Micah Parsons defends New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson after his Sunday Night Football performance
The New York Jets may have come up short against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday Night Football, but you won’t find many people blaming Zach Wilson for it. After all, Wilson played perhaps his best game as a pro, posting a 105.2 passer rating.
Despite that, former Patriots defensive back Rodney Harrison made some unprofessional comments about Wilson in NBC’s post-game. The former Patriot called Wilson ‘garbage’ and tried to prompt Chiefs’ DT Chris Jones into saying negative things about the Jets quarterback, too.
Rodney Harrison tried to bait Chris Jones into saying something bad about Zach Wilson
Chris Jones instead used the opportunity to praise Zach Wilson for his performance tonight.
Respect to Chris Jones.
(@stefanskifan)
pic.twitter.com/bwhhGFS88X— JPAFootball (@jasrifootball) October 2, 2023
The Chiefs DT didn’t take the bait, and Harrison (rightfully) received severe backlash for his lack of professionalism. Since then, Harrison has apologized, but that hasn’t stopped a bevy of athletes from coming to the defense of the Jets quarterback. Count Dallas Cowboys EDGE Micah Parsons as one of those defenders.
Parsons tweeted about Harrison’s comments shortly after the game.
Broo honestly I’ll never understand media!! This platform should been a moment to praise the chiefs and they win!! This guy is trying to completely trying tear Zach Wilson down !! I don’t get it!! I honestly hope Zach proves a lot of these people wrong! https://t.co/wEeNDaNW9q
— Micah Parsons (@MicahhParsons11) October 2, 2023
The Cowboys defender also addressed the issue on his podcast, The Edge.
“We can’t keep saying someone’s garbage, who’s special, who’s not special. Now, if you’re a really good football player—is Chris Jones a really good football player? Yes, Chris Jones is a really good football player. Is he a better player than Zach Wilson? Yes, but Chris has built himself upon that. We’re not giving that same courtesy to Zach Wilson. Let him grow. He’s continuing to get better each week.
Micah Parsons stands up for Zach Wilson after Rodney Harrison bashed him on SNF ✊ pic.twitter.com/x3IV6rFHWQ
— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) October 2, 2023
To me, that’s a fraudulent move,” said Parsons in regards to Harrison’s comments towards the Jets quarterback. “Everyone deserves a chance to be better—even me … Zach Wilson is special in his own way. You can’t look at the tape and say he’s garbage. You can say he’s not a Mahomes-tier, yeah you can say that. But you can’t say that he’s a good quarterback. He’s a starting quarterback in the NFL.”
The Cowboys EDGE then offered a challenge to the former Patriots defensive back.
“Rodney, if you can show me you can [play quarterback in the NFL], then you do it if you’re so good,” challenged Parsons. [Wilson] was a top-five pick. He got drafted that high for a reason. Let his traits and everything he does grow.”
Parsons finished his impassioned rant by providing words of encouragement for the Jets quarterback, wishing well on Wilson and hoping that the signal-caller can reach his potential despite the naysayers.
“Zach if you’re out there, I hope you win,” Parsons said. “I really do. I hope you grow into the player that no one thinks you can grow into. There’s a lot of people that are hating on you. Hall of Famers, ex-pro players, which makes no sense. I get we all love the game of football. But Zach is a human being … We don’t use our platform to degrade other players … Everybody in this world just needs someone to believe in them.”
This isn’t the first time Parsons has given his support to the Jets quarterback. After the Jets’ 30-10 loss to Dallas in Week 2 that saw Wilson throw three interceptions, Parsons deflected criticism of the quarterback and instead offered support.
#Cowboys LB Micah Parsons says it's time to give #Jets QB Zach Wilson some grace:
"This isn't a walk-in-the-park job. There are only 32 starting jobs in the NFL for a reason."
More on #PFN365: https://t.co/LN6EG954my pic.twitter.com/yp9d8khOFu
— Pro Football Network (@PFN365) September 29, 2023
Time will tell if Zach Wilson will ever live up to the hype of a second-overall draft pick. But one thing is apparent: he has the right people in his corner going forward.
