Pride of Detroit
I had a vision for my prediction last week, but I came two sacks short. Detroit Lions EDGE Aidan Hutchinson came in clutch with the game-ending sack on Sunday afternoon against the New York Giants, but he didn’t have the big game I expected he would.
I’m flipping the script this time, and I want to focus on a different edge defender, the one on the other sideline for the Green Bay Packers: Micah Parsons. Parsons has had a strong season with Green Bay so far, racking up 10 sacks and reinforcing an already strong Green Bay defense. The defense came up big against Detroit to start the season in Week 1, defeating the Lions 27-13.
In that game, Parsons was limited on snaps due to his short time with the team and a back injury. He was relatively quiet on the stat sheet, with one sack on Lions quarterback Jared Goff and nothing else. Just because he was quiet on the stat sheet didn’t mean he wasn’t a factor in the end. This time around, I believe he will be held quiet on the stat sheet, and his impact won’t be as strong as before.
It’s rare for a defensive player not to impact a game, whether it’s recorded on the stat sheet or not. A player can usually get a tackle, pressure, force an incompletion, or do something to impact a play. Not everything in the NFL is a stat, though you can find a stat for just about anything nowadays. Parsons has been in the league since 2021 with 74 career games, and he’s done something in almost every game he’s played.
Whether it’s a monster three-sack performance like this season against the Arizona Cardinals, or it’s getting 11 tackles against the Minnesota Vikings as a rookie, Parsons is tough to stop. He’s one of the best pass rushers in the NFL, and limiting him to only a few tackles is a victory for most teams. In the last matchup, Parsons had only 30 snaps total, the lowest he’s had all season. He’s up to a season-high 61 snaps in Week 11, so he’ll be on the field even more this time.
In those 30 snaps, Parsons finished with a single sack and two pressures per PFF. He impacted the game elsewhere as his presence threw off the blocking scheme for Detroit and gave them issues when he was on the field. This time around, Detroit is going to be better prepared for him.
In his career, Parsons has been held without a single stat in only two games, one in 2024 against the Cincinnati Bengals and the other against the Giants in 2023. The Lions’ offensive line is going to be more prepared for Parsons this time around, with more time to study what he’s doing with the Packers, and they have more experience than they did in September. Left guard Christian Mahogany is down...
