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Rob Demovsky
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Micah Parsons hates the tush push, thinks offensive players get away with holding far too often and had to change his facemask during the last game because he got poked in the eye and popped a blood vessel on a play that didn’t draw a penalty.
And the Green Bay Packers defensive end said it all knowing that it could back to haunt him — both when his team plays the Philadelphia Eagles next month and when the NFL hears his comments.
Though Parsons said Thursday that he doesn’t think the NFL will do anything about the situation, Packers coach Matt LaFleur said he plans to at least talk to the officials before Sunday’s game at the Arizona Cardinals about what he perceives as missed holding calls.
“That’s definitely a conversation pregame,” LaFleur said.
LaFleur said earlier in the week that he believes Parsons is “frustrated by it and there are some that are egregious, and I think those need to be called.”
It doesn’t sound as if Parsons thinks much will change.
“Naw, I don’t think it matters,” Parsons said. “The refs are going to call what they call. All we can do is just hope we get called a fair game. I don’t care what the fans want sometimes. If your team holds, they should get better tackles, better guards. S—, don’t blame that on us.”
According to ESPN Research, Green Bay has had only six holding penalties called on its opponents this season, tied for the third fewest in the league (although the Packers have already had their bye and have played one fewer game than all but five other teams).
“Like five years of not getting a call, you eventually stop worrying about it,” Parsons said. “I think I’ve just got to keep going. That’s the hunt, yeah. That’s part of the challenges. You’ve got to keep going. And that’s bothersome. That worries them. They know that.
“That’s the part of being one of the best. That comes with some territory, parts that you hate and the parts that the league lets go. They know, you can tell how they call the games. They don’t call offsides for offense, but they’ll call it on defense. They won’t call offensive pass interference, but they’ll call defensive pass interference. We know what they’re trying to do. They’re want to load the points up so fans can be happy. They’ll call defensive holding, but they won’t call offensive holding. Let’s just wake up.”
Parsons leads the NFL with 4.6 pressures per game, according to ESPN Research. He was credited with five pressures Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals but did not record a quarterback hit for the only time this season.
Parsons also said there’s a double standard when it comes to player safety. He said he got poked in the eye by a Bengals player and popped a blood vessel, but there was no call for illegal hands to the face. He said he changed to a more protective facemask during the game.
“If you’re going to say it’s about protecting players, then protect all players,” Parsons said. “Don’t just protect one side of the ball. Like, I don’t mind guys chipping from the outside, but running backs want to come and [hit] players while we’re engaged with offensive linemen, that’s complete bulls—. That’s not good football. That’s not safe football.
“You want to fine guys for putting their head down [and leading with the helmet], but you can be engaged with an offensive tackle and a guard can put his head right into your head. What are we talking about here? Look at how many times that’s on film, guys putting their head down and trying to come clean your clock. But you can’t do that to offensive players. S—. You’ll get a $50,000 fine. I might get a fine for this [news] conference.”
Those weren’t Parsons’ only comments that might get some attention. Parsons posted on social media his disdain for the Eagles’ tush push play after they ran it four straight times in last week’s game against the New York Giants.
The Eagles have lost two straight games after starting 4-0, and despite their success with the tush push, they have scored just 17 points in each of their past two games.
“S—, if you ask the Eagles’ offensive players, they’ll probably say, ‘That’s the best thing we’re doing on offense right now,'” Parsons said. “It’s the most consistent thing they’ve got. That might come [back] and bite me one day.”
The day could be Nov. 10 when the Eagles play the Packers at Lambeau Field.
