OXNARD, Calif. — Dallas Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy has fielded one question more than any other since the end of the 2021 season.
How can linebacker Micah Parsons improve on his sensational rookie campaign, which rivaled Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor as one of the best in NFL history with NFL Defensive Rookie of Year Honors and finishing second in NFL Defensive Player of the Year voting, and be better in 2022?
McCarthy is big on players making a huge jump in their second year.
And four days into training camp, where Parsons has dominated play on a daily basis and left offensive tackles in his wake en route to sacks, McCarthy said the 2021 11th overall pick is already at a different level than he was at this time last year.
The affable and endearing Parsons has another way of explaining it.
No longer a rookie, the game has slowed down for him. He is comfortable in his own skin as the best player on the field. This is home for him.
“I’d just say the difference is just everything seems way more slow, calm, collective,” Parsons said. “I have an understanding of what I’m doing, what everyone else is doing. I’m not exhausting extra energy. I just feel way more relaxed, like I’m at home.”
At this time last year, Parsons was trying to prove himself and show everyone what he could do after sitting out his final season at Penn State during the COVID pandemic.
He now walks around — make that, rides around — training camp like he owns the place. He rode up to a press conference on a motorized scooter on Friday under the guise of conserving energy.
“Yeah, staying off my feet. That’s what I call it,” Parsons said.
“Last year, I was just trying to earn the respect of my fellow teammates and my fellow players across the league. This year I just want to go out there and dominate now.”
Domination is all he knows and he does.
He said he feels no pressure of trying to duplicate last year’s success. His goal is to surpass it.
“I don’t believe in pressure. Pressure is non-existent,” Parsons said. “You have expectations for yourself and what you want to achieve. And that is personal. I think pressure might be other people’s aspects and how they view you. If that can get you off your game you are probably in the wrong sport.”
Parsons is definitely in the right sport.
With 13 sacks as a rookie, he is already considered one of the league’s best pass rushers.
In addition to his speed and athleticism, his flexibility and versatility stand out the most as the Cowboys use him all over the field at middle linebacker and both end positions.
Seven of his sacks in 2021 came from linebacker and six were from defensive end.
The Cowboys plan to keep moving him around to confuse opponents and take advantage of mismatches.
“He’s unique. His speed. His quickness and his strength. The combination of having it all,” McCarthy said when asked about Parsons’ daily highlights. “There’s not a day there’s a play particularly in his pursuit, his finish, just the way he takes away angles and how he breaks on the football, he’s super instinctive and slippery in the phone booth. He just has a lot of natural instinctive playmaking ability. Yeah, he’s very, very impressive.”
“He’s lost a little weight; he’s had a really good off season. Obviously, in year two, and how people look at him, and how they’ll have to game-plan against him, we’ve had a whole year to implement the schemes around that and to make sure we’re giving him the opportunities he’s needing. He’s definitely going to be a big part of our defensive success.”
Parsons played at 251 pounds last year. He came to training camp weighing a more trim and chiseled 244. So he cut out the fast foods and fried foods.
“I just wanted to lose weight and play lighter, not be as tired,” Parsons said. “I just fixed my diet. I hung up the Chick-fil-A, the Wendys and stuff like that. As you work out, you tend to lose those pounds that fried foods might do to you. Just fixing up the diet. I still stay with the pasta. I just don’t eat fried foods no more. I ain’t no vegetarian, I will tell you that.”
He also ain’t a rookie anymore.
He’s arrived. He’s home.
