DETROIT – Micah Parsons cost the Green Bay Packers two first-round picks, defensive tackle Kenny Clark and a $186 million contract.
With every big play, it’s apparent that he would have been a bargain at twice the price.
The Packers beat the Detroit Lions 31-24 on Thursday. Parsons, as usual, was a driving force. He had 2.5 sacks, giving him 12.5 for the season.
A week after joining Reggie White was the only players in NFL history to start their careers with five consecutive seasons with 10-plus sacks, Parsons became the one and only player in NFL history to start his career with five consecutive seasons of 12-plus sacks.
“I found out when I came to the locker room,” Parsons said.
According to Next Gen Stats, Parsons’ 38.5 percent pressure rate was his highest since he was a rookie in 2021. It was his second 10-pressure game of the season; the rest of the league has three. On third down, he rushed the passer six times and had 1.5 sacks and four pressures. He had 10 of the 19 pressures by the defense.
Not just a one-trick pony, he also had three stuffs – a tackle at or behind the line of scrimmage vs. the run.
“I feel like going into the offseason, it was supposed to be my year – my year to be the best player – and just trying to live up to that,” he said.
“Obviously not having camp, it took me a little more of a while to get into a rhythm. It’s just really being championship football games, division games. I just have to step up my level of play and just be the person they brought me in to (be).”
Already one of the best players in the NFL, Parsons joined other pass-rushing greats such as Myles Garrett and Will Anderson for offseason workouts to help raise his game to another level. With 1.5 sacks against the Giants, two sacks against the Vikings and 2.5 sacks against the Lions, Parsons has six sacks the last three games.
“It’s really a shout to my teammates, every person I play with,” Parsons said. “They’re a testament to all. You can’t do it by yourself. I just think it’s a little bit of everything. But, honestly, man, I’m just so thankful and blessed to be a part of history and my own self and, obviously, doing it with the Green Bay Packers, someone that has such a rich history.”
Parsons was dominant from the start. On third-and-15 on the opening defensive series, Parsons and Kingsley Enagbare combined to sack Jared Goff to force a punt.
Then it was time for The Closer, as defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley calls him, to do his thing.
With Green Bay up 31-21, the Lions took possession with 9:02 remaining. After the Lions picked up one first down, Parsons roared around veteran left tackle Taylor Decker and clobbered Goff from behind for a loss of 8.
Micah Parsons makes easy work of Taylor Decker, who is a darned good left tackle. pic.twitter.com/zIF81GX5Ch
— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) November 28, 2025
“If I go out there, I’m going to end the game,” he said of his mentality for the final series.
The Lions got bailed out on the drive when Keisean Nixon was flagged for illegal contact. Given new life, the Lions advanced to a first-and-goal at Green Bay’s 4. Edgerrin Cooper had a quarterback hit on David Montgomery’s wildcat pass on first down and Colby Wooden batted down a pass on second down.
That set the stage for Parsons, who lined up on the left side of the defense and looped up the middle to crush Goff for a key sack to force a field goal.
Imagine being Jared Goff with a clean pocket … until No. 1 is in your face. pic.twitter.com/qcLtCp0Isi
— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) November 28, 2025
“You’ve got to still come out and show up,” Parsons said. “You heard Dan Campbell say he likes his guys; I like my guys. I like me against anybody. I don’t duck nobody. Y’all go watch the tape. I’m going against the best guys every week. I get my matchups, the ones we dial up when we can get some situations, but so what?”
Parsons and Lions star Aidan Hutchinson led the NFL with 60 pressures entering Week 13, according to Next Gen Stats. Parsons had 10 pressures on Thursday and Hutchinson had five, emblematic of Green Bay’s big day in the trenches.
“Football’s played up front,” coach Matt LaFleur said. “So, if you’re able to give your guy time, you’re going to have a lot more chance at having success. Detroit’s got a really good offensive line. I think we’ve got a pretty good defensive line. And, certainly, you felt Micah Parsons today – two-and-a-half sacks and other pressures. He had a hell of a performance.”
Micah Parsons (1) and his teammates gets some postgame turkey after the Green Bay Packers beat the Detroit Lions. | Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images
Parsons also made some Thanksgiving history. After recording six sacks in four games with the Cowboys, Parsons is up to 8.5 sacks on Thanksgiving. That ties former Lions standout Ezekiel Ansah for the most Thanksgiving sacks.
“I just feel like it’s just that time of year where I think it’s the whole family feel, the community life, family life,” he said. “You just really feel really good between giving back, my family watching me; family in town, kids.
“Anytime my son’s in town – he’s not at the game – but I know when he’s coming, I know he expects a certain level of dominance out of me or I’m going to hear it from him. It’s a combination of everything. My oldest son, I hear him and Thanksgiving, it means something to me.”
Parsons is up to 65 career sacks. That’s the fifth-most in NFL history through five seasons, with Parsons leap-frogging former Cowboys star DeMarcus Ware, who had 64.5. White leads with 81, followed by J.J. Watt with 74.5, T.J. Watt with 72 and Derrick Thomas with 66.
It was the 18th game of Parsons’ career with at least two sacks. That’s now the fourth-most in NFL history by a player in his first five seasons, with Parsons breaking a tie with Hall of Famer Jared Allen. White leads with 24, J.J. Watt had 21 and Richard Dent had 19.
Garrett, who probably has the NFL sacks title and Defensive Player of the Year wrapped up, sent Parsons a text on Thursday morning.
“Myles is somebody who’s been so good to me,” Parsons said. “He reached out this morning and was like, ‘I hope you go be great.’”
After another day of greatness, Parsons was looking forward to doing what just about everyone else did on Thursday – spending quality time with family.
“I’m just ready to go be Dad,” he said with a smile. “I get enough of the media, the hate, the love. My kids and my family is the only thing that’s more genuine. That’s love no matter what. When I leave here, I land, I’m just going to go be Dad and forget about everything that just happened and get back to reality.”
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