The Cowboys’ original plan with the No. 10 pick of the 2021 draft was to select either South Carolina cornerback Jaycee Horn or Alabama cornerback Patrick Surtain II. Of course, both of those players were off the board by the time Dallas was on the clock, so the club traded down and ultimately landed Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons, despite its existing LB depth.
All Parsons did was put together a remarkable rookie campaign in which he posted 13 sacks, 20 tackles for loss and 30 quarterback hits while playing both linebacker and defensive end. (Just one game into the season, the Cowboys were to forced to move Parsons to DE due to a DeMarcus Lawrence injury and Randy Gregory‘s placement on the reserve/COVID-19 list.) His efforts earned him NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year honors, and he became the first player to ever win that award by unanimous vote. He also finished second to Steelers edge defender T.J. Watt in NFL Defensive Player of the Year voting.
On top of all that, Parsons hyperextended his knee during a joint practice with the Rams in August, and he played the entire 2021 season while suffering the effects of that injury. “It was at a point where I was like, ‘I’m in a position battle,'” Parsons said. “‘I’m going against Jaylon (Smith). The first game is coming up soon.’ I was like, ‘This is the worst time for this to happen,'” via Jon Machota of The Athletic (subscription required).
Parsons added, “It’s something that just kept lingering. When you hyperextend something, it needs rest. But I was like, ‘I can’t take no rest.’ The whole season I kept rehabbing, rehabbing, rehabbing so that way I could play in the games.” The 22-year-old also noted that while medication helped, he was in significant pain after games.
A fully healthy 2022 campaign, along with natural progression and development, might allow Parsons to secure a DPOY nod next year; he will certainly be on the short list of favorites heading into the season. But the Cowboys will need to supplement their LB corps just the same. That above-referenced depth at the position is no longer a reality, with Leighton Vander Esch and Keanu Neal set for free agency and with Smith having been released in October.
Fellow LB Jabril Cox, a 2021 fourth-rounder, appeared in seven games last season — primarily in a special teams role — before suffering a torn ACL, which could put the start of his 2022 season in jeopardy.
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