'Big Second-Year Jump!' Can Cowboys LB Micah Parsons Be Stopped?

Micah Parsons came second in Defensive Player of the Year voting in his rookie season with the Dallas Cowboys.

The rookie season of Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons was something just short of miraculous. Parsons wasn't just the NFL's Defensive Rookie of the Year, but in legitimate Defensive Player of the Year conversations all season as well. Steelers edge rusher TJ Watt won the Defensive Player of the Year award, but Parsons came second in voting and received more nominations than Aaron Donald.

Now, Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy says Parsons is primed for a "big second-year jump."

"Obviously Year 2, and how people look at him and how they’ll have to game plan against him. We’ve had a whole year to implement the schemes around that and make sure we’re giving him the opportunities he needs," says McCarthy. "He’s definitely put himself in the position to take a big second-year jump."

The thought of Parsons taking a "jump" from the performance he had last season is an intimidating one for opposing defensive coordinators. Parsons last season displayed his ability to get after opposing quarterbacks, coverage ability and he flew to the ball as an off-ball linebacker as well.

"When you see Micah, you get to see ... he’s lost a little weight. He’s had a really good offseason," McCarthy stated at Cowboys training camp. 

McCarthy also outlined how important it is to evaluate impact over statistics while measuring Parsons' success in Year 2.

"That may not show up statistically, but it’s really his impact [that] would be a big part of our defensive success," McCarthy explains.

Nonetheless, Parsons does have a statistic in mind for year two: 15. When talking about his sack goals for next season, Parsons set high expectations.

"Yeah, 15's like the minimum. 15's what I wanna hit," Parsons told CBS Sports. "But definitely 23 is that goal, to break the record."

With Cowboys camp now under way, McCarthy has big plans for the budding superstar in Dallas. ... and foes have a big challenge in trying to stop him.

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