Dallas Cowboys coaches praise Micah Parsons after switch from LB to DE
With defensive linemen Randy Gregory and DeMarcus Lawrence unavailable for the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, rookie linebacker Micah Parsons made the switch from linebacker to defensive end. The Cowboys came away with a 20-17 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers, and Parsons’ strong performance was a big reason behind it.
The former Penn State star came out of the game with two tackles, one sack, one tackle for loss, and four quarterback hits. Dallas held the Chargers to 17 points and less than 100 rushing yards. On Monday, the Cowboys coaching staff praised Parsons.
Dan Quinn, John Fassel praise Parsons after the win
Dan Quinn, the Cowboys defensive coordinator, was happy with what he saw from the 11th overall pick. Quinn said that he wouldn’t have had Parsons make the switch if he didn’t think he would be able to handle it. Parsons didn’t make as many errors as Quinn thought he would.
“I’m hard on him because I have a lot of belief and trust in him,” Quinn said of Parsons on Monday. “He’s a quick study. I was proud of him.”
One of Parsons’ biggest assets as a defensive player is his speed and physicality. He has the ability to play linebacker or defensive line, and that was on display on Sunday.
“He can run and hit like a you know what,” Quinn said. “That’s his superpower. He’s got rare speed and physicality to do that. We want to make sure that we’re always featuring that part of his game.”
Parsons has shown that he is versatile enough to play multiple roles on the Cowboys’ defense. Cowboys’ special teams coordinator John Fassel said that Parsons also wants to try his hands on special teams.
“He thinks he can do everything. He literally wants to return kickoffs,” Fassel said. “And he wants to be the backup punter. He probably wants to play quarterback. Just a really fun kid, and I wouldn’t put anything past him.”
Parsons: Now the Cowboys can ‘open the playbook even more’
Coming into the game, Parsons knew that he could be in line for a role at multiple positions across the Cowboys defense. Now that he has a strong performance on the line under his belt, he is prepared for more packages in that role in the future.
“I knew most of my snaps would come from me rushing the passer. And I just took it head on from Thursday to today – to be ready to play at a high level,” Parsons said to reporters after the game. “After today, we can open the playbook even more. I think my teammates and Coach Q put an unbelievable amount of faith in me. And it just keeps building my confidence to believe I can do much more than I thought I could do.”