Cowboys’ Micah Parsons shows love to fellow All-Pro Myles Garrett

For Dallas Cowboys star Micah Parsons, he’s likely spent plenty of time watching some of the NFL’s top pass-rushers over the years. And from the way he talks about a few specific players, it’s apparent the respect and appreciation he has for their game.

One name that stood out from Parsons’ recent comments was Cleveland Browns star Myles Garrett. But the praise the 24-year-old had for the former No. 1 overall pick was unique in the fact that it was focused around something both players have to deal with often thanks to their on-field dominance — Garrett’s ability to dominate against double-teams.

Parsons discussed Garrett’s talent while showing him love during his own evaluation of what it’s like facing multiple blockers at a frequent rate, which he detailed to Calvin Watkins of The Dallas Morning News.

“You always love the double-team and people talk trash, like, ‘Yeah, you not doing nothing,’ ” Parsons said. “But I would say it’s the ultimate term of respect, man. If you feel like you got to do more for me than anybody else, you just respect me more. I just take it as that. And they want to get into my head, but I’m like, ‘Bro, I’m here, you dealing with me. Like I’m not dealing with you.’ You feel me? “It’s just mostly respect and you just got to take it and guys like [Cleveland’s] Myles Garrett get it, and that’s why I respect Myles Garrett’s game. He deals with the double-teams. They know how dominant he is, versus other guys you may not see that.”

Parsons’ mindset on double-teams being a way the opponent is showing you respect is dead on, but it’s also a testament to how game-changing he’s been throughout the first two years of his career. Garrett, who’s been named First-Team All-Pro twice and Second-Team All-Pro twice while making four Pro Bowls, was pacing toward a similar start to his career in relation to what fans have seen from Parsons, making the respect from the Cowboys star even more noteworthy.

Garrett tallied seven sacks and nine tackles for loss in 11 games during his rookie season in 2017 while totaling 13.5 sacks and 12 tackles for loss during his second year. Parsons played in all 16 games as a rookie, leading to 13 sacks and a stellar 20 tackles for loss, while following that up with 13.5 sacks and 13 tackles for loss in year No. 2.

If Parsons’ trajectory continues in the direction it’s currently going, it’ll be tough to debate between the two careers when all is said and done. But all things considered, there’s little question that Parsons has the potential to go down as one of the NFL’s greats and to be able to say that about a player after just two seasons is a major tribute to his impact.