Cowboys’ Micah Parsons earns NFC Defensive Player of the Week for third time in career

FRISCO, Texas —  Dallas Cowboys two-time First-Team All-Pro linebacker Micah Parsons put together what may have been his most dominant all-around outing in the Cowboys’ 30-10 defensive deconstruction of the New York Jets in Week 2. He finished with two sacks, six quarterback pressures, three tackles for loss, a forced fumble on Pro Bowl running back Dalvin Cook and a fumble recovery. Parsons also almost came away with a touchdown on this play, but replay review revealed Jets guard Laken Tomlinson was touching him as he recovered the football on the AT&T Stadium turf. 

For those efforts, the NFL named Parsons the NFC Defensive Player of the Week, an accolade he has now collected for the third time in his three-year career. He also won the award in Week 8 of the 2021 season, his rookie year at the Minnesota Vikings, and in Week 5 of the 2022 at the Los Angeles Rams. The win for Week 3 of the 2023 season ties Parsons with Cowboys two-time Pro Bowl linebacker Sean Lee for the second-most Defensive Player of the Week accolades in team history. Should Parsons win the award one more time, he would tie franchise legend and Pro Football Hall of Famer DeMarcus Ware for the most in Cowboys history with four. 

However with Parsons up to three sacks (tied for the third most in the NFL) and 12 quarterback pressures (third-most in the NFL), he has his eyes on bigger awards this season as he is powering a Cowboys defense that leads the NFL in points allowed (10), takeaways (seven), total yards per game allowed (193.0), yards per play allowed (3.5), red zone touchdown percentage allowed (0%), sacks (10, tied with the Commanders), quarterback pressure rate (63.6%) and passer rating allowed (34.2). 

“When I talk about Defensive Player of the Year, I don’t look at the subject of the award,” Parsons said after Sunday’s game. “I look at the subject and say ‘I want to be the best player in the NFL.’ So whatever comes with that, I don’t think just qualify myself as just a defensive player. I think I’m a most valuable player.”