Xavier McKinney could not believe it. 

Having seen what Micah Parsons can do up close—and knowing what the Dallas Cowboys-turned-Green Bay Packers pass rusher had accomplished before joining him in Titletown — McKinney was shocked to learn that Sunday’s 27-23 victory over the Arizona Cardinals marked the first time in Parsons’ career that he tallied three sacks in a single game.

“[Expletive], I didn’t realize that was his first time having three sacks,” McKinney said after watching Parsons’ basically seal Sunday’s win with his third sack of the day, for a 9-yard loss after the Cardinals had reached Green Bay’s 26-yard line with 32 seconds left in the game.

“I would’ve thought he’d already had that, the way he rushes. But it’s good to see him have success, man. We’re all happy for him and hopefully he can do the same [expletive] again next game.”

That next game will be against the Pittsburgh Steelers and former Packers icon Aaron Rodgers on “Sunday Night Football,” with Parsons looking to sack the four-time NFL MVP for the first time.

On Sunday evening, though, Parsons was reliving his three takedowns of Cardinals No. 2 quarterback Jacoby Brissett, who’d started in place of an injured Kyler Murray and had a productive day (25 of 36 for 279 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions for a 110.8 passer rating) when he wasn’t being harassed by Parsons.

Parsons finished the day with 10 pressures, five quarterback hits, four tackles for loss and five total tackles in addition to his three sacks.

“Obviously, he changes the defense, man,” Packers running back Josh Jacobs said. “Just because of the attention he demands. To be able to be a guy that’s that elite of a player and to have probably the best game of his career today — and still could’ve had one more — I think it speaks volumes to who he is and what type of player we have in him.”

What was mystifying was that the Cardinals decided not to chip, thump or double-team Parsons on the majority of Brissett’s nearly 50 drop backs. Instead, they were content to let third-year left tackle Paris Johnson go 1-on-1 with him, with less-than-stellar results.

“They kind of said, ‘We’re just going to go best-on-best,’” Parsons said. “And I feel like when we get those looks, we’ve got to take advantage of them.

“I don’t think it was my best pass rush game, I just think it’s the first time [the opposing team] allowed me to rush this year. I mean, if you look at the looks I’ve been getting — double tight ends, chips, full slides and other guys stepping up — [Arizona was] opening it up a little bit for me and I just took advantage of it.”

Asked if his performance Sunday was why the Packers are paying him $210 million over five years, Parsons replied, “For sure, for sure.”

Parsons’ impact was reminiscent of what Pro Football Hall of Famer Reggie White did 32 years earlier in a prime-time game against the Denver Broncos at Lambeau Field on October 10, 1993. 

Anyone else have a flashback today to when another field-tilting pass rusher in his first year with the #Packers had a three-sack game 32 years ago in October 1993? Micah Parsons ≠ Reggie White. (Yet.) But it was hard not to think of The Minister’s three sacks on John Elway. pic.twitter.com/hmaJcBGTvn

— Jason Wilde (@jasonjwilde) October 20, 2025

White, in his first season with the Packers after signing as a free agent the previous spring, sacked fellow Hall of Famer John Elway three times that night, including on back-to-back plays late in the fourth quarter to seal the Packers’ victory that night.

“Man, it’s amazing. I can’t state enough how fun it is just to have him on this team, and how much of a playmaker he is in big situations like that,” Packers quarterback Jordan Love said. “Having three sacks on the day is big-time. You can’t say enough how much of a playmaker he is.”

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