Micah Parsons is everything the Green Bay Packers hoped for, and then some. He truly became Jared Goff's worst nightmare — and that's despite playing fewer than half of the Packers' snaps with a back injury and no training camp. What must Dallas Cowboys fans be thinking?
He provided pressure that doesn't show up on the stat sheet, like hurrying Goff's pass that led to Evan Williams' interception, but he left no doubt on his one sack of the game. The speed at which Parsons flew across the field to chase down Goff made it look like the Lions' QB was running through water. Even head coach Matt LaFleur needed to go cosmic to describe it.
"It looked like a speed of light, a shooting star coming out of the sky and closing ground fast," LaFleur said.
Packers coach Matt LaFleur needs a galactic analogy to describe his new out-of-this-world pass-rusher
LaFleur's not wrong — he described the sack perfectly. It was like creating a player on Madden and cranking up every statistic to 99. That's the night-and-day difference between Parsons at full speed compared to literally every other player on the field.
This isn't surprising to Cowboys fans. Jerry Jones must've realized how talented Parsons was. Why he willingly traded him is a question we'll never understand, but we're grateful he did. It's why the Packers made an all-in move we rarely see. It's why the Philadelphia Eagles were reportedly willing to move heaven and earth to add Parsons to their Super Bowl squad.
By Pro Football Focus' count, Parsons paired his one sack with two pressures and a hit. Again, he didn't even play half of the Packers' snaps. No training camp. No preseason.
Talk about making an impact. On his very first play as a Packer — a 3rd-and-7 on the Lions' opening possession — Parsons pressured Goff into a dump-off pass that resulted in a two-yard loss and a punt. His next pressure led to Williams' interception, and he later came up with a fourth-quarter sack.
READ MORE: Jaire Alexander needed one play to make Packers fans thankful he isn't their problem anymore
Penei Sewell, a three-time Pro Bowl tackle who's had little trouble against the Packers in recent years, had no answer for Parsons. Nor did the interior linemen. It was almost unfair when defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley matched Parsons up against new starting center Frank Ragnow, so much so that the Lions had to double-team him just to stand a chance.
Thank you, Jerry Jones.
For Green Bay, the exciting part isn't just how Parsons performed, but everyone else on defense. Even when he wasn't out there, they looked energized and swarmed to the ball.
The Lions turned 22 carries into just 46 yards, an embarrassing 2.1 yards per attempt. Goff dinked-and-dunked his way to 225 yards, but his 88.6 rating captures his pedestrian performance.
This is just the beginning for Parsons, and his highlight-reel sack provides a glimpse into what's to come. LaFleur had to use a galactic analogy to describe it, and it's fitting.
After all, Parsons' arrival has launched the Packers into the Super Bowl stratosphere.