Cowboys’ Micah Parsons feels he’s ‘letting people down’ sidelined with injury, preaches ‘next man mentality’

FRISCO, Texas — Dallas Cowboys stars Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence combined to create the most ferocious pass rush in football the last three years. 

During Parsons’ first three seasons from 2021 to 2023, Dallas’ 41.4% quarterback pressure led the NFL with no other team above 40%. Now, both Parsons (high ankle sprain)  and Lawrence (Lisfranc, foot sprain) are reduced to hobbling around the Cowboys locker in walking boots and scooters after suffering injuries in Dallas’ 20-15 road win at the New York Giants on “Thursday Night Football.” 

“It’s just frustrating for real,” Parsons said on Monday. “I put a lot of effort and energy into being ready for the team, so it hurts me. I feel like I’m letting people down. I kind of [thought] of myself as [being] invincible for a while. It’s humbling. It’s humbling. … It’s part of that test. Faith, keeping that faith alive. Come back strong.”

The timeline for high ankle sprains can vary player to player based on degree of severity and how their body reacts, but Parsons is entering his rehabilitation process with an attacking mindset. 

“It’s just going to come down to how I’m attacking this and getting right with [head athletic trainer] Jim [Maurer] and getting ahead of this, so that I can get back as fast as possible. I’m trying to back as fast as possible myself. Don’t want it to linger. I want to be able to go into it and just be ready.”

The only game Parsons has missed in his four-year NFL career came in the Cowboys’ regular-season finale at the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 18 of the 2021 season, his rookie year. That was because he was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Dallas’ Week 5 matchup at the 3-1 Pittsburgh Steelers will likely mark the first of not only his NFL career, but his entire football career going back to his Penn State days, high school, middle school and Pop Warner/pee wee that Parsons will miss because of an injury. 

“A lot,” Parsons said when asked about how much his streak of not missing a game with injury meant to him. “I was trying to shake back. I got into the office, and Jim and them [the Cowboys training staff] was like ‘yeah, you’re probably not going to be able to go [in Week 5]. … I’ve played through hurt, I’ve played through pain. To me, playing through hurt isn’t the problem.” 

At a minimum, it would make sense for Parsons to sit out until the Cowboys’ Week 7 bye passes, which would have the 25-year-old missing Week 5 and Week 6 against the 3-1 Pittsburgh Steelers and the 2023 NFC runner-up Detroit Lions. Emotionally, that logic doesn’t compute for Parsons. 

“It probably makes sense to some, but when you’re a real competitor, like I said, you only get 17 chances at this and missing one of these opportunities to perform at the highest level, bothers me,” Parsons said. “I feel like I wanna play on Sunday. I want to play. If I can play, I will play. … As long as I can run and move, how I move, I want to play.”

“He’ll be challenged to play this week,” Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy said of Parsons on Monday.

‘Next man mentality’

The losses of Parsons and Lawrence couldn’t have come at worse time for Dallas’ defense. They entered Week 4 ranking dead last in the NFL in rushing yards per game allowed (185.7) and yards per carry allowed (5.4). The Cowboys’ Week 4 performance against the Giants bucked that trend as they allowed a miniscule 26 rushing yards on 24 New York carries. That is the Cowboys’ fewest yards per carry allowed (1.08) in a game when facing 20 or more carries in franchise history, per CBS Sports Research. Dallas’ run defense had just shown signs of life, and now setting the edge will be much more difficult. 

“It’s definitely tragic because like obviously I never want to see me and Law out at the same time,” Parsons said. “It’s just all part of the test, man. It just gives more room for these guys that’s coming and playing a lot more time to get ready. Honestly, it’s not like a terrible thing. You these guys to be ready, so when we get late in the season, these guys will be prepared to go through it. They got the experience and keep getting better and better.”

Now, it’s time for youngsters like 2024 second-round rookie edge rusher Marshawn Kneeland to step up, something Parsons has been preparing Kneeland for since training camp. The rookie’s six quarterback pressures are the fifth most in the current rookie class. 

“It’s time to man up for sure,” Parsons said. “We’re talking next man mentality. I’m talking to Marshawn coming back in on Friday, just like ‘It’s time, you got to step up.’ He’s like ‘you don’t think I’m ready?’ I said ‘you don’t understand. When I say step up, I don’t mean just playing. You got to lead now. Even though you lost your two veterans, you have to lead. You have to carry these guys. You got to communicate, talk to them, bring these other guys with you. I don’t mean just by your play. You’ve seen there’s adversity in this. … You got to be the guy for us.’”

“It means a lot,” Kneeland said of Parsons’ praise on Monday. “Just coming from a teammate, somebody that when I came in, he helped me out. Him and D-Law both, helped me out a lot and took me under their wing to basically help coach me up as a player. Yeah, it just means a lot.”

Most QB pressures (2024 rookie class)

Second-year linebacker DeMarvion Overshown, the team’s second-leading tackler with 29 tackles, is another player who has flashed this season. Parsons has previously said he can be an All-Pro player. He doubled down on that on Monday. 

“He’s going to keep growing and getting better and better,” Parsons said of Overshown. “Last game, flying around. He’s special man. I think sky is the limit for him. I think the more experience he’s getting as I told y’all, he is going to be an All-Pro, and I think you guys see that. He’s just going to keep better and better. he’s going to keep getting smarter. He kind of went through my trails and tribulations early on, trying to see everything and trying to diagnose everything, but the game is slowing down for him.”

Parsons also compared fourth-year defensive lineman Chauncey Golston, who is 6-foot-5, 268 pounds and has four-and-a-half career sacks, to five-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Cameron Wake. 

“I don’t want to put Chauncey’s business out there, but Chauncey has a unique skillset that if he masters, he can be one of the best guys in the league. I’m hoping he shows it and performs it this week because especially with his length and ability, the way he can pass rush and be able to utilize it, I think he can be very, very, very good. Cameron Wake-ish type. I think he got that long arm and things like that that he is able to with it. He’s going to be very good.” 

So much of what new defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer wanted to do in 2024 revolved around Parsons’ singular talents, but despite that, Parsons doesn’t think Dallas’ scheme will look too different with him on the sideline, saying the Cowboys have “a bunch of good guys that can play anywhere on the field.”

“I’m very confident in these guys,” Parsons said.