Cowboys' Micah Parsons shares bold take on Jets' Zach Wilson

Dallas Cowboys star pass-rusher Micah Parsons got a good look at Zach Wilson of the New York Jets earlier this month and defended the struggling quarterback ahead of what could become a career-altering weekend for the 24-year-old. 

"This isn't a walk-in-the-park job," Parsons explained during the latest edition of his "The Edge with Micah Parsons" podcast, per Tzvi Machlin of The Spun and Sam Neumann of The Comeback. "...Quarterback is one of the hardest positions in the NFL and you expect a third-year guy, who got benched last year and say, 'Hey, we’re gonna take Aaron Rodgers.' His focus might’ve been there. We don’t know what his focus is, his mental is like when the whole trade happened, how guys treated him. And a lot goes into how much you want to give to this team." 

The Jets landed Rodgers from the Green Bay Packers this past spring after head coach Robert Saleh benched Wilson multiple times last season. New York then lost Rodgers to a torn Achilles in Week 1, and Wilson failed to impress across his two starts ahead of this Sunday's game between the 1-2 Jets and 2-1 Kansas City Chiefs. 

In the 30-10 loss at the Cowboys in Week 2, Wilson completed only 12-of-27 passes (44.4%) for 170 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions. Parsons tallied a pair of sacks in that contest. 

"His team needs to give back to him and pour into him so he can be the guy they want him to be," Parsons added about Wilson. "And if they can't, there's a bunch of free-agent guys." 

The Jets have Tim Boyle, an unproven 28-year-old who thus far has attempted just 106 career regular-season passes, as their primary backup as journeyman Trevor Siemian learns the playbook while on the practice squad. Saleh may have to start either Boyle or Siemian over Wilson at the Denver Broncos on Oct. 8 to avoid a locker-room meltdown if the 2021 first-round draft pick falls flat on his face against Kansas City in front of a prime-time television audience and an angry MetLife Stadium crowd. 

0-3 Denver plays at the 0-3 Chicago Bears on Sunday afternoon.