Dallas Cowboys star Micah Parsons unplugged: Lion sack dance, Bible study and more
The weekly press conferences with Dallas Cowboys edge rusher Micah Parsons have been must-attend events since his rookie season when he took the league by storm and had the media eating out his hands with animal references and nicknames for teammates.
Parsons has been runner up for NFL Defensive Player of the Year in each of his first two years in the league and he entered the 2023 season as the favorite to win the award in Year 3.
Parsons, who was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week on Wednesday for his performance in 30-10 victory against the New York Jets last Sunday, has only gotten his DPOY campaign off to a rousing start.
His play has powered the team to a 2-0 start that could merit NFL MVP consideration if he keeps it up.
Not only has his play improved in his third year, but so has his sound bites in press conferences. Wednesday was a prime example as Parsons went unplugged on a variety of subjects leading up to Sunday’s game against the Arizona Cardinals, including his why for the season, the origins of his new Lion crawl sack dance, his teammates banding together like an organized pack of Lions to kill their opponents and his daily devotional bible study.
Micah Parsons in his own words:
Is winning NFC Defensive Player of the Week still meaningful?
Parsons: “Oh, they’re OK. You know me. I’m all about the end goal and the journey. I enjoy it. I enjoy my process to get me to where I want to go.”
Defensive coordinator Dan Quinn said you are better this year than were your first two years in every aspect:
Parsons: “Yeah, I do feel better in every aspect. How I’m doing, how I’m eating, how I’m looking. You know, that’s just the work I put in and the results are finally starting to show. It goes to show, if you put in the work, you commit and you stay consistent, great things can happen.”
What do you remember about Cardinals quarterback Joshua Dobbs from last year’s game when he played for the Tennessee Titans?
Parsons: “I remember him running around a lot. You know, us getting after him and getting the victory. Hopefully, we can do that again.”
Is is frustrating that running quarterbacks have had success on scrambles in the first two games?
Parsons: “It is a little frustrating, but that’s just the nature of the game. They’re running for their lives and we’re hunting. It’s all about the nature.”
Are you prepared for the run with Dobbs?
Parsons: “Yeah. We’re going to treat him just like the last couple of weeks, guys who are running, guys a little bit more mobile. You saw a big run by him against the Giants, him getting outside of that pocket so we’ve got to be prepared.”
What kind of impact has defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence had on impact you?
Parsons: “DeMarcus just helps me with the mindset, where to go. He’s a big one about the mindset of how we’re going to hunt, how we’re going to dominate. And definitely, especially in the run game where he’s the most dominant. I learn from him and how he approaches it and what he’s looking at in his keys. He’s helped me get better against the run.”
Was the work you did in the offseason to improve you game more about technique or getting you body right?
Parsons: “They were hand in hand. And obviously, as all of you know, knowledge is the most important thing you can ever have in life. A wise man being a wise man, just learning the game at a higher level than most. I feel like I understand the game, my anticipation of what I’m seeing, my reads and everything, they are just that important. The ability to learn. If you’re able to learn at anything and you want to get better at it, you will.”
You came pretty fast on your first sack against Jets QB Zach Wilson last Sunday. How surprised was he?
Parsons: ”He was definitely probably surprised because he dropped right away. So he definitely saw me and he’s like, ‘oh no’. So that was pretty interesting. But that’s what the lion do.”
You get a kick out of that when you come fast and their eyes are bucked?
Parsons: ”Yeah, (while smiling sheepishly)“
When did the Lion become your entire personality?
Parsons: ”I just adapted to you know. I like some things you just got to embrace. I feel like my energy and positivity, the things that I’m trying to bring into the guys and finding their own ego and finding themselves. I know I joke a lot around it. I really like it. That’s just who I am and who I want to be. When I get my chance to talk in front of the room, I talk about the lion hunting and the preciseness and how methodical it has to be. And how lions have to work as a team to get what they need and so they can feed their family. I said ‘if you look at this, this is what we are doing. We are out here trying to hunt this guy and trying to kill these people so we can feed our families. That’s our why.’ No matter if it’s nature or in life, everyone has their why. Every week we get a chance to go out there and fight for ours. I said we got to be a pack of Lions and (Donte Fowler) is a jaguar. And Mazi (Smith) said he’s a Orca now because I brought up the Orca. Everyone is finding their own identity and who they want to be. So it’s pretty cool. And that’s why I do it.”
When did you come up with Lion crawl celebration?
Parsons: ”Yeah, I was practicing it in camp when I was just joking around with (quarterback) Dak (Prescott), growling at him and crawling at him. And someone said you should really do that. I was like, ‘why don’t I just try it out?’ And now people love the crawl. So I’m trying to find a name for it. So if yall got anything just helped me out and we’re gonna name it something. I might give you one percent.”
Defensive coordinator Dan Quinn talked about player to player leadership on the defense, what does that mean to you?
Parsons: “I just think it’s the confidence. Everybody knew who we had coming in. I just think it started with our best players, and we’re pushing each other. I didn’t shy from it either. Coming in, I said, ‘I hope everybody’s ready to work. I hope everyone is ready to take this thing to another level. Because that’s where I want to go.’ And if you want to go there, you’ve got to bring everyone around you with you. I think our leaders did a great job of just bringing everyone on the same level as us and getting that room prepared. We don’t want it to just be, ‘Oh, we’ve got 11 guys who’s ready to go to war.’ In the Spartan 300 movie, they had 300 men and they’re still grinding. They’re saying, ‘All of us, we’re going to anchor down and we’re going to fight and we’re going to kill.’ That’s how we feel about every guy on our roster.”
How do you keep you and your teammates from not being satisfied with such a great start to the season?
Parsons: “Just know there’s always more and you’ve just got to keep your humility and your faith going and you’ve just got to stay as grounded as you can and walk with God And just stay where you’re at in the moment and don’t look too far ahead and don’t say, ‘Oh we’re doing this.’ Just a reminder, we’re 2-0 because of execution and how we prepared. That’s why we’re 2-0. We’re not 2-0 because of anything else. It’s just remember what’s our process, where are we at in our process, where are we going to be at going into the game on Sunday. When you have that confidence, confidence and preparation meets the game, you see the results. That’s what I try to tell the guys. We’re 2-0 this week because of our preparation and execution. Let’s make it 3-0.”
You done this interview with a Bible in your hand, is that something new in your life?
Parsons: “This isn’t new. Me and my homie, we talk about our faith and stuff every day. He sends me daily devotions. He was like, you want a book yourself or you can start bringing up the topics. And I was like, just send me it. So he sent me the book. And so far I’m getting pretty good at it. Like, I’m trying to learn more about my faith and where I’m going to be. And the importance of just staying in the moment and it’s OK to appreciate your successes and appreciate who you are and what you are. Because God made you for who you are and it’s important for all people to understand, ‘It’s OK. You’re going to be great. Don’t be down on yourself, like you’re perfect. And when you say you’re not perfect and you’re not good for who you are, you’re basically criticizing God. God made you who you are and you’re special in your own way. Always remember that. So tap into your daily devotions.”
This story was originally published September 20, 2023 at 12:00 AM.
