Micah Parsons named NFL’s ninth-best player by CBS Sports

The Dallas Cowboys have been one of the better teams in the NFL for the last three seasons, at least in the regular season anyway. A huge factor in this has been the defensive side of the ball as the Cowboys have led the league in turnovers twice and finished no lower than seventh in fewest points allowed.

That production has been spearheaded by one man, edge rusher Micah Parsons. Pete Prisco of CBS Sports certainly agrees with that. In fact, earlier this week, he named Parsons as the ninth-best player in the NFL.

He has 40 1/2 sacks in three seasons, including 14 last season, to put him in the conversation as best rusher in the game. He also led the league in pressures with 103. He has moved around a lot in his three seasons with the Cowboys, but he is best when rushing the passer off the edge. (Last season: No. 8)

Parsons is the ultimate chess piece on defense. During his rookie campaign, Parsons played 374 snaps on the defensive line, which led to 67 pressures, and he also logged 498 as a linebacker. Over the last two years, he’s been more of an edge rusher with over 700 snaps each season, and that’s led to at least 90 pressures in both. Also, Parsons has played 28 snaps in the slot, 10 as an outside cornerback, and even one as a safety.

The former fourth-round pick has been the model of consistency as well. During his first three seasons, per Pro Football Focus, Parsons has improved his defensive grades every year (89.8, 91.6, 92.7), and his pass-rush grade ranged between 92.1 and 93.7 during that time.

When you turn on the tape, Parsons shows incredible athleticism and speed coming off the edge or playing sideline to sideline as a linebacker at 6’3 and weighing around 250 pounds. His ability to use power and his quickness simultaneously makes him virtually impossible to block one-on-one, and he still has the skill set to get to the quarterback with multiple blockers in his path.

The scary thought for the rest of the NFL is that Parsons just turned 25 years old, so he’s just now hitting his prime as a player. With new defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer on board in Dallas, Parsons could be gearing up for his best season in the league so far.