OXNARD, Calif. – For the last few days, Micah Parsons has found himself standing next to Dak Prescott quite often.
And no, that's not two of the superstars having lengthy conversations – that's actually in the middle of the play.
That's what happens when Parsons gets into he backfield so fast, he's waiting on Dak to throw the ball, knowing that he certainly can't make contact with the quarterback – or anyone wearing the red jerseys – but he's undoubtedly disrupting the play. And he's been doing it more and more the last few days.
"I'm in rhythm now," Parsons said. "The first few days (of camp), I hadn't played in seven, eight months. (But now), I know my angles. I feel like I'm in Week 4 right now. I'm in the backfield all day.
If I'm in rhythm, there's nothing they can do. They might as well start chipping, sliding, or it's gonna be a long day here."
Parsons credits the change to the majority of the defense now being installed. When he first got to camp, defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer was still installing some of the packages and blitzes.
"Before, everyone was in partials, right? They just wanted to see certain things and we were running just normal (down-and-distance)," Parsons said. "But now, the third-downs, second-downs, it's everything. And this is what it's going to look like. Everything is in now. If they don't chip (block) me, there'll be five or six sacks every day. It's pretty much, I'm going to tell you right now."
Since he got into the league back in 2021, Parsons has been listed as a linebacker, and still is on the Cowboys' current roster. But he's been primarily a pass-rusher off the edge, recording three straight years of at least 13 sacks.
In Zimmer's new scheme, Parsons will likely line up all over the place, from the edge at defensive end, to all three linebacker spots. But make no mistakes, Parsons is still rushing the quarterback, just from different parts of the field.
"It's all about angles," Parsons said. "I love (rushing from different places) it. But it doesn't matter, I'm going to get there."
Several times already in practice, the Cowboys have continued the play, despite Parsons already getting next to the quarterback for a would-be sack. And even the sack-hungry Parsons understands that it's important to extend the play.
"Now they said they're just gonna leave guys out there to see where they are, because they got to see where they at," Parsons said, referring to the receivers continuing out the play. "I'm just trying to make the team better, that's it. But I feel like I'm in shape now. The first day (of practice) I was dog tired. Now, my body is adjusted to it."
And it's leaving the offenses having to adjust to him.
