FRISCO, Texas — All-Pro linebacker Micah Parsons is preparing for his fourth NFL season and looking forward to putting more of his imprint on the Dallas Cowboys.
In three seasons so far, he’s earned NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Honors, and several nods to Pro-Bowl and All-Pro teams. Parsons has established himself as a premiere pass rusher and his versatility makes him among the NFL’s most formidable forces.
The Harrisburg, Pa. native is bold and brash off the field, as well.
Parsons hosts a podcast, “On The Edge with Micah Parsons,” where he readily expresses his takes on many NFL topics without holding back. He called the Cowboys playoff loss the Packers, “completely embarrassing and unacceptable,” and said it took him quite some time afterward before going out in public.
WFAA Lead Sports Anchor Joe Trahan sat down 1-on-1 with Parsons to get his feelings on the upcoming season.
Parsons shares his take on new defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer rejoining the Cowboys. The Cowboys’ all-everything linebacker was transparent about the need for change and more accountability for the team to perform at an optimum level. Parsons also said he wants to exert more influence as a leader and identified one key team flaw he thinks is holding the Cowboys back.
Watch the full interview with Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons here:
Here's the transcription of the story that aired on WFAA after the NFL Draft:
JT: I happened to watch your podcast with CeeDee Lamb at the Super Bowl. You talked about leadership and how you guys have to step up, especially as leaders. How do you think that role will evolve for you?
Micah: People forget you want young guys to be leaders, but, you know, you got to put time served and, you know, you got to earn your stripes, your right to speak.
JT: What kind of leader do you want to be? What do you think are the assets that really great leaders bring to the NFL?
Micah: You know, a guy that puts his teammates above, makes everyone around him better. You know, everyone looks to him in times of ‘man, what's going to happen?’ You know that time of who's going to calm down, who's going to set us up to get a stop or, you know, create a turnover, things like that. So, I definitely think I can be that guy.
JT: Have you had a chance to talk to [Cowboys Defensive Coordinator Mike Zimmer] yet about what your role might be?
Micah: Yeah, we had a couple of small conversations, but it won't pick up more until OTA’s. They're still figuring it out.
JT: How do you envision your role moving forward?
Micah: Yeah, I just want them to move me around, keep me flowing - off the ball on the ball, you know, I just I just want him to use, I would say use all my gifts that I was blessed with.
JT: How do you view the new voice that [Zimmer] will bring in? He's a stickler. He holds everyone accountable. He's direct. How do you think you and your teammates will receive the new style of message he will deliver?
Micah: In the end we're grown men. We get paid a lot of money and a lot of people pay a lot of money to come see us. So, if we can't be accountable, if we can't take hard conversations or that type of stuff then I don't think this is the sport for you.
JT: What do you think would be the key to you guys unlocking the ability to play your best in the biggest moments?
Micah: I don't necessarily say that we aren’t playing to our abilities because there are close games, down the stretch games. Something that I've noticed in my three years is that the things that carried from regular season carried to postseason. But, you know, I think it goes missed oftentimes how much things carry if you don't drop the dead weight, you’ll sink right with it.
To me, we got to drop the dead weight, man. And that's what I mean when it comes to culture. We got to be better. We got to cut the dead weight. We’ve got to culturally hold everyone accountable and fix these things.
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