The Penn State pipeline provides a direct link to greatness as rookie Dani Dennis-Sutton leans on All-Pro Micah Parsons for the mentorship needed to dominate for the Green Bay Packers.
Pass-rusher Dani Dennis-Sutton already has a leg up as a rookie with the Green Bay Packers.
Sure, he's going to have to work as hard as any other fourth-round pick in the NFL, and yes, he has no guarantees of success at the professional level. He was great over the past two seasons with the Penn State Nittany Lions, but just like any other rookie, he's going to be diving into the deep end known as NFL football.
He also seems keenly aware of the expectations that are going to be placed on him in Green Bay. Several elite pass-rushers have worn green and gold over the years.
That's a list that features Willie Davis, Reggie White, Clay Matthews and Julius Peppers.
Oh, and there's now that Micah Parsons fellow to consider. Dennis-Sutton will have a unique connection to Parsons, both having played at Penn State.
"Once I got the call from Green Bay, Wisconsin, I knew I was going to be coming here, and I was super excited," Dennis-Sutton told the media at rookie minicamp over the weekend. "There's a tradition of defensive players -- obviously, Micah is here, everybody knows that. Just the lineage of defensive players here, so I was super excited."
Parsons, from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, played at Penn State from 2018 to 2020. Dennis-Sutton was there from 2022 to 2025.
Green Bay's newest pass-rusher revealed that Parsons reached out to him as soon as the Packers drafted him. They already knew each other because Parsons had gone back to his alma mater a few times. In fact, Dennis-Sutton has already solicited advice from the three-time All-Pro.
The superstar pass-rusher also had some advice for the rookie on their post-draft phone call.
"Just be ready to work is the biggest thing he said," Dennis-Sutton revealed. "Don't worry about anything outside of working. I'm here for the team, whatever the team needs me to do. I'm ready to work. That was really his advice."
We already know that Parsons is a massive culture-setter. Outside of Jordan Love and maybe running back Josh Jacobs, there's nobody else in the Packers locker room who really feels like the "heartbeat" of this team. Heck, it's unquestionable that in terms of star power, Parsons has more of it than anyone else.
He's a star, but he's also humble and approachable.
He took pass-rusher Lukas Van Ness under his wing last season, and we know he's been training with young up-and-comers Barryn Sorrell and Collin Oliver this offseason.
And therein lies Dennis-Sutton's advantage as a rookie in the NFL. If he's got nobody else in his corner throughout the course of the 2026 season, he undoubtedly will have Parsons behind him.
That's just the type of leader Parsons is anyhow, but for a fellow Nittany Lion pass-rusher? You just know he's going to be personally invested in Dennis-Sutton's success.
That's a benefit to not only the young man out of Penn State, but it's a benefit to the Packers as well.
Checking in at 6-foot-5, 265 pounds, Dennis-Sutton totaled 23.5 sacks and 34.5 tackles for loss in four seasons in Happy Valley.
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