‘He brings out the mad scientist in you’ – Dan Quinn knows facing his former player Micah Parsons will be a challenge
Micah Parsons is the type of player that keeps a coach up all night.
The Washington Commanders have the daunting task of traveling to a hostile environment on a short week to take on the Green Bay Packers. Oh, and don’t forget that they traded for Micah Parsons to add to a young, talented defense.
Commanders head coach Dan Quinn is getting the team ready for a quick turnaround, and he knows more than anyone just how difficult Parsons will make the offensive game plan. There are only a handful of special players in the league that change the game completely with their presence, and Parsons is one of those players.
Quinn knows Parsons is built differently
Ever since Parsons was rumored to be traded, and that he was unhappy with the Dallas Cowboys, everyone knew the Commanders could be a possible location due to his strong connection with his coach, Dan Quinn. Instead, the All-Pro pass rusher got traded to the Packers, and now Quinn is stuck gameplanning against him earlier in the season than he expected.
“He brings out the mad scientist in you,” Quinn said. “To see, ‘Alright, what if he was here, and how would you feature him? And what about over here?’ He was a player who could learn things really quickly.”
The two will always be connected, and maybe be reconnected in the future one day, but it’s all business now as the two face off on Thursday.
Parsons is the type of player you have to gameplan for early, especially with such a short week with Thursday Night Football. There’s one thing about Parsons that stands out to Quinn from their time together.
“Speed,” Quinn said. “In Dallas, he was one of our fastest players. So that’s the hardest thing to simulate for an offensive tackle to see the first couple, two or three steps. It’s not at a speed that you can simulate in a practice rep. So, that would be like early on, I think there’s been some rushes that he could surprise some people if you haven’t faced him, knowing that he can really jump off the ball.”
Welcome to Green Bay
Parsons made an instant impact even with a small sample size in Week 1. He only played on 23 pass-rushing snaps, but that’s all it took to see that the Packers’ defense will be dangerous with Parsons coming at the quarterback.
He finished with two pressures, a hurry, and got his first sack as a Packer on Jared Goff. The more impressive number, however, is that he had a 21% pass rush against Penei Sewell, who is a top right tackle in the league.
Commanders rookie right tackle Josh Conerly Jr. passed his first test against Abdul Carter and the Giants’ pass rush, but Parsons is a different breed.
He has the most sacks of his career against the Commanders with 10.5 in eight games, and the most tackles for loss as well with nine. The Packers will send all they have at the rookie and try to pressure quarterback Jayden Daniels, who struggled against the blitz on Sunday. Even if Parsons is still on a limited snap count, you have to be ready for the game-changing plays he’s capable of making.
Washington Commanders News
Commanders rookie phenom solved the biggest mystery with the team, and made history in the process in his debut
What a debut for the late-round rookie who has been the hype of the team.
