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By Jon Machota 23m ago
FRISCO, Texas — Michael Bennett was a standout defensive end at Texas A&M, so he didn’t quite understand why his first NFL position coach wanted to move him to defensive tackle. That Seattle Seahawks defensive line coach saw that Bennett had the versatility to help in a variety of ways, one of which was as a nickel three-technique defensive tackle.
Bennett went on to play 11 seasons in the NFL at both tackle and defensive end, earning three Pro Bowl appearances and a Super Bowl ring with the Seahawks.
His first defensive line coach and later defensive coordinator was Dan Quinn, the current Cowboys defensive coordinator who sees similarities between Bennett and rookie linebacker Micah Parsons.
“He’s somebody who just kept growing and growing and growing based on (there being) a new skill set that he could do,” Quinn said of Bennett. “With Micah, I’m challenging him to find the things that he does really well and make sure that I don’t overload him.
“We have a lot of work to do to keep developing. But I’ve got great belief in him. I can’t wait to see where we’re going to take him to. I’ve got a high standard for him.”
The Cowboys drafted Parsons 12th overall in April to be their middle linebacker, which he did in the season opener. But with starting edge rushers DeMarcus Lawrence (broken foot) and Randy Gregory (Reserve/COVID-19) unavailable for Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers, Quinn decided to put a little more on Parsons’ plate.
Lawrence suffered his foot injury in last Wednesday’s practice. Later in the day, Quinn approached Parsons with the idea of making him a defensive end for their upcoming game.
“Instantly I said, ‘All right, Coach, let’s play,’” Parsons said. “After sitting out a year, I ain’t going to deny an opportunity to get on the field. I just took it head on from Thursday to (Sunday). I prepared to play at a high level.”
Parsons, who played linebacker at Penn State for two years before opting out last season due to COVID-19 concerns, had not lined up at defensive end for an entire game since high school. He was outstanding in his 39 snaps, which was 55 percent of the team’s defensive snaps. He finished with eight pressures, one sack, three QB hits and four QB hurries, according to Pro Football Focus. His 90.8 pass-rushing grade was second among all NFL defenders graded by PFF in Week 2.
“A lot of it was natural,” Parsons said. “I mean, some people had a long day out there.”
Parsons didn’t name any individuals, but clearly the longest day belonged to Chargers right tackle Storm Norton. Parsons moved around but the majority of his rushes came against Norton. Parsons didn’t have near the impact when lining up at right end and going against left tackle Rashawn Slater, the team’s first-round pick, drafted one spot after Parsons.
Through two games, PFF has Parsons tied for fifth in the league in pressures with 11, trailing only the Raiders’ Maxx Crosby, the 49ers’ Arik Armstead, the Rams’ Aaron Donald and the Steelers’ Cameron Heyward.
“My main mindset is to be dominant throughout the whole game,” Parsons said. “Play at a high level and every time I’m out there, make a play. So whether I’m rushing the quarterback or stuffing the run, that’s what I want to do, be as dominant as possible.”
He played more in the season opener (51 defensive snaps) because he was starting at linebacker. Defensive linemen generally don’t play as many snaps as linebackers so they can get more opportunities to rest and stay fresh. Parsons disliked the reduced number of snaps, sharing after Sunday’s game that he told the coaching staff that if there’s a similar game plan in the future, he’d like to play linebacker on the snaps when he’s not at defensive end.
That’s probably not going to happen. If Quinn prepares him to play defensive end for a game, Parsons’ snap count is likely to remain similar to what it was Sunday.
“I like where he is at,” Quinn said. “He hit the mark where I hoped he would go as a defensive lineman in the game. Definitely a lot different when you are battling 320 pounders as opposed to guarding running backs and tight ends. That definitely factors in as well.”
Immediately following the first round of the draft, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones pointed out how they viewed Parsons as the top pass rusher in this draft class. Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones said Monday on 105.3 The Fan that Parsons “exceeded all expectations” in his first game at defensive end. After such a successful outing in southern California, many are wondering if maybe making Parsons a full-time defensive end is a better move long-term considering how difficult it is to find elite pass rushers.
But Quinn seems hesitant about committing to that type of position switch.
“There’s a lot to develop here,” Quinn said. “He’s got a long way to go. He can run and hit like you know what. That’s his superpower. And he’s got rare speed and physicality to do that. I want to make sure that we’re always featuring that part of his game.”
Having Parsons at middle linebacker allows Quinn to use him as a pass rusher at times but still get the opportunities to drop him into coverage and swarm all over the field making tackles. In only two games, Parsons has already lined up 49 times on the defensive line, 38 times as an in-the-box linebacker, three times as a defensive back and once as a center.
Yes, Parsons snapped the ball on the final play in Tampa Bay when special teams coordinator John Fassel called his unique pitch-back play because the Cowboys were too far away to attempt a Hail Mary.
“He thinks he can do everything,” Fassel said of Parsons. “He literally wants to return kickoffs. He wants to be the backup punter. Probably wants to play quarterback. He’s just a really fun kid. I wouldn’t put anything past him. If we put him back there to return a kickoff, he probably would do a pretty damn good job.”
After facing Tom Brady and Justin Herbert the first two weeks, Quinn and the Cowboys are now preparing to stop Philadelphia’s Jalen Hurts, a quarterback more likely to run than the other two. Brady has averaged 2.1 rush attempts per game in his 22-year career. Herbert’s average is at 3.7 through 17 career games. Hurts has run the ball 17 times through the Eagles’ first two games.
There’s no doubt that Parsons will be a key part of the game plan, whether it’s at defensive end or back at linebacker. Gregory is expected to return from the Reserve/COVID-19 list this week. Even with him back in the starting lineup at right defensive end, Parsons could continue to help fill Lawrence’s spot at left end. But maybe they’re better off having their best run-and-hit defender at linebacker with such a mobile quarterback.
“I’m hard on him because I have a lot of belief and trust in him,” Quinn said. “I wouldn’t even consider it had I not thought he could handle it. I’ve seen what he could do on the edge. Doing it all the time is different than just doing it on third downs or two minutes. There’s a lot of factors that go into it because, quite honestly, he’s never done some of the pressures or anything as a defensive end. He’s done them at linebacker, but he doesn’t know them at that space.
“He’s a quick study and I got high standards for him to make sure he hits the mark. I anticipated some errors, and it was actually less than what I thought.”
