Parsons understands the business.
Former Penn State star Micah Parsons understands what it feels like to be disrespected in the NFL, as he did with the Dallas Cowboys about a year ago. Parsons wanted to be paid by the Cowboys, but instead Jerry Jones shipped him to the Green Bay Packers, where he eventually got the money he deserved.
It was a very strange situation for a player of Parsons' caliber, but unfortunately, Jones has shown that he's willing to do that more often than not.
As for how that affected him, he's still one of the better edge rushers in the NFL, but he now understands even more what it feels like to be counted out.
Other players in the NFL might not be as talented as Parsons in the simple sense of showing what they can do already at such a high level, but some guys were drafted just as high. One of those players is J.J. McCarthy, the former Michigan standout who was recently traded to the New York Giants.
Despite being a Michigan guy, Parsons stuck up for the former Big Ten standout. He admitted that he felt bad for McCarthy, and while he understands the reason behind trades, he doesn't believe that a third-year guy who was picked with a top-15 overall selection should be given up on just yet.
“I’m disappointed in the Vikings for that. I’m so disappointed, loving that for the Giants because, obviously, they need a backup quarterback,” said Parsons on his Bleacher Report live stream.
“But this guy is in his third year in the league. He’s a third-year guy, and he’s traded a top 15 pick. It’s like he was injured in his rookie year, and Sam Darnold started. Sam took off. The whole point of letting Sam Darnold out of the building was that he was going to be the franchise guy. If you’re saying, “Hey, we’re not going to pay Sam Darnold, who’s a Super Bowl champion now,” what are we doing as a front office? How are we going to keep allowing this? This is just across the league.”
Everything that Parsons is saying here makes total sense, but there are some other factors that have to be considered. McCarthy's time in Minnesota obviously hasn't gone as planned, so cutting ties with him sooner rather than later did make some sense.
The Vikings as a whole have also made some really good decisions in the past couple of years, and considering Kevin O'Connell is one of the best quarterback coaches in the NFL, it feels like this wasn't a short-sighted decision.
The decision is over with now and neither party can do anything about it, but it'll be interesting to see how McCarthy's career progresses out in New York.
