacks in 2025 before his season ended with a torn ACL. Green Bay also entered the 2026 draft without a first-round pick because of the trade, while Dallas used the capital from the deal as part of a wider defensive renovation.
That leaves the 2027 first-rounder as the next tangible piece to watch.
FOX’s projection doesn’t mean Lacy will undoubtedly become a Cowboy, or even that Green Bay’s selection will land at No. 26. Draft order, trades and a full college season make September mocks especially fluid.
Regardless, the exercise shows how the Parsons deal will stay visible on both sides.
Green Bay made the trade to add a premier defender to changing its championship trajectory, and Dallas accepted the opposite timeline, turning one established star into veteran help and premium draft capital.
Assuming the final first-round piece turns into a back scouts are already comparing to Achane, the trade’s long-term scorecard will get one more name.
Packers’ Traded 1st-Round Pick Projected to Land ‘2nd Coming of De’Von Achane’