Micah Parsons sounds off on NFL officiating of defensive players

Dallas traded their star edge rusher to Green Bay a week before the start of the 2025 NFL season. Now a Packer, Parsons has helped Green Bay’s defense to a top-10 standing in points allowed entering Week 7 of the season.

At 3-1-1, the Packers are at the top of the division two weeks after their bye. But things could be better. Parsons spoke today about how he’s officiated in the NFL as he enters his fifth season in the league.

“Five years of not getting a call, you eventually stop worrying about it,’ he said. ‘I think I just got to keep going… that’s part of the challenges. Like, you just got to keep going. And that’s bothersome. That’s worries them, they know that. Part of being one of the best, it comes with some territory where [there are] parts that you hate and parts that the league lets go.’

Parsons elaborated on what specifically NFL referees are calling one side of the ball versus the other.

‘You can tell how they call the games. They don’t call offsides for offense, but they’ll call it on defense,’ he said. ‘They won’t call offensive pass interference, but they’ll call defensive pass interference immediately. Like, we know what they’re trying to do. They want to load the points up so fans can be happy. They’ll call defensive holding but they won’t call offensive holding.

‘Let’s just wake up. It’s just one of those things that we know with the higher-ups [are] trying to do. The [referee] will say ‘I know that’s a hold’ but what, like, you’re not going to call it? Come on. It’s just one of those things that I’m over and I’m just have to keep going, push through.’

Parsons acknowledged he may be fined for his comments but was willing to speak his mind.

During Green Bay’s Week 6 win over the Cincinnati Bengals, tight end Noah Fant poked Parsons in the face while run blocking late in the second quarter.

“Like, what are we doing here?’ Parsons said. ‘A guy can consistently keep putting his hands in my face. This was blatant. It literally popped a blood vessel in my face. I changed my whole facemask. I have to protect my face. It’s brutal.”

Parsons has drawn three penalties this season: two holding calls and a hands-to-the-face penalty. His mentality going into games hasn’t changed much this year.

“They’re going to call what they’re going to call,” he said. “All we can do is hope we get called a fair game. Like I don’t care what the fans want sometimes. If your team holds, they should get better tackles, better guards… don’t blame it on us.”