Green Bay Packers edge-rusher Micah Parsons put himself in a company of one during Thursday’s Thanksgiving Day game against the Detroit Lions.
Parsons ran his season sack total to 12.5 in the fourth quarter. ESPN’s Field Yates noted he’s the first player ever with at least 12 sacks through his first five NFL seasons.
The one that put the four-time Pro Bowler over the top came on a 3rd-and-goal for the Lions at the 4-yard line. He found a direct line to quarterback Jared Goff:
The NFL started recording sacks as an official stat in 1982, and Pro Football Reference’s unofficial data only goes back to 1960. There’s a chance some legend of yesteryear set this kind of blistering pace before Parsons did.
But the achievement nonetheless speaks for itself.
The 2021 first-round pick hit the ground running and hasn’t slowed down much. As a rookie, he was an All-Pro and runner-up to the Pittsburgh Steelers’ T.J. Watt for Defensive Player of the Year.
Parsons’ 2025 campaign with the Packers is on pace to be his best yet. He’s only 1.5 sacks away from tying his personal high with five games still to play.
Green Bay made a massive investment in the feared defender between giving up two first-round picks and then signing him to a $186 million extension.
The Dallas Cowboys clearly didn’t view Parsons as an ingredient in a possible Super Bowl formula. The impact he has made for the Packers could put that idea to the test.