Micah Parsons Moves Past NFC East in Strong Message After Packers DE Reveals Toxic Cowboys Tenure

“Keep going! Not many like you!” Micah Parsons once said of Lane Johnson. But after joining the Packers, he quickly changed his tune. His rival is no longer the Eagles tackle who once declared, “I Don’t Play the Cowboys, I Play Micah Parsons.” In his Packers debut against the Lions, Parsons met a new challenge as he kicked off a new era.

Despite being limited due to his back issues, Parsons went head-to-head with one of the league’s most dangerous offenses. He made quite an impact, giving Lions quarterback Jared Goff and right tackle Penei Sewell plenty of trouble. It marked the start of something new, especially with Sewell.  As Matt Schneidman reported, Parsons had a challenge for Sewell and said, “I’m not gonna be able to get rid of him. He’s a hell of a player. I told him, I said, ‘You’re my new rivalry now. I don’t got Lane no more. It’s gonna be you. I’mma see you twice a year, so you might as well buckle up.'” And so much Parsons.

Sewell earned a spot on this year’s NFL Top 100 list, coming in at No. 13 overall, which is the highest ranking for any offensive lineman. Now, that is an impressive leap from last season, when he was No. 22, after going unranked in his first three years. His presence has been hard to ignore for the opponents, and now even one of the NFL’s best defensive players is calling him a worthy rival.

As the two squared off, Parsons handled it as best he could, but he also recognized Sewell’s potential right away. Parsons’ message for the tackle is a clear indication that this rivalry is only just beginning, as he dismissed his old rival. During an interview, Ben Johnson was asked about the Sewells’ development since his rookie year. “I think that first year, what I immediately flash back to was the Rams game, and he had a couple times where he went one-on-one with Aaron Donald, and he did not back down,” Johnson noted. The Oregon product, who was drafted seventh overall by the Lions, has made impressive strides in such a short span of time.

He is also a 3x Pro Bowler. He added, “And from rookie year until now, all he’s done is polish up his game in terms of technique, in terms of the fundamentals, and honestly, I think it’s the leadership portion that stands out more to me than any. He really is a tone-setter for us on offense…He’s looking to take souls out there.” Even though the 6-foot-5 tackle couldn’t quite get the soul out of Parsons this time, we can bet he’ll be coming after him the next time they meet. And the 4x Pro Bowler isn’t back down either, not after the disappointing and, as he called it, “toxic” 6 months with his former team.

Micah Parsons called out the Cowboys for “toxic” 6 months

Fans aren’t strangers to the defensive end or his struggles with the Cowboys over the past few months. While Jerry Jones insisted that the deal with Parsons was already finalized and claimed it was agent David Mulugheta who complicated matters, Parsons and his camp have stood by their version of events. The situation worsened when Parsons requested a trade in early August, which Jones initially rejected before finally agreeing to it just days before the season opener.

And this delay left Parsons deeply frustrated, as he admitted that an earlier trade would have given him more time to prepare with the Packers’ roster. “Super draining, super toxic for everyone. It’s something that I don’t think no player should have to go through … The fact that I was traded a week before the season was really outrageous and rough. It’s something where I could’ve been with these guys getting better and better and we could’ve had probably (an) even more dominant start,” Parsons said of the last 6 months.

Clearly, the negotiation process only strained the relationship between player and team, and recent revelations have added even more pressure. As per Fox insider Jay Glazer, the Cowboys had already decided to trade Parsons a week before he went public with his demand. Dallas reportedly hoped to send him to an AFC team but couldn’t find the right opportunity. However, several NFC teams showed interest.

Among them, the Eagles reportedly offered a lucrative package on the table, which included two first-round picks, a third, a fifth, and more, per Glazer. Even so, the Cowboys declined and instead struck a deal with the Packers, who secured Parsons with a record-setting four-year, $188 million contract, with $120 million guaranteed. Speaking of the faith that the Packers have in him, Parsons promised, “I’m just gonna give these guys everything I have because I know what’s at stake and I know what they gave up for me to be here and I’mma do what it takes for us to win.” This deal made Parsons the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history. Fittingly, his debut performance for Green Bay has already justified the title.