Dallas Cowboys edge rusher Micah Parsons is on his way to becoming just the fifth defensive player in NFL history to be a first-team All-Pro player in each of his first three seasons.
The 24-year-old leads the NFL in quarterback pressures (97) and quarterback pressure rate (23%), making him the co-favorite for the 2023 NFL Defensive Player of the Year Award (-115 odds per Caesars Sportsbook) along with Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett. However, Parsons still searches for a superstar whistle from the referees after what transpired in the Cowboys’ 22-20 Christmas Eve loss on Sunday at the Miami Dolphins.
Parsons was called for a roughing the passer penalty on a play in which he and teammate DeMarcus Lawrence sandwiched Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa with just under 30 seconds left in the first half, a play in which he thought was clean.
“[The ref] said my intent was to punish the quarterback,” Parsons said postgame Sunday. “How am I trying to punish him if I’m just trying to sack him? It’s not like it was a late hit. It’s not like I’m leaving my feet. I didn’t lead with my head. I don’t know how you make that call.
“It’s mind-blowing, the things that are getting called, and the positions that we get put in,” Parsons continued. “We just have to learn how to fight the adversity. I know a lot of it is BS, but it’s the world we live in. We’ve got the star on our helmet. … It’s just hard to play defense.”
With Parsons, the NFL’s best at getting in a quarterback’s face, unable to draw a holding penalty across his last 38 quarters played, Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones stood up for his superstar Tuesday.
“There’s no question that Micah (Parsons) is having restrictions that, if turned loose, would result in a sack of the quarterback,” Jones said Tuesday on 105.3 FM The Fan. They won’t call a holding penalty in a certain range of holding, usually, if…
Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/cowboys-jerry-jones-micah-parsons-rip-referees-for-inconsistent-calls-its-just-hard-to-play-defense/
Author : Garrett Podell
Publish date : 2023-12-26 20:04:15
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