Packers' Micah Parsons reflects on classy Aaron Rodgers gesture from rookie season

The main storyline for the upcoming "Sunday Night Football" game between the Green Bay Packers (4-1-1) and the Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2) centers on quarterback Aaron Rodgers facing his former team, which he played for from 2005 to 2022.

However, the matchup will also be special for Green Bay pass-rusher Micah Parsons.

What classy Aaron Rodgers gesture meant to Micah Parsons

As The Athletic's Matt Schneidman shared on Wednesday, Parsons was playing for the Dallas Cowboys in the fall of 2022 when Rodgers approached him after Green Bay had won in overtime. The future Hall of Famer wanted to swap jerseys with the 2021 first-round draft pick who had earned the Defensive Rookie of the Year Award. 

"To me, it’s a great sign of respect," Parsons recently said about Rodgers' gesture. "Just the type of guy he is, that he could recognize such a young player in the league, so I have nothing but respect for him, and he’s become one of my favorite players just because of that moment … The football side, I’m ready to get my rematch, but the personal side, I appreciate 'Rodg' for that because that gave me a boost of confidence. He just said 'keep going' and how much he believed in me, so that was big. He didn’t have to do that." 

While the Steelers' offensive line did well to protect Rodgers over their past two games, Parsons recorded three sacks in Green Bay's 27-23 Week 7 victory over the Arizona Cardinals. Much has changed since the last time Parsons and Rodgers faced each other on the field. Both are now with different teams, and Rodgers, at 41, is in the late stage of his career, having dealt with numerous injuries over the past few seasons. 

Micah Parsons has Aaron Rodgers goal in mind for Packers-Steelers showdown

Parsons isn't shy about the fact that he has a ton of respect for Rodgers. That said, the 26-year-old also wants to be able to say that he sacked the all-time great at least once before Rodgers retires. 

It's unclear if Rodgers will play beyond the 2025 campaign. 

"He’s 1-0 against me for sure," Parsons added during his comments about Rodgers. "I never got him either. I think I came down to Lambeau my second year and he came back and won … I’m excited to play him. Rodgers, he’s one of my favorite quarterbacks of all time." 

As of Wednesday morning, ESPN BET had the Packers as 3.5-point road favorites for Sunday's primetime game.